Search - ex-portal

 
 
Japan Times
LIFE
Jan 22, 2012

What to call baby?

While clearing closets at my parents' house in Nara in December following my mother's death the month before, I came across a large square card in a pile of old documents. A snapshot of a baby looking at a birthday cake was glued in the center of the card, and I recognized that it was me at the time...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Dec 4, 2011

Tenten Hosokawa: Drawing the blues away

In the last few decades, clinical depression in Japan has emerged from its longstanding obscurity shrouded in shame and guilt to becoming far more openly recognized as a national disease.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 2, 2011

Softbank joins Alibaba-led acquisition talks for Yahoo

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Softbank Corp. are in advanced talks with Blackstone Group LP and Bain Capital LLC about making a bid to buy Yahoo! Inc. in its entirety, according to three people with knowledge of the matter.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / BACKSTREET STORIES
Nov 27, 2011

Blazing trails in Chiyoda's gardens

With November drawing to a close, I head to the East Garden of the Imperial Palace and the adjacent Kitanomaru Koen park, hoping for fall colors and a mental breather before the season goes nutcrackers with parties and shopping.
JAPAN
Sep 10, 2011

'Terrorists' got redefined after 9/11

Ten years after al-Qaida attacked the United States on Sept. 11, Japan has strengthened efforts to combat domestic and international terrorism through new legislation, policy directives and tougher immigration procedures.
BUSINESS
Aug 5, 2011

Rakuten logs second-quarter loss

Online retailer Rakuten Inc. had a loss in the second quarter after taking a one-time charge for reorganizing its credit card business.
CULTURE / Japan Pulse
Jul 15, 2011

Life is sweet ... for some men

They are men, and they like to eat sweets. They are the men who eat sweets.
BUSINESS
May 26, 2011

Rakuten to start U.K., Germany sites in Europe push

Rakuten Inc., Japan's biggest online retailer, is aiming to start full-service sites in the U.K. and Germany by the end of this year, part of its effort to challenge Amazon Inc. and eBay Inc. in Europe.
JAPAN
Feb 3, 2011

Publishers to Baidu: Delete our works

Tokyo-based Kodansha Ltd. said Wednesday it has warned Chinese search engine giant Baidu that unless it deletes from its library site manga and novels the firm publishes, it may resort to legal action.
LIFE / Travel
Dec 26, 2010

Exploring historic Nagasaki

The gate in front of me once opened to the world. Steps — now long gone — formerly led down from there to a quay in Nagasaki's sheltered harbor where, in centuries past, visiting trading ships tied up.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / Japan Pulse
Dec 1, 2010

Charismatic shop assistants are back in style

The returning popularity of store staff blogs show that strategic charisma can go a long way toward good PR and sales.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / TECH_JAPAN
Oct 20, 2010

Japanese cell-phone users don't just talk about weather — they vote on it

A surprising number of Japanese purchase their weather information from cell phones, services that don't just tell you if it's raining — they let you vote on it.
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Oct 1, 2010

Twenty ways for the bj-league to boost exposure

How can an upstart league become relevant to the masses?
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 24, 2010

'Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole'

A few months back I was at a screening when the first preview for this fall's big animated fantasy, "Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole," was shown. With its portentous baritone narration ("Legend tells of a band of warriors . . . "), heroic attempts to lip-synch bird beaks to human dialogue,...
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / TECH_JAPAN
Sep 15, 2010

Facebook is sidelined in Japan as social network battle heats up

In July, the number of active users on social networking site Facebook worldwide surpassed 500 million. More than 60 percent of Internet users in the United States have signed up with the site, and its presence has reached into almost every country on Earth. You might think that Facebook is taking over...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WORDS TO LIVE BY
Jun 10, 2010

Pac-Man creator Toru Iwatani

Toru Iwatani, 55, is the designer of Pac-Man, the classic video game that virtually kick-started the world market for the video-gaming industry. Released by Namco in Tokyo on May 22, 1980, Pac-Man made history as the first video game that appealed to both genders and to all age groups. Idea-man Iwatani,...
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / Japan Pulse
May 14, 2010

New ABC's of motherhood in Japan: Apps, Beer and Crying

Got a wee one on the way? Well, time to get a Twitter account, an iPhone and your free (non-alcoholic) beer.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Japan Pulse
Apr 8, 2010

New hobbies for swinging into spring

With the start of the financial/academic year, April is a time for a fresh start and taking up a new hobby.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Mar 29, 2010

Will a coven of Witch Girls grow in Japan?

Joining Japan's girls of the Forest, Swamp and Mountain are the Witch Girls. Question is, how potent will their spell be?
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / Japan Pulse
Mar 24, 2010

Big (only) in Japan? Beer salesgirls

The 'beer girls' (uriko) are a familiar sight to any baseball fan. Pulse asks are they big (only) in Japan?
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Mar 9, 2010

More about going wireless on the move

In reply to a computer user seeking advice on "Going wireless on the move" (Lifelines, Jan. 5), M.H. wonders why Bic Camera ( www.biccamera.com ) and Emobile ( www.emobile.jp/en ) were mentioned, but not UQ WiMAX ( www.uqwimax.jp/service/trywimax/ ).

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?