Re: `C-b' is backward-char, `left' is left-char - why?

[Eli Zaretskii]

> From: David Kastrup <address@hidden>
> Date: Fri, 03 Jun 2011 17:14:54 +0200
> 
> > What do you mean by the "current direction"?
> 
> Reading direction at point (possibly split into reading direction to the
> left of point's screen position, and reading direction to the right of
> point's screen position).

I'm actually very happy this is not what is needed, because otherwise
we'd need to perform a large part of reordering for moving in the
buffer (because you cannot always trust the display to be up to date).

And that is even before we talk about the ambiguity (which you mention
above) on the L2R/R2L boundaries, which would need to be resolved by
some complicated features on the user level.  These are nicely avoided
by the current behavior.

> >> This is what Hebrew writers expect?
> >
> > Yes.
> 
> Weird.

The idea is that <left> moves forward when the paragraph direction is
L2R, and <right> moves forward in R2L paragraphs.  But they both move
in the reading (a.k.a. "logical") order, which in Emacs means in the
direction of increasing character positions.  Moving in strict visual
order (i.e. always left or right on the screen) is also possible, but
less desirable, because that's not the order in which people read the
text.

But what you suggest is neither visual nor logical order, so it seems
to be the worst of both worlds.  I, for one, have trouble predicting
where I will wind up, and need to think carefully before I give the
right answer.  That's not a good UI, IMO.