Category Archives: hi, tech

As of today, I’ve lived in Japan for two years and nine months, and in that time I’ve done a lot of things: traveled around the country, met interesting people, eaten unidentifiable foods. I’ve lived here for so long, in fact, that I only have two months before they kick my wife and I out. Despite all of the experiences I’ve had in my first 2.75 years, though, I’ve realized that there are roughly one billion things I haven’t done that I need to squeeze into the next 0.25 years.

Many JETs are likely in the same situation. Between working, preparing to leave and trying to enjoy the warm weather before it gets too warm, lots of folks are finding their schedules filling up fast. For some, this isn’t a problem; they just go with the proverbial flow and do what they can, when they can. Me, I’m a planner, so I’m making lists and marking calendars to make sure I get everything done. You might remember that I’m also a technophile, so many of my lists and calendars exist only as bits on my computer.

One item on my current to-do list is “write article about electronic organization.” Since I love checking things off of lists as much as I love putting them on, here’s a quick survey of some of the tools I’ve used (or have looked into using) to keep myself at least marginally organized in my last few months here. Not every tool will work for every JET, but one or two may fit your needs well enough to make sure you don’t miss anything important before you leave. (If you’re not leaving in July, I suppose you could use these tools, too; just don’t go bragging to me about the free time you have on your Google Calendar from all the not-packing-boxes you’re doing). Continue reading →

(Note: This week’s “Hi, Tech” is brought to you by Arita JET Sergio Pena, whose well-timed article on computer security saved me from having to dream up something to write about this week. Also, there will be no “Hi, Tech” next week because of the Golden Week holidays. If a “Hi, Tech” is written and no one is around to read it, is it really written? — Nicholas)

Computer security. These two words echo throughout the internet, but do you really know what they mean? Sure, you might have heard about viruses, spam, identity theft and the like, but do you know how to protect yourself and your beloved computer from the cesspool that is the internet? In this article, I hope to establish a baseline definition of certain terms and to enlighten you on this very important — but often overlooked — aspect of technology.

Let’s start off with the basics, shall we? Continue reading →