5. Language and reading direction #

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The components carry interface labels of their own: context menus, dialog buttons, dockable panel actions, toolbar tooltips… Those strings are translated by the library, without you having to supply them.

5.1 Choosing the language #

The language is global to the process. Set it once in the application object, before the first window opens:

// open event of the application object
PBT_SetLanguage("fr")

The dictionary is injected before the first render of each component: no English label flashes before the translation appears. Switching on the fly is possible — every open component is relabeled immediately.

// Language switch from a menu in the application
PBT_SetLanguage("de")

A language cannot be set component by component: an application displays one language at a time. This is a deliberate choice (interface consistency), unlike the theme, which can be overridden locally.

5.2 Adapting a label: of_set_translation #

You are not locked into the dictionaries we ship. of_set_translation(key, text) overrides an interface string, taking priority over the language dictionary:

// Business vocabulary: say "panes" rather than "panels"
uo_dock.of_set_translation("dock.float", "Detach the pane")
uo_dock.of_set_translation("dock.autohide", "Hide the pane")
uo_dock.of_set_translation("dock.closePanel", "Close the pane")

Two use cases:

• Adapting the vocabulary to your application's business domain ("panes" rather than "panels", "branches" rather than "groups").
• Serving a language we do not ship: set your own translations key by key, in whatever language you need, from your own translation table.

// Feed a custom language from your own translation repository
uo_dock.of_set_translation("dock.float", of_traduire("DOCK_DETACHER"))
uo_dock.of_set_translation("dock.show",  of_traduire("DOCK_AFFICHER"))

The override is set on the instance; it is cancelled by of_reset().

Key families #

Keys follow the <domain>.<name> pattern. The main families:

💡 To find the exact key behind a label, open the demo application in English and then in another language: the string that changes is the one from the dictionary. The complete key list ships with the library.

5.3 Reading direction: left-to-right / right-to-left #

For languages written from right to left (Arabic, Hebrew), a single call flips the whole application:

// open event of the application object
PBT_SetFlowDirection("rtl")     // "ltr" by default

What this changes in every component, present and future:

• the natural alignment of text and labels;
• the order of columns, tabs and toolbar buttons;
• the side of icons, expand arrows and chevrons;
• the side of scroll bars and side panels;
• the direction of drop-down menus and popups.

// Switch on the fly
PBT_SetFlowDirection("ltr")

Like the theme and the language, the reading direction is injected before the first render: a component created after the switch is born in the right direction.

⚠️ The reading direction only applies to PBToolboxAI components. The native PowerBuilder controls on your windows (edit fields, DataWindows) remain your responsibility.

5.4 Writing RTL-ready code #

Mirroring is automatic for the layout. It cannot be for the values you set yourself: if you hard-code "left", it will be on the left in both reading directions.

That is why every placement property in the library uses logical values rather than physical ones:

They are exposed as constants, to be read on the object you are assigning the value to:

// Text alignment, position of a banner...
uo_titre.is_align      = uo_titre.ALIGN_START
uo_onglets.is_position = uo_onglets.POSITION_START

The families involved: ALIGN_START / ALIGN_END (statictext, statusbar, picture), POSITION_START / POSITION_END (tab, dockcontainer), MARQUEE_START / MARQUEE_END (statictext).

The old physical values "left" and "right" are still accepted everywhere: your existing code keeps working exactly as before. They are simply frozen — they will not flip in rtl.

The two deliberate exceptions #

Some placements have no "start of reading": they stay physical, and that is intentional.

• Toaster — a toast is a system window anchored to a corner of the screen. POSITION_BOTTOM_RIGHT designates a physical corner, not the end of a line of text.
• Drawing surfaces — org chart, flow diagram, node graph, image cropping: there you place elements at x/y coordinates. A Cartesian plane does not flip with the language; only the labels inside it follow the reading direction.

5.5 Summary #

The three global settings — theme, language and reading direction — are set together, in the same place:

// open event of the application object
PBT_SetLicense(gs_titulaire, gs_cle_licence)
PBT_SetDefaultTheme("fluent-light")
PBT_SetLanguage("fr")
PBT_SetFlowDirection("ltr")
PBT_Warmup()

Open(w_principale)

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