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Question

How can I get Chinese/Japanese characters to display properly instead of squares?

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I'm using Windows 7 x64 Ultimate and I have some songs in Chinese and Japanese.  In Windows Explorer, the characters would SOMETIMES show correctly and sometimes they would be blocks.  Whenever I use iTunes, they're always in blocks and in other programs (ex. synctoy 2.1 and google chrome). I've already installed the Chinese (Trad. and Simplified) and Japanese language packs but the file names still show up in blocks. I also restarted several times after installation of the languages to see if that fixed things but it didn't. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks
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TimChoi89

TimChoi89

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Answer
Okay fine.... I stopped being lazy and found the solution by trial and error. So the trick is to change the system locale to Chinese (PRC) and then changing the system locale back to English (United States). I can now see the Simplified Chinese characters correctly in my buddyllist as well as in browser titles. I've attached a screenshot of the menus to get to the system locale. Basically go where you changed your input method and follow the screenshot below:


This is a bug with the IME, I think, but nothing a few changes and reboots won't fix! Good luck!
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sorrento121

sorrento121

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http://windows7center.com/tutorials/how-to-download-and-install-windows-7-beta-language-packs-mui-packs/

Thanks
Renjith
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Renjith-IT Specialist

Renjith-IT Specialist

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I already did that and it still shows the squares... :(
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TimChoi89

TimChoi89

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In reply to deleted message

Return your copy of Windows, and purchase the langague version you want.  You only have to get Ultimate if you want the ability to change languages at any time (such as, you want to keep switching between English and Arabik).

If this was helpful, please vote. If it solves the issue, please click Propose as Answer. Thanks!
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Shawn B Keene [MVP]

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How about for simply displaying different languages?  For example, my media library contains information in several languages -- Do I really need to update my operating system just to view web pages, media information, file names, etc. in other languages?
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s-mao

s-mao

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I already have Ultimate and I don't want to change the whole OS language. I just want the characters to show up consistently on folder names or file names.
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TimChoi89

TimChoi89

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When you say "switching between languages," do you mean switching the entire operating system's language, or just, for example, typing a text document in Chinese characters (with the rest of the system in English -- even the language menu options will be English...)?  All Windows OS in the past have allowed typing and reading hundreds of languages' fonts.  I do not want to switch my entire system to Chinese or another language -- I prefer an English system.  I just want to be able to read and type in other languages.  Most people on this planet are multilingual...  If the issue cannot be solved in this Microsoft forum, PLEASE ADVISE AS TO HOW WE SHOULD RESOLVE THIS BASIC ISSUE OF VIEWING AND TYPING NON-ENGLISH FONTS, Thank you
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s-mao

s-mao

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That should operate the same as it has from before.  My sister uses Windows 7 Home Premium, and her OS is always english, but she witches to other languages often to type with the language toolbar on the taskbar.  I'm not sure how many, at least 3 I think.  Does that ring a bell?  I'll ask her what exact feature she is using.


If this was helpful, please vote by clicking the green triangle. If it solves the issue, click Propose as Answer. Thanks!
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Shawn B Keene [MVP]

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I don't even want to type in another language. I can type just fine in Chinese just fine, but sometimes the names of folders or filenames that are in Chinese or Japanese will show up as squares. Sometimes it doesn't show up as squares.
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TimChoi89

TimChoi89

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Yes, I can still type in the other languages, but then later the characters revert to squares.  For example, file names and media information for CDs in my Windows Media Player, and content of some webpages can't be viewed because they're in another language (such as Chinese).  The other user who is asking about this issue (TimChoi89) has the same problem, and he uses Windows 7 Ultimate.  
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s-mao

s-mao

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For example, the page tabs in Google Chrome's browser simply display squares, so when I'm using Chinese websites, I can't navigate as easily...  And I can't save any of my files or media information in Chinese or Japanese.
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s-mao

s-mao
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