Topological Right and Left when buffering polylines

[MalcolmLittle]

Hello,

I'm trying to grasp what the "topological" left and right are on a map/cartesian plane. To give an example, I am trying to buffer a polyline - a SW-NE oriented street - on only its right side if one was traveling toward the southwest corner. The Side Type option is the option I am interested in understanding, and am looking for advice on how to interpret its directionality.

[JimCousins · Accepted solution]

For a polyline object, left vs right is determined based on the direction of digitizing. So, if the line was created from north to south, the left side would be east, and if it was created starting in the south and ending in the north, the left side would be to the west. 

Regards,

Jim