JapanEase is pretty amazing in terms of how comprehensive it is,
especially when one considers this software was made in 1990. It
teaches basic written and oral Japanese, with native speakers having
recorded the Japanese audio tracks. Content is quite practical in
terms of everyday Japanese. It even includes a business card maker
stack!

[Check here][1] if you want to see the DEMO of JapanEase and not the
full version.

This is the full version of JapanEase which I purchased new in 1994,
just prior to moving to Japan. My version includes both Volumes 1 &
2\. I cannot find the original disks and documentation but will upload
if I find them in the future.

I put everything on a 10MB DSK image that can be used in Mini vMac or
placed in a Basilisk II shared folder, or used on a FloppyEMU or MacSD
(as a "Composite"). No System software is included, so you need to
boot from another disk to access the stacks.

There are a few quirks...

Quirk #1: When using the Basilisk II emulator, there is a script error
that appears now and then referring to the JapanEase menu. The same
error appears in HyperCard 2.1, 2.3.5 and 2.4.1 when running under
System 7.1 or 7.5.5. (I didn't test 7.6 or 8.1.) Deleting the
offending code from the Script is something you could possibly do to
eliminate the error.

Quirk #2: Sukoshi no Mojibake. Some of the Japanese displays as
garbled text. I included [HyperCard 2.2.1J][2] on the DSK to solve
that problem, but honestly, it shouldn't be required since the app is
clearly geared for English speakers running English operating systems.
My only guess is that the original fonts that came with the kit are
missing. If I ever find the original disks with fonts, I can update
this. Alternatively, if any of you can find where specific fonts are
mentioned in the HyperCard Script, then theoretically those fonts
could be edited to something else. I tried installing the [Japanese
Language Kit 1.2][3] on System 7.x, but that didn't solve the garbled
text problem. Even so, it comes with some Japanese fonts, which
perhaps could be substituted for the missing JapanEase fonts, if any
of you can spot where the fonts are used in the HyperCard Script.

Quirk #3: When using Basilisk II booted into System 7.1 or 7.5.5, if
you activate the small screen shown at the Desk, you can hear
Konnichiwa being spoken, but then if you click the "S" button for him
or her to speak, no audio is heard even though the mouth is moving.
But when I boot Mini vMac into System 6.0.8 and try it, it works fine.
The Mini vMac caveat is that the audio crackles slightly, whereas the
audio on Basilisk II is perfect (whenever it does play).

Quirk #4: Don't use the included Japanese HyperCard 2.2.1 when using
System 6 or all the fonts will become garbled Mojibake. Use it under
System 7.x with the Japanese Language Kit 1.2 installed.

Quirk #5: When using Basilisk II or Mini vMac, if I click the "Draw"
button on the Katakana learning card, it draws fine; but when I try
the same on the Hiragana card, it won't draw.

?JDW (Jan. 8, 2022)

Compatibility
Architecture: 68k

System 6.0.8, System 7 & higher

  [1]: http://macintoshgarden.org/apps/japanease
  [2]: http://macintoshgarden.org/apps/hypercard-japanese
  [3]: http://macintoshgarden.org/apps/japanese-language-kit-v12