iOS 17’s Notes has a Hebrew typing problem, as with other right-to-left scripts

Notes on iOS is a great app for writing down any and everything from random thoughts to shopping lists – but what good is it, if it doesn’t let you write from right to left? There are reports that on the newly released iOS 17, the Notes app has a buggy cursor movement and conduct upon trying to write in Hebrew, Arabic or other right-to-left scripts.

A report from AppleInsider is noting the problem, and there’s also a complaint on X to Apple Support, stating that “Text orientation from right-to-left is not functioning properly and text doesn’t align to lines”.

Naturally, you want your cursor at the end of the word. If, for example, you are typing in English or French (from the left to the right), you expect the cursor to be at the furthest right, and contrariwise, you expect it to be in the left, if you’re using a right-to-left script (Hebrew, Arabic and several more).

The report says that while typing straight without edits, sentences and words come out normally, “but you're typing blind when it comes to the cursor position”, which is not a minor inconvenience.

If you want to add another word in the middle of an already-typed sentence, you’re gonna have a tough time right now. The newly added word will appear on the right-hand side at the start of the sentence. Backspacing is also a problem since the cursor is treated as if it's on the right margin.

All of that means that users have to get the sentence right the first time… because editing right now results in a serious mess.

“We’d like to help. Send us a DM using the link below and tell us more about what’s going on. Let us know if this is happening with new notes, previously existing notes, or both. The more detail you’re able to share, the better equipped we will be to assist”, says the response from Apple Support on the issue. If you encounter bugs, too, do it and forward them as much information as you can.