DE-J's Monthly Newsletter, January 2004

IN THIS ISSUE -> From the Editor -> Notes from the Steering Committee -> Upcoming Events -> Feature Article -> Recent Events -> Q & A: Interview With A DEva

/:/:/:/:/:/ THE DIGITAL DIGEST /:/:/:/:/:/

The Monthly Newsletter of DigitalEVE Japan

Promoting women's digital lifestyles by
offering a supportive community and
programs tuned to women using IT in their
workplace and in their everyday lives.

http://www.digitalevejapan.org

............................................

1 January 2004

/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/

This monthly newsletter is a membership
benefit of DigitalEVE Japan and is sent
through our mailing list, de-japan. If
you wish to cancel your membership with
DigitalEve Japan, please follow the
unsubscribe instructions at the end
of this issue.

/...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../.....
IN THIS ISSUE

-> From the Editor
-> Notes from the Steering Committee
-> Upcoming Events
-> Feature Article
-> Recent Events
-> Q & A: Interview With A DEva

/...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../.....
FROM THE EDITOR
Ailsa Wylie
newsletter@digitalevejapan.org

As winter settles in and the holidays approach,
it's natural to reflect on the year that has
passed. For me it's been full of challenges,
and I look forward with relief to a chance
to relax over the holidays and start fresh
in 2004. But I remind myself that I chose
this situation. I chose to live independently
here in Japan. Sometimes it's not easy, but
I'm never bored. And I've found wonderful
friends whose support has been invaluable.

However, around the world, there are
people whose lives are much harder. Often
they didn't choose their situation and
have few options to change it. The roots
of many of these difficulties lie in some
form of cultural conflict, whether it's
racial, religious, or economic. The cycle
of history is hard to break.

In DigitalEve Japan we come from many
different backgrounds. We are privileged
to find common interests through which
we can get to know each other. I believe
that the friendships developed in this way
are often the most genuine. Even if we
rarely meet face-to-face, we always have
something to talk about that crosses
cultural boundaries.

So, let's take a moment to appreciate the
opportunity we have, not only to learn
new skills but also to make friends - the
greatest asset in the world!

Happy Holidays, everyone!

/...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../.....
NOTES FROM THE STEERING COMMITTEE

/../.....
Leader Report
Misao Kajiro
Interium leader for December and January

"Happy New Year" to everyone!

There are so many problems in the world,
and no one is totally immune to them.
However, when I meet many of you there
are certain things that calm me down and
make me feel the importance of getting to
know each other, bridging the gap between
our nationalities. Working together, helping
others, shows us that we have the same
hopes and dreams.

I received a card from an ex-member who
went back to US to study again. She was
teaching English here for long time, and
a member of our group for 4 years. She
was always seeking something else to
improve herself and her life, and decided
to go back to University to get an MBA in
her 40s.We all thought it must be so hard
to study again but after a year and a half
she made it!

She says in her card. "You have received
this graduation announcement because
you are part of the reason why I am here.
I couldn't have 'advanced in the direction
of my dream' if not for your support,
encouragement, love or belief in me. It
has been a daring adventure indeed! I
most certainly CONGRATULATE MYSELF!"

She encourages us as well and I wanted
to share her step toward her dreams
with you at the beginning of the New
Year.

We've got an exciting year of events
coming up - but we need YOUR ACTIVE
PARTICIPATION to make it happen!
Make this your year to get involved!
Please contact us and tell us what
kind of help you can offer.

Looking forward to seeing you at our
events and on the mailing list.

Thanks & have a nice holiday!

/../.....
Membership Team News
Misao Kajiro, Membership Coordinator
membership@digitalevejapan.org

Total membership is 555 as of December 19th.

We are planning to hold the next Meet the
DEvas in February and will send the details
to the main list.

We are still looking for a librarian for DEJ
library. If you are interested in helping as
a librarian for IT books please contact us.

/../.....
Workshop Team News
Reiko Ohashi, Workshop Coordinator
workshops@digitalevejapan.org

We are planning to have 4 workshops and 1
retreat in the next year. The most difficult
part of arranging workshops is finding
tutors and venues. I sent a questionnaire to
the members who had agreed to teach, but
never had any opportunity to find out when
they can really do it. I hope to announce
the details of the February workshop and
March's Digital Evening soon.

/../.....
Tech Team News
Junko Matsuo, Tech Team Coordinator
tech@digitalevejapan.org

Meeting DE-J members was always
inspiring for me last year. Thank you
very much. Let's fire DEvas with the
desire to learn more from each other
this year again! We'd like to offer
good opportunities for you (and
ourselves!) to feel that way.

The Tech team started 2003 with
a message from Kristen, the former
coordinator, titled "Happy Zope Year!".
Well, there's little doubt that my first
post this year will feature Zope again!

/...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../.....
UPCOMING EVENTS

/../.....Upcoming workshops

There will be a workshop & a Meet the DEvas
event in February, and a Digital EVEning in
March. Please watch the mailing list for more
details!

