The 7th International Conference on Optical Internet
October 14-16, 2008
Akihabara, Tokyo, Japan
Local Info
Akihabara
By far the world's biggest electronics geek town. Although there are various online sites specialized to introduce the latest and the greatest in various gadgetry in Japanese (such as http://watch.impress.co.jp/akiba/ and http://db.ascii24.com/buyer/akiba/) , unfortunately there are not too many of those in English. For an “official Emap refer to http://www.akiba.or.jp/english/ but actually the most interesting computer shops are located around the North-West section of the map, and even more North, way beyond the Myojin street. http://www.tnt-audio.com/tours/akihabara_e.html gives a pretty good overview but it is mostly intended for audio fans and not computer mania.
Power
Electricity is 100V/50Hz. For almost all laptops, this should be fine, since adaptors are typically rated at 90(100)V - 240V. Power is VERY stable, so there is no need for surge suppressors. Most US equipment works fine, since the voltage is lower by only 10-15%. For European and other parts of the world where 240V is the norm, the rule of thumb is that, if the equipment works in North America, it will work in Japan.
The electrical plug is essentially identical to those in the US. The venue plugs will be 3-prong (grounded) outlets. For European as well as other plugs you will have to bring an adaptor.
