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I'm working on a text written primarily in English, but with occasional short passages in Hebrew. Switching directions works fine for simple prose (thank you, Mellel!), but it goes haywire whenever parentheses enter the picture. If, for instance, I need to type the sequence

580 (ז) [followed by a comma], then 582 (י״ב) [followed by another comma], then 590 (top)…

the numerals and the parenthetical references start hopping all over the place in ways I can’t control with RTL or LTR instruction from the Character menu, or any other tactic that has occurred to me.

Is there a way to outwit the application’s determination to alter the order in which I'm typing things?

yes, AKMA, it can get a bit messy combining RtL and LtR numbers and punctuation.

You need to learn to use Insert/Breaks/Direction Changing Space.
Since this is a space and not simply a direction change command, some planning ahead may be required.

To achieve your example, type the following [assuming you have defined a character with both English and Hebrew fonts)
-- starting out with the text direction set to LtR and the keyboard set to English input, type
580 (
-- switch the keyboard to Hebrew input and type
ז
-- switch the keyboard to English input and type
), space 582
-- here comes the tricky part: insert direction changing space, switch the keyboard to Hebrew input and type
(י״ב), note this is ( and ) and , as they appear on the Hebrew keyboard

Takes some getting used to, but it works.

Janet

Thank you, Janet! I considered it a triumph when I located the RtL option in the Character Attributes>Options menu; I had not noticed the Direction-Break Space item as well. I will admit to wishing there were just a <span> X </span> command I could invoke, but this is what I needed to learn.

EDIT: Evidently whatever I did to this particular footnote utterly corrupted the file. Will be starting over from a fresh file — though this time I’ll proceed directly through the typing as Janet instructs.

When I first started with Mellel, I made a lot of mistakes, particularly where mixing RtL and LtR text was concerned.

Eventually, I started all over with a special set of character/paragraph/section/page styles that suited my needs.

There's always a learning curve . . . and a very good feeling once you have it all figured out.

Janet