/../.....
More info on DigitalEVEnts:
http://www.digitalevejapan.org/page.php/en/Events
To register for a DigitalEVEnt
send an email to: events@digitalevejapan.org

/...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../.....
FEATURE ARTICLE:

Virtual Makeovers
By Audrey Oei

Tis the season to be pretty! All those in
favour of making a change in their style or
looks, please read further. With the holiday
seasons and the New Year's resolutions to
tackle, there are also new hairstyles, trendy
make up products and new accessories to
try out. And as technology advances,
women become more consumed in work
and other events that we have less time to
indulge in window-shopping or makeovers.
There are on-line dating services, on-line
shopping and now on-line makeover
solutions! With one click of your mouse you
will be on your way to a whole new you.

To get the best results, you should have a
picture ready to upload onto the servers.
The pictures should be you with your hair
tied neatly back and with a solid background.
After minutes, you can be fiddling with your
new look on an interactive web application.
Here's a link to the sample site
http://www.makeoversolutions.com/
courtesy of Approach Infinity (AI-media).

The application itself is running on Flash
that is cross browser compatible and all the
content information is stored in XML files. The
backend is running MS SQL database and IIS.
AI-media has in-house programmers, coding
and constantly striving to enhance the
functionality of its application.

One of the problems, which have surfaced
during the design of this product, is the
heavy traffic that Flash requires to facilitate
this type of web-interface application. The
more complex it becomes, the more CPU
intensive the application develops into. For
the future, AI-media would like to achieve
true cross platform performance to allow this
application to become faster and more
powerful, adding multiple features to satisfy
the growing demands to a more web-savvy
audience.

Also with the help of powerful digital camera
integration software and exclusive facial
mapping technology, this application has
become one of the most innovative in its field.
To truly experience the impressive capabilities
of this makeover tool, submit your picture and
see for yourself!

/...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../.....
RECENT EVENTS

Apple Opening
By Meghan Shaw

On November 30th the first Apple Store
outside of the USA opened in Ginza. I'm
sure that I was not the only one there who
made a long trek to get a first hand look.
When I arrived around 4 pm there was still
a line up almost two blocks long.

The store itself is a sleek-looking structure,
and the interior is no different. When I
entered the store I was greeted by the full
range of Apple computers set up in neat rows
waiting to be explored.

My reason for attending the opening was to
find myself a nice new laptop, a task that
has caused me some grief in Japan. I was
very impressed with the multilingual staff
who answered my many questions without
hesitation.

All in all it was an impressive event, but I
only managed to stay a short time because
of the overwhelming crowd looking to get
their hands on the fun new toys.

/../.....
Bonenkai Recap
by Debra Foster

Even though I have been a member
for over a year, the DigitalEve Bonenkai
was the first event that I have attended.
Up until now, I have only lurked on the
email list, absorbing what has been
discussed, but too chicken to participate
myself. What I found out when I went to the
Bonenkai is what I have been missing
out on.

I met a group of dynamic, intelligent, fun
women (who were kind enough to speak
mostly in English, even though I was the
only foreigner in attendance). And then
there was the Monja Yaki. Although the
restaurant was a bit far, even for the
people who live in Tokyo, the food was
great and cooking at the table was a great
conversation starter. Most of what was
discussed was related to getting to know
one another, but some good ideas were
discussed for the coming year. I think
everyone had a good time, and I am looking
forward to seeing everyone again.

The Bonenkai was not just fun. It helped me
to make a personal connection with
DigitalEve to feel like a part of the group.
I encourage everyone who, like me just
lurks on the list, to take a chance and come
out to the next party, workshop or seminar.
You will be amazed at what you have been
missing out on.

/...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../.....
Q & A: INTERVIEW WITH A DEVA
Interview conducted by Koko Iwata
Newsletter Co-Editor
newsletter@digitalevejapan.org

This month we interviewed Chiharu Kawai,
a long-time volunteer, who translated the
December book review, and a member
from the Webgrrls days.

Q. If you are not from Tokyo, where are you
from originally and when and why did you
relocate to Tokyo?
A. I was born and raised in Nagoya. I went to
the U.S. to study for about 3 years
immediately after I graduated from a university
in Japan. After returning to Japan, I worked for
foreign companies' projects in Nagoya for a
couple of years. However, after that, I couldn't
find any job at all in the conservative city,
which made me finally move to Tokyo. After
working for a foreign distributor of electronic
parts for a few years, I went back to school
in the U.S. for a business degree. After
graduation I worked in the U.S. for about 6
years and came back to Tokyo 4 years ago.

Q. How long have you been a member of
DigitalEve Japan?
A. When I was working in the U.S., my work
colleagues recommended Webgrrls, so I joined
Webgrrls Japan right after I came back to Japan.
A year later, the entire group of Webgrrls Japan
turned into DigitalEve Japan. I've been a DEJ
member since.

Q. How did you find out about DigitalEve Japan
and why did you decide to join?
A. As I have just mentioned, I migrated to
DigitalEve Japan with all the other former
members of Webgrrls Japan. Since I had
worked in the IT industry for many years, I
was interested in an international IT
organization for women.

