Problem: Can not write in Japanese and English using Wordpress. Characters display as ? ?? ???
I was trying to figure out how to write in Japanese on my Wordpress blog. All Japanese characters were coming up as question marks, appearing like “????? ? ?? ???” instead of characters. I searched for a solution to this and found a few plugins that did a ton of unnecessary things, and some didn’t work. I tried out Gengo but I didn’t like it very much. However if you’re reading this for a solution on how to write Japanese and English or translate your page it might work well for you! Here’s the link to Gengo.
If you’re running Wordpress 2.2 or higher, then the Collation should be set correctly. Here’s a link to their documentation, and here’s an excerpt.
As of WordPress Version 2.2, DB_COLLATE was made available to allow designation of the database collation (i.e. the sort order of the character set). In most cases, this value should be left blank (null) so the database collation will be automatically assigned by MySQL based on the database character set (i.e. DB_CHARSET). Set DB_COLLATE to one of the UTF-8 values defined in Unicode character sets (utf8 section) (see dev.mysql.com) for most Western European languages.
Now if you are running an older version, or you upgraded from an older version, or for some reason things aren’t working out I’ll post my solution below. Continue reading ‘Wordpress in Japanese and English’
I’d like to get away from Microsoft Outlook and just use Gmail for all of my email. I really like the hosted email service they currently have. My only complaint is that this is my personal gmail account and if I send a business related email it’s going to say: <me@gmailaccount.com>; on behalf of; BizName [bizemail@thatemail.com]
Let’s face it, the majority of business use some form or Outlook for the email client. And the two latest versions show the on behalf message which can look either suspicious or unprofessional. I did some looking into this and I found this
How do I customize the ‘From:’ address on outgoing mail? Continue reading ‘Gmail’s “Sent on behalf of” message’
I know this might get long so before I start I’ll give you a summary so you don’t die of boredom. I’ll talk about what I’m eating, why I’m eating it, how things are different, oatmeal, and 15.7 Yen!
Breakfast in Japan is very different from what I’m used to in America. After arriving here when I ate breakfast it was usually a variety that changes daily. Sometimes it was toast… but huge pieces of bread aka ‘Texas Toast’. Other times it was a bakery breakfast sandwich that tastes more like lunch to me. Sometimes it was rice with mackerel. And sometimes a restaurant style breakfast which includes pancakes, eggs, and some bacon. When I ate breakfast alone and I was on my own I would to end up with some toast or some fruit (as a side note - bananas kick ass!) and some coffee.
What food am I used to in the United States? I would usually whip up some instant oatmeal (I’m a big fan of this), cream of wheat, cereal, or some toast with peanut butter. I usually included 8 oz of orange juice (236 ml) and 20 oz of coffee (591 ml). Albertsons usually had the 10 for $10 deal that included a good selection of cereal, granola bars, or instant oatmeal. Continue reading ‘Breakfast in Japan’
I saw this 1TB hard drive advertised today for $279.99 which made me a bit jealous of my friends in the U.S. They can pick one of these up at any time… but they won’t know what real ramen is like… booya! If you’re in the United States right now you should check this out.
BestBuy has the Hitachi 1TB DeskStar SATA Hard Drive with 32MB cache, retail box, $279.99, and free shipping. Nice. Here’s the link.
I know after you see this you’ll be rushing down to the local coop to grab as much of this as you can! How does it taste you ask? Well… I haven’t tried it… but I did take a picture of it. This is the first time I’ve seen this and it’s pretty different. I’ve had sea urchin sushi (not very good) and I can just imagine what creamy sea urchin soup tastes like (bleh!)..
Not sure what a sea urchin is? Here’s a brief explanation. They’re tiny sea creatures in the shape of a ball with 1-3cm spines sticking out but they’re not that sharp. I’ve eaten it on sushi and it looks disgusting to me… brown ish… with a taste that I don’t care for. Continue reading ‘Sea urchin cream soup’
I was check out YouTube today and found an awesome commercial for the Legend of Zelda on the Super Famicom. First I watched the video and felt joy. Second I sat in front of my computer for about 30 seconds. Third I went “WTF is a Super Famicom?” Fourth I Googled it and found out that it’s basically the same thing as the Super NES aka Super Nintendo. Nice!
Here’s the video:
Here’s some more info on wtf a Super Famicom is.
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System or Super NES (also called SNESa and Super Nintendo) was a 16-bit video game console released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia, and Brazil between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the Super Family Computer, Super Famicom (スーパーファミコン, SÅ«pÄ Famikon), or SFC for short. In South Korea, it is known as the Super Comboy and was distributed by Hyundai Electronics. Although each version is essentially the same, several forms of regional lockout prevent direct compatibility.
NOVA Corp is the Japan’s largest English conversation school chain. And for those who teach English in Japan and are employed by Nova I say… DOH! I read the news back in April of 2007 when Nova got busted for breaking the law (they refused to refund tuition fees to students who canceled their contracts.) And recently people have not been getting paid for their work. Today things have gotten worse and Nova has filed for protection from the courts.
I wonder what this means for current employees and their work visas. Not only that but if an employees income stops or is slowed it could mean trouble for their living expenses. Damn.
Check out the news from Yahoo
Nova Corp , the largest operator of English language schools in Japan, said on Friday that it has filed for court protection from creditors amid efforts to turn around its business.
Following the company’s announcement, the Jasdaq Securities Exchange said it would delist Nova’s shares on Nov. 27.
Nova, which operates over 900 schools in Japan, posted net losses for the past two business years and said it held a total 43.9 billion yen in debt as of July.
More on this:
Aussie teachers lose jobs in Japanese school shutdown
Google News
Nova applies for court protection from creditors; president missing, 4 execs resign
Scandal-tainted school Nova granted court protection from creditors
Halloween is just around the corner! Lulu is ready to go door to door asking for some dog treats.
A friend of mine sent me a link to some cool wallpaper pics taken here in Japan. I thought I’d pass the link on to whoever was looking for the same. They come in two sizes - 1280×1024 and 1024×768
Page 1 - http://wallpaper.neonsight.com/
Page 2 - http://wallpaper.neonsight.com/page2005.php
Some time ago I found the site SeatGuru.com. It helps you plan your trip by giving you the layout of each aircraft from numerous airlines. They help you know the difference between superior and substandard seats which is great when booking online. I’ve used this a few times while booking my flights, you should check it out!
(If you want to read about reviews with different airlines check out the topic Airline Review.)
Using SeatGuru and checking online exactly 24 hours in advance could score you the ultimate seat at the regular price! I always set my alarm 24 hours in advance (even if it’s 4am…) to make sure I can change my seat if needed and this has definitely made my flights more pleasurable. Continue reading ‘Best Airplane Seats and Airline Information’
