<> '''This software is quite old and hasn't been updated since around 2006.''' = im-ja = == Why im-ja instead of SCIM == Features im-ja has over scim: * faster * more configurable * can use a number of backends * simpler to install and use Also, SCIM contains many bugs which are not likely to be fixed any time soon, whereas im-ja just works. For example, I tried entering the text "nihongo" with SCIM and I got back a mish-mash of Kanji, hiragana and latin characters, whereas with im-ja it immediately converts my typing into hiragana, and will select an appropriate sequence of kanji upon pressing space. See this [[http://pdr.cx/scim_vs_im-ja.png|illustration of scim and im-ja use]]. == Installing == The im-ja homepage is at [[http://im-ja.sourceforge.net/|http://im-ja.sourceforge.net/]]. Ubuntu packages can be installed using gdebi from [[http://im-ja.sourceforge.net/binary.html|http://im-ja.sourceforge.net/binary.html]]. You will also need to install a wnn server. This can be done with the following command: {{{ sudo apt-get install freewnn-jserver }}} You may also need to add the following two lines to {{{/etc/gtk-2.0/gtk.immodules}}} if they're not already there: {{{ "/usr/lib/gtk-2.0/2.4.0/immodules/im-ja.so" "im-ja" "Japanese" "gtk+" "/usr/share/locale" "ja" }}} Check that this is the right path for im-ja as it may have been updated since writing this documentation. == Using == Any newly-launched GTK+ program will now have "Japanese" listed as an input method. You can select this by right clicking on a text entry and selecting Input Method -> Japanese. Type away and your text will be input at first in hiragana. This can then be converted to an appropriate representation by pressing the space bar.