language

[Patrick]

I use to be able to type something in English than highlight it and change
font to Japanese and it would convert it. I am currently using Work 2000
(9.0 8968 SP-3) and don't have that font available. I have family in Japan
that don't write English and I don't write Japanese and would like to keep
in touch. Is there an easy way to convert to and from Japanese?

 

[trip_to_tokyo]

Try this:-

http://translate.google.com/#en|ja|

If my comments have helped please hit Yes.

Thanks.

 

[Patrick]

Thanks. I take it Word does not have a add-on available to convert
languages. Do you know of a good software to convert languages, maybe
something I could use to learn the language of Japanese. For instance, I
want to say have a nice day, it would translate in Japanese but in English.
Example: Thank you=Arigato

 

[Peter T. Daniels]

Please don't talk about "converting languages." What you're talking
about is _translation_ -- and the computer doesn't exist that can
translate adequately from one human language to another.

Word does offer "translations," but if you don't know the language
you're translating into, so that you can correct its very simple-
minded output, it will be worse than useless, since it's unlikely that
the recipient will be able to figure out what you intended, unless
they know the language you wrote it in and can figure out what the
computer must have started with to end up with what it did.

If what you're talking about is typing Japanese using the regular
alphabet (Romaji), then there's no problem -- the computer can change
it into Hiragana. (But if you want to use Kanji, you'll have to pick
out the characters yourself from the small selection the computer
offers you.)

If you enable the Japanese IME in Windows, some fonts of Japanese
characters will become available. To do that, go to Start > Control
Panel > Regional and Language Options.