A little while back I bought a Japanese keyboard to use with my laptop while docked. It's a Microsoft Basic Keyboard 1.0A, with 109 keys. Not only does it have more keys than a standard US keyboard, but the layout is slightly different (such as the location of the apostrophe ' and at-symbol @ keys)....

It may sound strange, but odd-numbered years always bring me better fortune than even-numbered years. Sorry, I won't elucidate. I've returned to the United States for the holidays to visit family and friends. Having spent the previous 9 months living in Japan, I've wondered how this experience has changed...

TechEdは火曜日に始まりましたが、授業があったので、私は水曜日に名古屋から行きました。初めに参加したセッション はVisual Basic 2005でした。Visual Basicを手伝って作ったので、発表会を見るのは楽しかったです。Visual C#セッションとVisual Basicセッションの出席者数は同じぐらいでした。Visual C#はもっと人気があると思ったから、びっくりしました。私はVBのほうが好きなので、ちょっと嬉しかったです。:) 木曜日、河端さんに招待してもらいましたから、INETAのComegaセッションに参加して話せました。何を言うか考えました。心配したけれども、大丈...

I've finished my last session for the day here at TechEd. Right now I'm staring out over Yokohama Bay where the expansive Yokohama Bay Bridge dominates the view. I attended the VB 2005 session this afternoon to see what the audience was like and what kind of topics were discussed. The room, which sits...

This week I will be attending TechEd 2004 Yokohama . The event runs from Tuesday, Sept. 7th, but I'll be heading out on Wednesday in time to attend the VB and C# sessions. Not sure exactly what to expect since everything will be in Japanese (I still feel like an absolute beginner despite my efforts to...

A week ago three classmates and I went to the Nagoya Sumo tournament and the experience was simply amazing. For those of you who think Sumo wrestling is a bunch of obese half-naked men pushing each other around, well... you're right. But that's about as useful a definition as "a lot of men on bikes"...

Had a great time in Tokyo last week. Used Freespot to find some places with free wireless access, among them Cafe la Voie and Mixing Cafe . Also went to a meeting of the Tokyo PC Users Group where I heard an enjoyable presentation on the application of the electromagnetic spectrum to weapons technology...

After three grueling months of Japanese language study, I'm ready for a break. Thankfully, summer vacation is coming! All next week I will relax in the quiet and peaceful expanse called Tokyo. But what to do? Cool cafés, restaurants, shops... any suggestions? I want to skip the major tourist attractions...

From my city's Offical Guide to Reducing Trash in the 21st Century. Sorting trash is not fun. I'd rather let the garbage collector do it.

(Next post will be about VB, honest! :) So far I've had 15 days of Japanese language class. I try really hard to refrain from using English when in the building, but sometimes it's necessary. There's only so far a conversation can go when the participants only know how to say "I ate food yesterday...