Digital Digest February 2007

/:/:/:/:/ 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 February 2007

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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.

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IN THIS ISSUE
-> From the Editor
-> Rota Leader Report
-> Membership Team News
-> Web Content Team News
-> Upcoming Events
-> Interview with a DEva
-> Announcement

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FROM THE EDITOR

Stacey Ward, English Newsletter Editor
<newsletter@digitalevejapan.org>

What are your Google-habits?
This month's interview with Timothy Ralston, got me thinking.
I'm forever using the "did you mean..." feature as a
spellchecker, lazily typing in my approximation of how a
word might be spelled in the search field to get prompt
correction; but did you know that the search field is a
calculator too?

Just in case there is even one DEva out there who has yet
to discover more of Google search's full potential, here
is a link to a list of shortcuts to get tips on how to
improve your search technique (lazily, without clicking
through to the "Advanced Search" and messing around with
pull-down menus). Check it out and you'll wonder how on
Google Earth you ever put up with all those pages of
irrelevant search results.
http://www.google.com/help/cheatsheet.html

You can also use operators like "site:" limiting your
search to one site alone, or "link:" a way to find out
which sites have links to your (or any other) site. My
favourite feature has to be "define:" through which we
can all enjoy appearing far more knowledgable than we
really are.

Aside from search-field tricks, if you sign up for a
Google account you have access to an ever-increasing
number of features and applications like Google Docs &
Spreadsheets. http://www.google.com/intl/en/options/

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NOTES FROM THE STEERING COMMITTEE

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ROTA LEADER

Leader's Report

February is normally the coldest month in Japan, but it has
been quite warm this year, hasn't it? How are some of you
snowboarders and skiers doing? The famous Snow Festival in
Sapporo is starting on February 6th this year, but I hear
that the main street of the city did not have enough snow
and that they brought snow in trucks from nearby mountains.
Well, this year, again, we will continue to organize
interesting and useful events for our members.

This month, we are planning to have a Meet the DEvas
Details will be announced later. In March, we will likely
have another graphic workshop and also a wine tasting party,
which will be a brand new event, toward the end of the
month. So please stay tuned and join us in these upcoming
events!

Chiharu Kawai
Rota Leader for February
<media-j@digitalevejapan.org>

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MEMBERSHIP TEAM NEWS

Misao Kajiro, Membership Coordinator.
<membership@digitalevejapan.org>

Total membership is 706 as of January 28th, 2007.

Four new members joined in January.
Bonnie, Therese, Timothy, and Koko, welcome to
DigitalEve Japan.

I went to a Shinto shrine where a DEJ member's husband
was the priest on New Year's Day, and knew that this year
is the one before an "unlucky age" for me. I asked to be
thoroughly purified, and it made me feel refreshed somehow
for the new year.

I also went to the National Art Center which opened last
month. Inside the impressive facade you can see the whole
structure, and understand the planning easily. As for the
cafe, there was a long queue and the light from the west
was so bright it was difficult to enjoy a drink. But it's
well worth a visit to see over 500 valuable works of art
from all over the world.
http://www.nact.jp/english/index.html

Lenora Genovese who is a SC member and the designer of
DEJ post cards will be coming to Tokyo from Feb. 17-26.
We would like to get together with her during her stay.
I will let you know when we fix the date/time of the
meeting. It's been such a long time since she left Japan,
I'm so glad to be able to see her again. Welcome back,
Lenora!

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WEB CONTENT TEAM NEWS
Ladawan Lhuang-on, Web Content Coordinator
<web@digitalevejapan.org>

After o-shogatsu, February is a month for many people of
Asian cultures to celebrate the Lunar Chinese New Year or
Spring Festival. This is the time of year for friends and
relatives to get together, to be thankful, and to enjoy a
feast. We are looking forward to seeing our volunteers and
to meeting long-time friends and new DEvas at this month's
Meet the DEvas event.

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UPCOMING EVENTS

The first Meet the DEvas event of the year is scheduled for
the 17th of this month. Please join us for a cup of tea on a
pleasant Saturday afternoon. More details will be announced
on the list soon.

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INTERVIEW WITH A DEva

This month's interview is with new DigitalEve member
Timothy Ralston who kindly answered our questions from
overseas. Thanks Timothy!

1) If you are not from Tokyo, where are you from originally
and when and why did you relocate to Tokyo?

