From Oct 22 to Oct 29, I worked on a simple calculator. Naganuma gave
us basic specifications and templates for detailed specifications and
unit tests. I filled in the forms and wrote the program by myself.

Although it was my first time to program using Delphi, I did not have
any problems writing the program. I read a Delphi 5 book and
researched on the Internet. Because Delphi is based on Pascal, my
Pascal experience was also helpful.

In the beginning, I had a hard time understanding what I needed to do.
People spoke very quickly and used words and grammar I had not yet
learned. I found written documents easier to understand. I enjoyed
preparing my documents in Japanese because I had a chance to learn new
grammar and new words. I’m still bad at Japanese, though. When my
corrected documents are returned, they’re full of red marks. I had to
keep asking Yoshioka or Naganuma to correct my Japanese. I still have
problems from time to time, but I’m slowly starting to understand.

The first time I submitted my test plans, Yoshioka asked me to provide
an English translation so that he could understand it. My Japanese was
that bad. Because he’s good at English, he can correct my Japanese
quickly. However, starting from next week, he’ll be working in
Shinjuku. I will have to find a way to get much better in Japanese so
that I don’t bother Naganuma all the time and so that I can avoid
misunderstandings.

I searched the Internet for books on technical Japanese. I think they
will be very useful. People say that “Basic Technical Japanese” is the
best book, and even beginners can learn using it. It was published by
University of Tokyo Press. If I pay for it myself, though, it’s a bit
expensive at 7875 yen. Because other trainees can also use the book to
learn, may I ask the company to buy one copy of the book? I believe it
will help us make the most of our short training period.