Japanese input problem

Japanese input problem using explorer

[JCUser]

My computer is a Japanese NEC using Japanese version Windows xp and IE.

Using IE, I can enter Japanese in the address bar but not the main body of the page (ie. in a search engine or application form). Can anyone explain why not?

[bill]

Welcome to WebmasterWorld JCUser.

NEC machines are known not to do things the same way other PCs do so my advice may be off.

Can you see the IME icon in your taskbar or in a floating toolbar on the screen? This is the input editor controller and you can switch from Hiragana, Katakana and single-byte ASCII text there (and everything in-between).

Standard Japanese keyboards also have a key that lets you change these modes. They should be reflected in the IME toolbar if it's visible.

NEC puts things in non-standard locations so I'm not sure the best advice would be as to where to look for this key.

[JCUser]

Many thanks for your reply.

I've found the IME toolbar in the taskbar and it's set on direct input, which I think is the usual setting.

The strange thing is that everything works fine in Word, and also in the address bar of Explorer; the problem arises only when I try to input something into the body of the page (like when I typed this message).

It makes me think that I must have accidentally changed a setting in Explorer, but everything I've looked at in the View and Tools sections seems fine. It's very mysterious.

[bill]

The IME seems to have a memory for your preferences with different software. Depending on where you have the focus on the screen when you make your changes you can see different results. If you want to type Japanese into a web form then click inside the form's textarea and then immediately change the IME to Japanese. (Direct Input is for inputting romaji, not Japanese.)