Introduction: The Legacy Localization Challenge Oracle Developer 6i (Forms and Reports) paired with Oracle Database 10g remains a critical legacy stack for many government, banking, and educational sectors across the Middle East and South Asia. However, a recurring nightmare for developers is ensuring that Arabic (Right-to-Left, Unicode) and Urdu (Perso-Arabic script with special characters) render correctly.
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ORACLE\KEY_Dev6i_Home Add or modify these string values: Step 4: Column Definitions for Urdu Text When
NLS_LANG=ARABIC_UNITED ARAB EMIRATES.AL32UTF8 NLS_SORT=ARABIC NLS_DATE_LANGUAGE=ARABIC export NLS_LANG NLS_SORT NLS_DATE_LANGUAGE : Even though NLS_LANG says "ARABIC", using AL32UTF8 allows Urdu characters to pass through. Step 4: Column Definitions for Urdu Text When creating tables for Urdu documents or names, always use NCLOB or NVARCHAR2 : BEGIN v_check := :block.urdu_field
| Component | Setting | Status | |-----------|---------|--------| | DB Character Set | AL32UTF8 | ☐ | | NLS_LANG (Server) | ARABIC*.AL32UTF8 | ☐ | | NLS_LANG (Client/Developer) | ARABIC*.AL32UTF8 | ☐ | | Windows System Locale | Arabic/Urdu | ☐ | | Developer Home Registry | FORMS60_CHARACTER_SET=AL32UTF8 | ☐ | | Fonts Installed | Arial Unicode MS / Urdu Fonts | ☐ | | Form Visual Attributes | Right-justified, RTL reading | ☐ | | Reports Destype | PDF for printing | ☐ | | Test String | مرحبا، اردو: ے، ڑ، ں | ☐ | While Oracle Database 10g and Developer 6i are long past their support dates, they remain stable workhorses for organizations reluctant to modernize. Enabling proper Arabic and Urdu support requires discipline: use AL32UTF8 on the database, coerce Developer 6i via registry keys , and handle RTL logic in your triggers. coerce Developer 6i via registry keys
ifrun60.exe module=my_form.fmx NLS_LANG=ARABIC_EGYPT.AL32UTF8 Even with configuration, your PL/SQL code inside Developer 6i must handle RTL and bidirectional text. 1. Forcing Right-to-Left Display Add this to the WHEN-NEW-FORM-INSTANCE trigger:
CREATE DATABASE arabic_urdu_db CHARACTER SET AL32UTF8 NATIONAL CHARACTER SET AL16UTF16 ... Set these in the Oracle 10g environment ( .bash_profile or registry):
DECLARE v_check VARCHAR2(100); BEGIN v_check := :block.urdu_field; -- Basic check for Urdu Unicode range (U+0600 to U+06FF) IF NOT REGEXP_LIKE(v_check, '[\u0600-\u06FF]') THEN MESSAGE('Please enter Urdu/Arabic text only'); RAISE FORM_TRIGGER_FAILURE; END IF; END; Never mix Left-to-Right (English) and RTL text in one field without the Unicode RTL mark (U+200F). In PL/SQL: