August 6, 2007

Hello Community Members,

It has been a couple of weeks since our last issue. I hope the month of August finds you well.

Summer is well and truly here in Japan. The temperatures are hovering around and frequently above 30 degrees Celsius here in Kyushu, the humidity is not letting up, and the cicadas are in full chorus.

Like the British, the Japanese start almost every conversation with a comment about the weather. I love summer, but most Japanese, it seems, are not too keen on it. The typical greeting I get nowadays is 暑いですね (atsui desu ne), meaning "It's hot, isn't it!", or 今日は蒸し暑いですね (kyou-wa mushi-atsui desu ne), translating as "It is so humid today." To emphasize the agony, these words are usually coupled with pained facial expressions. I usually grin cheerfully and answer そうですね！ (sou desu ne, "Don't you know it!").

Have Fan, Will Travel

In the hope that an errant breeze will come along, the pores in your skin produce sweat, but during the sultry days of August, the sweat has a hard time drying. In a brave attempt to keep you cool, it just oozes out and sticks to your skin...which doesn't help at all. You stay hot, get sticky, and (most people) feel miserable. There's no doubt about it: Japan is HOT and HUMID in late summer. If you're an 暑がり (atsugari, someone who can't stand the heat), stay close to your air conditioner in the afternoon! Or, if you have to go out, at least take a fan with you.

When I say a fan, I mean an uchiwa 団扇, a non-folding fan like the one on the left. In these dog days of summer, most people don't waste their frantic hand wafting energies on a sensu (扇子, a folding fan).

You will find many free uchiwa being given out on city streets and at summer events as an advertising tool for companies—definitely worth taking and sticking in your bag for later use. I am still suspect of the effectiveness of the advertising on the back though—the last one I picked up was for a sewage consulting company (their job is a topic for a future Community News!)—but, you can never have too many uchiwa lying around, as sometimes they are the only way to create a breeze. Next time you find yourself at the mercy of summer heat, grab the nearest uchiwa and flip it over to read who you have to thank for the momentary relief.

Obon Holiday: No Classes at JOI

Our online school will be closed for the お盆休み (obon-yasumi) August 13, 14, and 15 (Japan time). Obon is a big holiday here in Japan, when many people return to their hometowns and spend time with their families. During this 3-day holiday, the chat rooms will be open and support staff will respond to emails, but there will be no classes.

Note to trial-lesson students: If your trial lesson package (good for 2 weeks) includes these three days, we have automatically added three extra days to your package expiration date. Enjoy!

Support Tips

	About the Alternate Rooms: Every JOI classroom has an alternate room, which is used in case of problems or maintenance with the original classroom. Occasionally during class, there may be a problem with the classroom servers. In this case, the teacher will instruct you to change to the alternate room. You can find the URL for each classroom's alternate room at the top of the text chat. If the teacher instructs you to change classes click on the URL, and go to the new room. Note: The alternate room URL is also shown on your Current Reservations page next to the classroom name. In other cases, your class time may coincide with the regular (but randomly timed) maintenance routine. During the maintenance routine, the classrooms are emptied with a message like: "This is room is about to be rebooted : You will be ejected from this room" Don't panic—just go to the Alternate Room. If you don't have enough time to click on the alternate room URL before being ejected, you can find the URL on your Current Reservations page next to the classroom name.
	Are you having problems hearing in the classroom? Have you checked that your headphone volume is turned up and that the jack is in the correct plug-in of your computer? For more info, please read this FAQ.
	Is your classroom exhibiting strange behavior (clicking noises, delays, and so on)? If McAfee anti-virus or other security software is installed on your computer, it may be interfering with the classroom software. Please read more here.
	The classroom software is not Unicode-compatible. To be able to type and see Japanese in the text chat area of the classroom, you need to install a simple utility application from Microsoft. For details, please check here.
	A hint to make sure you're heard in the classroom: After finishing what you have to say, keep the button pressed for just a second longer. If you release the button too soon, your last word or two gets clipped off.
	Don't be shy! Take a minute and add your comment to the Message Board. Other JOI students would definitely like to hear your take on Japanese culture and language.

Thanks, students, for helping make JOI a great place to learn Japanese online!

If you have other questions, be sure to check out the FAQs, or if you don't find an answer there, write me at support@japonin.com.

Regards,
 
Moses
JOI Support