Arabic in Photoshop CS3 in Mac OS X

June 15th, 2008 by yaman | Posted in Code |

If you have had difficulties typing Arabic text into Photoshop, I have created a Google Code project to develop an open-source script that will provide a solution: Arabic4MacPhotoshop. The Photoshop Script that I wrote will enable Photoshop users to create properly shaped Arabic text in Photoshop graphics.

Currently, Arabic text in Photoshop on Mac appears as disconnected characters in backwards-order (pictured to the right). My script, which does not work in all cases and may require some additional fiddling on the part of the user, will automatically convert Arabic text you have entered into Photoshop into legible Arabic script. It will automatically remove all diacritic marks from your text and create individual text layers for each marking, so that you can position them in the correct spot above the appropriate letter. Unfortunately, I don’t know of any simple way to avoid this extra step for the time being.

What this script does is evaluate Arabic characters to determine what the correct shape should be, whether it is at the beginning, middle, or end of a word, and what the preceding character is. It then converts the Unicode representation in memory to the one for the specific ligature rather than the base character. It will then create a new Text Layer with the “fixed” text, as well as additional layers for any diacritic mark (fatha, domma, kasra, shaddeh, etcetera). If you wish to edit your text after this point, you must repeat the process and edit the original, disconnected, backwards text, rather than the “fixed” text. Otherwise you will run into problems.

While this script does not solve all issues, it provides an alternative fix for probably an overwhelming amount of Arabic work that needs to be done in Photoshop. One solution for Mac Photoshop users is this $1,700 modified application which supposedly has completely integrated Arabic functionality as well as other features. I have never used this program since it is more expensive even than the original Photoshop. The other option is to use the free and open-source program the GIMP, which works on Windows, Linux, and Mac, and fully supports Arabic text.

If you are interested in viewing or contributing to the source code for this project in order to make future improvements, please visit the project site: Arabic4MacPhotoshop. Also feel free to report any problems and suggestions so that they might be improved. As this script is released under the GPLv3, any and all revisions must in distribution include the source code in its entirety, and commercial use or reproduction is prohibited.