What do I need to type chinese characters?

yes, you'll need a program that can translate pinyin into characters.

Try NJ Star. I use their Chinese Word Processor to type Chinese.

i'm a chinese language and that i come across typing chinese language characters extra handy employing Han Yu Pin Yin - typing the pronunciation of the characters. There are different recommendations, yet i might say maximum individuals typed by skill of Han Yu Pin Yin.

Actually... you have it if you're using windows.
There are also programs which you can download.
It depend on which input method you're using.
I use IME input method (using pinyin)
http://pinyin.sogou.com/ （click on '立即下载 ' to start downloading)
personally, I think that sogou is better than google. (just a personal view)
hope I helped.

just add Chinese language in your Windows and that's it...

There's a free google input method editor that types chinese characters by converting pinyin to chinese characters.
Try this link:
http://www.google.com/ime/pinyin/
and click on the blue bar. The page is in Chinese though.