Q. What DE-J activities/resources have you
participated in? Of these, which do you find
the most advantageous and why?
A. I participated in workshops and various
events in the past. The best ones I have ever
had include such events as speaker
presentations and the "Lifestyle" conference,
though these kinds of events haven't been
organized for some time. They were
well-planned, and a good number of people
participated. I guess most new members
don't know, but we did have these exciting
activities in the past. I'm hoping that these
activities can be somehow revived.

Q. Are there any other activities and
resources you would like to see offered by
DigitalEve Japan?
A. I hope we could hold the kind of events that
may attract more participants. Something
unique and interesting! Also, I would like to see
more socially significant events happen.

Q. What are your interests in digital technology?
A. Internet-related technologies, of course! In
my business, I currently deal with e-mail
marketing software. Nowadays there are a lot
of web- or browser-based software
applications and databases out there which
can be shared by multiple users over the Net.
Even for the telephone, this is the age for IP
phones. I'm also interested in Internet-related
multimedia technologies.

Q. What kind of computer do you use?
A. At home, I use a small mobile type VAIO
(Win ME Japanese) and an old Dell laptop (Win
98 English). In my office, I have an NEC desktop
PC (Win XP Professional Japanese). I used to use
Macs all the time in my web designing course,
so it would be nice if I could have a Mac as well.
I wish I could have a new computer, but I can't
afford one now.

Q. Are you a member of any other
technology-related groups and if so, which
ones?
A. No, I don't belong to any other IT
organization.

Q. Please tell me a little bit about where you
work and what your responsibilities are.
A. I worked mainly for foreign companies from
the early 1980s and could always work in the
most advanced systems. I think I was very
lucky. The first computer I used was an
Apple II (a long time ago!).After that, at a
Japanese company, I used an IBM 5550
(that very popular one, right?) as a word
processor(!), and in the mid-1980s I was
working in the LAN environment and using
EasyLink (Western Union's early e-mail).
Windows came out when I was in the U.S., and
I got connected to the Internet and began using
e-mail in the early 1990s. Over the past 10
years, I worked for a telecommunications
company, software companies, and a
localization company, in which I could learn
state-of-the-art technologies. I became
independent this last March and set up a
branch office of the marketing service
company in L.A. founded by my acquaintance
(a grad of the same biz school).

Q. Do you have any favorite software programs?
If so, why?
A. I have used a number of software applications
in the web designing classes and at work.
Among the ones I have at home, Paint Shop
Pro, Animation Shop, and MS Publisher are my
favorites, I guess, because I like creative
activities. I understand that many older
Japanese men like Excel for some reason. I
like Excel too.

Q. What is your favorite computer-related
activity? (for example, games, email, surfing
the net, etc.) Do you have any other hobbies?
A. In my private time, I like creating simple
private websites, designing cards using the
photos I take and the illustrations I draw, and
creating slide shows on PowerPoint. My other
hobbies include music, cooking, painting &
drawing. As I have played and sung in bands
from time to time since college days, music
is sort of like "food" for my life even now.
Lately, I have been into the blues harp
(harmonica) and play the harp and take up
vocals too. I also play the guitar and
keyboards sometimes. I have always loved to
draw ever since I was a child, and I do like to
create or design something using computers.
Cooking is also "art"- right? That's why I like it!

Q. What is your favorite website and why?
A. Personally, I often access such websites as
Tokyo Food Page
http://www.bento.com/tokyofood.html and
AllAbout Japan http://guides.allabout.co.jp/.
At work, I access numerous websites daily. But
I always think there must be far more great
websites that I haven't come across.

Q. Name three things you will always find near
your computer.
A. Printer, scanner, router...

Q. How long have you been a volunteer with
DE-J?
A. If I remember right, I think it was when they
first recruited volunteers. I'm still a member of
the volunteer Translation team, and even
before I became the media coordinator, I was
helping the Media team as a volunteer. So, it's
been about two years now.

Q. Why did you decide to become a volunteer?
A. As you are aware, an organization like this
is dependent upon volunteers, so I just wanted
to contribute as much as I could. Furthermore,
in my case, I'm not an engineer but have worked
in IT as a business person for a long time and
have overseas experience, therefore I thought
there were many things I could do for this
organization.

Q. What DE-J volunteer activities have you been
involved in?
A. At this moment, I am Media Coordinator and
a member of theSteering Committee, as well
as a member of the volunteer Translation Team.

Q. What ideas do you have for the future of
DigitalEve Japan?
A. Well, we definitely need stronger leadership
and more energy from the members. Like I said,
I am hoping that we will have some socially
appealing events as well as grass-roots activities.

/...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../...../.....
SUBMISSIONS TO THE NEWSLETTER

Have an announcement to make?
An article to submit for consideration?
(We can't pay you, but we'll give you a byline.)
Please send your submissions in plain text
format to newsletter@digitalevejapan.org.
The deadline for the February newsletter is
January 15.

The Digital Digest is brought to you by the
Newsletter Team: Cara Dailey, Noriko Hasegawa,
Chizuko Heyer, Koko Iwata, Misao Kajiro, Sugiko
Obata, Audrey Oei, Meghan Shaw, Stacey Ward,
and Ailsa Wylie.

.....Copyright 2004 DigitalEve Japan, All Rights Reserved.....