1.  If you computer has a Japanese font on it, then you can set your browser to use that font when it encounters Japanese webs sites.

For recent versions of Netscape Navigator, go to "View", "Character Set", and  select "Japanese (Auto-Detect)".

If this you still can't see the Japanese characters properly, it maybe be that Netscape does not know where to find the Japanese font.  If this is the case, go to "Edit", "Preferences...", and click on "Fonts" in the "Appearance" category.  Make sure that the correct font is specified for Japanese encoding.  If it's not, then use the pop-up menu to select the right font.

For recent versions of Internet Explorer, the process for selecting the Japanese character set is the same.  ("View", "Character Set".)

If you need to specify a font to be associated with Japanese encoding, go to "Edit", "Preferences..." and then select "Languages/Fonts" in the "Web Browser" category.  Make sure the correct font is associated with Japanese.

(Some versions of Internet Explorer will automatically offer to download and set up the appropriate language pack when you encountere a different language on a web site.)

2.  Another and perhaps easier way to view Japanese on your computer (if you have a PC, not for Macs) is to download a helper program like NJStar that will convert all Japanese encoding gibberish to the correct characters.

To obtain NJStar,  go to http://www.njstar.com/ and download a demo version of NJStar Japanese.

3.  An even more advanced option (for Windows users) is to download Microsoft Global IME from http://www.microsoft.com/Windows/ie/Features/ime.asp.  MS IME allows a Windows user to input and read foreign language text on the computer.

To add a Japanese font to your computer (if you have the font file), place the the font file in the Font directory of  your System folder.

If you have any other questions or problems, please contact Stephen Elliott (BR '03).