I am currently living in Marina Del Rey, California, but am
planning to move to Tokyo in the near future. My first visit
to Japan was in May of 2006 and I really felt at home (my
travel blog is here: http://web.mac.com/timothyralston). I
hope to establish some good friendships and become involved
in the community even before I make the big move across the
Pacific.

2) How long have you been a member of DigitalEve Japan?

I became a member January 19th, 2007.

3) How did you find out about DigitalEve Japan and why did
you decide to join?

I found out about DigitalEve Japan through a Hiragana Times
article "Japan - Behind the Scenes". I was impressed with
this online community and felt I could offer assistance
since my skills are computer-based.

4) Are there any activities and resources you would
like to see offered by DigitalEve Japan?

Since I've only joined recently, I'm still exploring the
possibilities.

5) What are your interests in digital technology?

I have many interests in digital technology, but they mainly
center around the graphic arts, photography, digital
filmmaking, and visual effects. I do my best to keep up with
the latest advances in digital technology.

6) What kind of computer do you use?

At work I use a Dell PC and a MacPro Dual 3 Gig tower. At
home, I use a Mac G5 Dual 2 Gig tower and a MacBook Pro
laptop.

7) Are you a member of any other technology-related groups
and if so, which ones?

DigitalEve Japan is actually the first group I've ever
joined. I regularly check the Creative Cow community
website for experiences users have with various computer
programs.

8) Please tell me a little bit about where you work and what
your responsibilities are.

I'm the Director of the Lionsgate Screening Room for
Lionsgate Entertainment in Santa Monica, California. I
manage and operate a 50-seat film and digital theater for
movies that pass through our company. Since we are also open
to the public, we serve the studios and independent
filmmaking community. In my free time, I design graphics for
my t-shirt company GothGirl & GeekBoy
(http://www.ggandgb.com), or edit film and commercial
projects using Final Cut Pro.

9) Do you have any favorite software programs? If so, why?

The programs I'm currently using are Final Cut Pro Studio,
Photoshop CS2, ImageReady, Illustrator, After Effects 6.5,
and Vue 6 Infinite (http://www.e-onsoftware.com). I use all
of these programs together for various projects. Vue 6
Infinite is an amazingly simple to use 3D terrain generator
that produces some incredibly realistic images and
animations.

10) What is your favorite computer-related activity? (for
example, games, email, surfing the net, etc.) Do you have
any other hobbies?

One of my favorite computer-related activities recently is
using Google Earth. I'm amazed at how fluid the program is
and it's constantly evolving. I highly recommend installing
the free download for Mac or PC and trying it out. It makes
the world seem so small and easy to explore. I really
enjoyed re-tracing my route throughout Japan when I
returned. I have a feeling programs like Google Earth will
be what the new Internet will look like...a 3D experience
instead of 2D pages. I'm also really enjoying the use of
video-conferencing for meetings and using Photoshop to
restore old childhood photos. My other main non-computer-
related hobby is training in kobudo through Jinenkan
(http://www.jinenkan.com). I suppose the kobudo training
helps me clear my mind and stay physically active after
hours of sitting in front of the computer. ;^)

11) What is your favorite website and why?

My absolute favorite website, for practical reasons, is
Google. I am always using Google for information, images,
videos, etc.. Beyond that, I love YouTube and more recently
Hiragana Times as I am continuing to learn more and more
about Japan and my study of Nihon-go. And of course,
DigitalEve Japan!

12) Name three things you will always find near your computer.

My iPod filled with movie soundtracks, a sketchbook, and my
"jisho".

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ANNOUNCEMENT

Kusatsu Onsen Toursim Association would like to invite 10
pairs of foreign guests who have at least a daily
conversation level of Japanese proficiency to be tourism
monitors. The monitors get a FREE night in a Ryokan!

The "KUSATSU ONSEN SNOW DOLL FESTIVAL" is planned and
organized by the Kusatsu Onsen Tourism Association as part
of its inbound tourism promotion project.

Kusatsu Onsen is located in Gunma prefecture, approximately
a 3 hour train ride from Tokyo. The "Snow Doll Festival" is
an event organized by the town, which decorates its public
spaces with many large snow dolls and more than 1,000
candles.

If interested you can get detailed information and download
application form from the following website:
http://www.kusatsu-onsen.org/event.html

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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

***SEEK***
Editors (E to J) who can help publishing this newsletter.
Please send an email to newsletter@digitalevejapan.org.

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The Digital Digest is brought to you by the Newsletter Team:
Yoko Kawabe, Corinne Sutter, Mayumi Tanimoto, Stacey Ward,
and Ailsa Wylie.