What are common mistakes developers make with right-to-left scripts?

When developing applications that support right-to-left (RTL) scripts, developers often encounter challenges that can lead to common mistakes. Understanding these pitfalls is crucial to ensure a smooth user experience for RTL language speakers.

Common Mistakes:

  • Ignoring text direction: Failing to set the correct text direction using CSS properties such as direction: rtl;.
  • Misalignment of UI elements: Keeping left-aligned layouts which can confuse users. Adjust margins and paddings accordingly.
  • Inadequate testing: Not testing with actual RTL content, leading to layout issues in real-world scenarios.
  • Static layouts: Designing fixed width layouts that don't accommodate varying text lengths in RTL languages.

Example:

<div style="direction: rtl;"> <p>مرحبا بكم في موقعنا!</p> <p>نرجو أن تجدوا المعلومات مفيدة.</p> </div>

right-to-left scripts RTL development UI alignment text direction web development challenges