Some of you all may be familiar with our popular training sessions open to both public and staff, where we provide hands-on training in the use of our fantastic eBook and eNews resources, (which as you all know by now are entirely free - al you do is register as a DRS member). This time round, we decided to opt for something slightly different

On the 15th December’, we rolled out the first of our eBooks and eNews Extravaganzas at Woodlands Regional Library. And we would not be doing justice to all those who attended, participated and helped out if we did not admit that it was quite successful.

The four-hour event had four quiz rounds where prizes were on offer to the lucky winners. The prizes included portable DVD players(courtesy of our sponsors Library PressDisplay) and iPod Nanos(courtesy of LexisNexis). Even the runners-up got a little something in the shape of a thumb-drive from our vendor Factiva. As you can see from the above photograph, the event was very colourful with our black, red and white balloons (all of which had disappeared by the end of the day) providing the decoration and virtual storytelling via Tumblebooks to keep the the younger audience members happy

Some of NLB's Friends of the Library (FOLs) helped us out during the course of the day - giving advice and assistance to all our participants. We had laptops set-up to assist anyone interested to sign up as digital library member. The speedy online registration just takes a few minutes. We made taking part as painless as possible. Getting people to sign up about 30 mins before the quiz and then drawing the lucky 6 participants who get a shot at answering the 5 questions which we had set for each quiz. Then it was a simple matter of who gets the most correct answers in the time given.

It was very heartening to see our participants getting all geared up for the quiz rounds while having equally supportive audience who prize winners bagging the attractive prizes given out by our DRS Team.

Do you feel that you may have missed out on all of the action and wonderful prizes?

Fret not! We are organizing repeat events at

Central Lending Library on 12th January’08

Jurong Regional Library on 19th January’08

Why not come along- get to know all of our quality digital resources and stand a chance to win some quite useful prizes?

Posted by digitalk team at 05:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Is your Christmas spirit almost as big as Christmas itself yet? No?

If so, we have lined up eBooks from almost all of our eBook database collections, for you to read and make sure you inspire everyone who runs into you during the holidays.

Title: 'Twas The Night Before Christmas

Author: Clement Clarke Moore

Description: 'Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse…' Get ready to 'tumble' to Clement Clark Moore's classic poem!

To Read Click Here

Title: Santa’s Secrets Revealed

Author: James Solheim

Description: All Your Questions Answered About Santa's Super Sleigh, His Flying Reindeer, and Other Wonders

To Read Click Here

Title: Gifts From the Heart

Author: Virginia Brucker

Description: Simple Ways to Make your Family’s Christmas More Meaningful

To Read Click Here

Title: Mommy's Little Helper Christmas Crafts

Author: Cynthia MacGregor

Description: Now children can deck the halls with crafts they make themselves (with just a little help!) Each of these 40 projects comes with easy-to-follow illustrated directions for the child. There are directions for Mommy (or Daddy), too! While Mommy takes care of tasks that need scissors, craft knives, and needles, the child gets to tear, paste, draw, and glue.

To Read Click Here

Title: A Christmas Carol (Read-Along)

Author: Charles Dickens

Description: Will there ever be a time that listeners will not want to hear the story of Scrooge, Tiny Tim and the Ghosts of Christmas? This is a wonderful reading of this Dickens classic.

To Read Click Here

Posted by digitalk team at 04:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.
Charles Dickens

Image from Credo Reference Library

Posted by digitalk team at 03:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

You must be wondering as to how there is yet another public holiday-Hari Raya Haji, coming up on the 20th December, commemorating a Muslim religious event, when Hari Raya Puasa just ended 2 months ago?

Hari Raya Haji is celebrated one day after Hajj pilgrims converge on Arafat in Mecca, the Islamic Holy Land, to perform the major rites of the pilgrimage.

Every year, more than 2 million Muslims from more than 70 countries journey to the holy city of Mecca to make the spiritual pilgrimage known as The Hajj. It is probably the largest annual pilgrimage in the world. Almost one fifth of the human population simultaneously converge on Mecca for the week of Hajj and perform a series of rituals. (1)

The pilgrimage is one of the five Pillars of Islam that form the framework of Islamic life. It is a journey that all Muslims who are physically and financially stable are expected to undertake at least once in their lifetime.

Pilgrims generally travel to Hajj in groups, as an expression of unity. Some airlines have special package holidays for Muslims going to Mecca. And now ships have also taken the job of taking the pilgrims to Mecca so they can perform Hajj.

During the Hajj, male pilgrims are required to dress only in a garment consisting of two sheets of white unhemmed cloth, with the top draped over the torso and the bottom secured by a white sash; plus a pair of sandals. Women are simply required to maintain their hijab - normal modest dress, which does not cover the hands or face.

The required dress codes was implemented to show the equality of all pilgrims in the eyes of God, symbolizing the idea that there is no difference between a prince and a pauper when everyone is dressed equally. It also symbolizes purity and absolution of sins. (2)

The focal point of this pilgrimage is the 'Ka'ba'- a black cubic stone structure which Muslims regard as the centre of an ancestral monotheistic cult, which was rebuilt by Prophet Abraham some 4,000 years ago. Today, the 'Ka'ba' stands in the middle of a large courtyard of Masjid al Haram or the Sacred Mosque. (3)

Pilgrims trek to the mosque hours in advance to reserve a space for their prayer mats as close as possible to the ‘Ka’ba’. When the spaces in the inner courtyard fills up, the pilgrims chose spaces in the outer courtyard.

There are a total of 8 various ceremonies which the pilgrims perform. Some of which includes drinking from the ‘Zamzam Well’, ‘Stoning of the Devil’, and ‘Animal Scarifice’ .

There have been many incidents during the Hajj that have led to the loss of hundreds of lives. The worst of these incidents have usually occurred during the Stoning of the Devil ritual. During the 2006 Hajj on January 12, 362 pilgrims died. Tramplings have also occurred at the stage known as the sa'i, when pilgrims try to run but can walk between two hills known as 'As-Safa' and 'Al-Marwa'. In 2006 there were some 600 casualties among pilgrims performing the Hajj.

In response to the annual catastrophes which takes place during the stoning ritual, the Saudi Government is being proactive in providing facilities and infrastructure through many measures. (4)

While the Hajj may only be performed during the prescribed dates in the Muslim calendar, a lesser pilgrimage called ‘Umrah’ may be made individually at any time during the year. (5)

(1)Factiva: Nearly two million Muslims begin hajj pilgrimage
http://global.factiva.com
(2)Mohamed, Mamdouh N. (1996). Hajj to Umrah: From A to Z. Amana Publications
(3)PILGRIMAGE: http://alislam.org/pillars/hajj.html
(4)Factiva: High Security in Mecca as Muslims Gather for Hajj Pilgrimage
http://global.factiva.com
(5)http://www.hajjumrah.co.uk

Images from Factiva

Posted by digitalk team at 04:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)