nest0r wrote:

Feeling like a n00b. Someone explain this to me: ここから東に行くと東京、 -- What does the と do here? Is it a quoting function? KO gives the translation as "From this point, go east to Tokyo," ..

と also functions as a conditional, as in:  "勉強すると分かる", "study and you'll understand".  A more literal translation of the sentence you gave might be, "if you go east from here, then Tokyo,"...

nest0r wrote:

It's from KO (Kanji Odyssey), and there's a comma at the end, I just copied the first half of the sentence... the whole sentence is ここから東に行くと東京、西に行くと富士山だ。

Aha. If you have just the bit up to the comma in your SRS you probably want to fix that, as I don't think it really stands alone as a sentence. The two halves are 'sharing' the だ at the end. Taking just the first half would be like taking just the second half of "Tokyo lies to the east of here, and Fuji to the west".

(This 'two bits of sentence share a verb' thing is one of those grammar points that's completely impossible to look up or search the web for examples for...)

As mentioned you are better off consulting a grammar reference, but i'll throw my hat into the ring.

東行ったら東京。- If (you/I/she/they) go east, tokyo. (Or, After going east, tokyo)
東行けば東京。- If one were to go east, tokyo.
東行くと東京。 - Heading east, invariably tokyo. (Or more naturally, tokyo is east of here)

Note that と in this grammar is something that is believed with be totally accepted by the listener/reader. This is why と is best, because tokyo is east of here, there are no ifs or buts about it.

Just because it's fun I want to try and translate these

食べなければなりません - (I, you, they, he, etc) have to eat.
食べなきゃ - (I, you, they, he, etc) must eat.
食べないと - (I, you, they, he, etc) should eat.

Also I can think of

食べなくてはいけない - It is not okay to not eat.
食べないといけない - Not eating is unacceptable.
食べた方がいい - (I, you, they, he, etc) had better eat.
食べるべき - There are no two ways about it, (I, you, they, he, etc) must eat.