A extendable method for including display rendering metadata within Unicode character streams. Metadata is distinct from character data, even though it is embedded in the Unicode character stream using tag mechanism. The method allows for an unlimited number of tag identifiers. Legacy Unicode methods such as Bidi, Normalization, and Line Breaking, can be recast using the invention in a more manageable context according to the metadata framework, thereby allowing the methods to be detectable, reversible as well as convertible. The traditional Unicode Control Layer is eliminated because the syntax of controls are captured universally by the new Metadata Layer, irrespective of whether the control relates to presentation or pcontent. By replacing the indistinct boundary separating characters and control with a well defined division, applications that rely on Unicode are easier to develop and to maintain.