They're Heeeerrrrre...

As a country, Japan is usually one of the last places where bad things happen. Nearly every social ill on the planet does eventually show up here, but typically long after it has crawled out of a sewer someplace else. Convenience store robberies, drug usage, teenage violence -- all are relatively recent phenomena in Japan.

by Thomas Caldwell

Most of the plagues of the modern world have been kept from the people here, who still live in a Shangri La-type of existence compared to the other countries labeled "developed." But now, I am sad to say, one of the more hideous evils of our time has at last shown up on Japan's shores. And, like the unwelcome barbarian invader it is, this bane of the Internet will make itself known to everyone very quickly. In short, the Spammers have landed!

Anyone who has visited Japan for more than a few minutes knows how commonplace advertising is. Everywhere and anywhere, intrusive messages to buy and consume can be found. So it was only a matter of time until the advertising-crazed Japanese discovered the highly cost-effective, albeit hated, method of reaching prospective customers: e-mail spam.

In February, I received my first originated-in-Japan e-mail spam. (I'm sure it will be the first of many.) It was a Japanese-language note from a "finance company" (read "loan shark") in Osaka. A "trace" of the offending note, done at my request by my Internet service provider (ISP), did not raise my hopes for the future. The ISP where the note originated turns out to be owned by one of Japan's largest telecommunications companies.

The best defense against spam is an ISP that works to filter out incoming spam, and doesn't tolerate it being sent. All of the good ones do this, even if they don't advertise the fact. If you want to complain to your ISP, usually the fellow responsible for keeping out massive mailings can be contacted at the "Abuse Department" (e.g., abuse@domain. name). Most providers operating in Japan that use *.com or *.net already have had a lot of practice dealing with spam.

On the personal user level, there are a few programs available that can help. One I've tried, Spam Exterminator (available at http://www.unisyn.com), has a nice feature of automatically sending a very legal-looking warning to the spammers and a complaint to their provider's "abuse" box.

Software designed to stop spam is just a well-designed filtering system. The best way to reduce spam, in my opinion, is to embarrass the bastards sending it (and the ISPs allowing it) to the point where they will worry they might lose money. After I "speak" with the offending parties who invaded my mailbox, I will let you know more.

Yes Virginia, there is a Kinko's
For those who travel in and out of the country and have wanted to know if America's premiere 24-hour business convenience store is operating in Japan: Yes, it is. Many of you may not have noticed, given how big this country's metropolitan centers are, but as of this writing there are 19 stores operating in Japan: 11 in Tokyo, 2 in Osaka, 4 in Nagoya, and 2 in Fukuoka. Many more are planned. They offer most of the same services you would expect, and have English price lists. Some even have English speakers on hand.

You can contact Kinko's Japan Customer Service Center at 0120-001-966 for the location nearest you. Unfortunately, Japanese locations are not listed on the company's website (http://www.kinkos.com), but may be in the future.

Living in Japan
Last year, some long-term residents of Japan, myself included, were interviewed for a videotape about living here. Recently, the project was completed and, I must say, the end result was far ahead of everyone's expectations.

Living in Japan is a 90-minute video about all of the ins and outs of functioning within Japan's foreboding alien landscape. It is packed with information that takes most of us who call this country home years to obtain: everything from buying food to getting a postal money order. Anyone who watches this tape will have an excellent idea of what life for the expatriate in Japan is really like. It is an excellent production, light years ahead of anything a Japanese government agency (or a dubious, crony-filled, nonprofit organization that uses the word "culture" too much) would ever be able to put together.

So, if you are a computer industry executive scheduled to be assigned here for a few years, one of the many COBOL programmers coming to try and save Japan from the millennium crisis, or even someone who already lives here and still can't figure out how to use the trains -- get this tape!

Living in Japan was produced with the help of the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan; it can be ordered directly from them by calling +81-3-3433-5381. There is also a website dedicated to the topic called, appropriately, http://www.livinginjapan.com. (Although the Living in Japan website was under construction at the time of writing, I was assured that everything will be sorted out and fixed by early March.)

If you're not sending spam, then feel free to contact Query Columnist Thomas Caldwell at caldwell@gol.com.

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