Comme ça du Japon

The most difficult thing in learning Japanese is probably learning the multitude of Kanji. If with some effort and perseverance, it is quite possible to learn how to read the Japanese Kanji, it’s much harder to learn how to write the Japanese Kanji. The main reason being that there are very few circumstances where you actually need to write Kanji by hand. Most of the time you will just work on a computer and use it to transform the reading of a Japanese word to its writing in Kanji. Even the Japanese have to resort to using their mobile phone to check how to write some of them. As far as I am concern, I usually rely on the computer or on my electronic dictionary that I always carry with me. However, there are some situations where the use of such devices is either forbidden or inappropriate. I am thinking of note taking during a meeting at work, or more radical, the occasional examinations in one’s business carrier. In the first case, I skip the most difficult Kanji and just write them in hiragana or translate on the spot in either English or French. For the examinations that are not based on a mark-sheet, there is no escape. So I took the decision to practice the writing of Kanji before facing such a situation. For that, I got a Nintendo DS with a bunch of softwares.

In the next few days, I will review each of the software that I bought. Here is the list :

• 漢検 (KanKen)DS2 + 常用漢字辞典 (JôYô KanJi JiTen) “Kanji test DS 2 + Usual Japanese Kanji dictionary” by Rocket Company
• 漢検 (KanKen)DS “Kanji test DS” by Rocket Company
• 漢字記憶術 (KanJi KiOku Jutsu) “The art of Kanji memorization” by LukPlus
• 大人の漢字練習 (Otona No KanJi RenShû) “Kanji training for adults” by Nowpro
• 正しい漢字 (TadaShiI KanJi) かきとりくん (KaKiToRi Kun) “Correct writing of Kanji” by ShôGakKan
• 200万人の漢検 (NiHyaku ManNin No KanKen) とことん漢字脳 (ToKoToN KanJi Nô) “200 millions people’s Kanji test - a thoroughly approach to Kanji” by IE Institute

If you have a question, feel free to post it to the comments. I will do my best to answer them when reviewing the Nintendo DS softwares for learning the Japanese Kanji.

According to the weekly report from Google Analytics, there seems to be a lot of people looking for Sony’s slogan. Here is the list of the slogans used by Sony :

• “Sony - a worldwide brand born in Japan.” (1959)
• “Research Makes the Difference.” (1959)
• “It’s a Sony.” (1988)
• “Go create.” (2001)
• “You make it a Sony.” (2003)
• “It’s not a trick, it’s a Sony.” (2003)
• “like.no.other.” (2005)

While we are at it, I will give you the 経営理念 (KeiEiRiNen) “company motto” of Sony. The last sentence is tough to translate. If you have a better translation feel free to use the comment form.

人のやらないことをやる。

Do what others won’t.

他に一歩先んじる最高の技術を発揮する。

Be one step ahead of others and display the most advanced technologies.

世界を相手にする。

Make the world a partner.

自己能力を最高度に発揮させる。

Give one’s best.

一切の秩序を実力本位･人格主義の上に置く。

Put all rules above personality and skills

If you did not find what you were looking for, feel free to request it in the comments !

If you happen to live in Japan for a while, you will soon or later have to deal with the ザ・法典 (Za HôTen) “Great Book of Rules”. If it’s written in the Great Book of Rules, you can forget about invoking the common sense in a discussion. There is no discussion to have about the validity of a rule. If others have decided a rule, they did so for a good 理由 (RiYû) “reason” whatever that can be. You are also guaranteed to be the only person to care about said reason so don’t bother asking. Anyway a rule is not to be explained but applied.

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