Frequently Asked Questions
This is a list of questions I see over and over again, and to be honest, it gets really annoying to answer it so many times. It's not that they are stupid questions, but rather I just hear them so very often. So please, before emailing me or posting it on one of the message boards on my links, look these over first.
I'm trying to learn Japanese. Where do I start?
Obviously, you have no idea what webpage you're on. My page is a place to start. Just go to my main page and click on the "Learn Japanese" link. Then just read through my lessons as you wish. There are other books and things to use too. I will have to add a list of books I found helpful to my site later on.
Can you please tell me what [enter word here] means?
Ok, for translations of single words, please refer to
http://linear.mv.com/cgi-bin/j-e/dict
This is an exellent online dictionary. You can also look up individual kanji there.
Can you please tell me what my name is and what it means in Japanese?
Though I'd like to tell everyone how to say their name in Japanese, I just don't have the time. Also, when you render your name in Japanese, you are just approximating it using the Japanese syllabry. If you want to know what your name in Japanese is, then take the sounds in your name and try to find the closest equivant using Katakana; that's all there really is to it. Also, most people DO NOT take kanji names and therefore their names DO NOT have any special meaning. I know it's dissapointing, but even if you did have a kanji name, foreign-based kanji names don't really make much sense anyway.
Can you please translate something for me?
It really depends on what it is you need help with. If you want me to translate something because there is an element of grammar you don't understand, then I will be more than glad to help you. But, if you want an entire song translated or something and you haven't put any effort towards doing it yourself, then I will not do it by myself. If you want a translation, I want you to try and translate as much as you can before sending it in to me.
Can you please tell me a few swears or slang words?
Well, swears are part of the language, but I'm not going to sit around constructing vocab lists for a single person. Perhaps I will write a lesson on certain slangs and swear words, but that won't be until I get the rest of the site going.
Can you explain to me the differences between WA and GA?
These are one of these things where I explain it on my site as best as I can, but a lot of it is just getting used to it.
How do I display Japanese characters on my computer?
This is a very common question. Please don't ask me this one. There are a number of programs you can get to display the fonts. Here are the two most common ones:
NJ Star
NJ star has a couple different programs that you can use to display Japanese fonts. It has also word processor so you can type in Japanese and save your work.
Microsoft IME
I use Microsof Japanese IME. It is a free upgrade you can get for internet explorer at www.microsoft.com
How do kanji work?
This will all explained on my kanji chapter. Please refer back to there instead of emailing me on them. You can still ask me questions related to kanji, I just don't want to hear "what's an ON reading?" That's all.
Email Me
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