biblio asia outline.indd - National Library Singapore

Director’s ColumnIt has been more than three monthssince the National Library reopenedits doors and your response tothe new library has been veryencouraging indeed. With ourwide variety of exhibitions andcollections, a record breaking of150,000 library users like yourselfvisited us. In the first two weeks,the daily number of visits averaged7,000 on a weekday, and 9,000 on aweekend.As much as we welcome the floodof visitors and reading enthusiasts,we have enjoyed and appreciatedyour feedback and suggestions.Many of you have complimentedus on the extensive selection ofmaterials and the excellent servicegiven by the staff. For that, wethank you and we want to say it hasbeen a real pleasure serving you.Your compliments, feedback andsuggestions will spur us on to newand greater heights in providing foryour needs. The National Library willcontinue to build on our collectionsand services so as to enrich yourlibrary experience.Meanwhile, do take note in yourdiaries a very special date – ourofficial opening on 12 November2005. In conjunction with thismomentous event, the NationalLibrary Board is organising a majorlibrary conference from 13 to 15November 2005 on the theme“Celebrating Knowledge: The Powerand Potential”. Join us in celebratingknowledge with internationallibrarians and knowledge experts,who will gather to discuss topics ofcommon interests. This knowledgesharingopportunity will allowparticipants to learn from each otherand bring home with them a wealthof information and experience. Weare privileged to have Paul Saffo,Director of the Institute for theFuture, to shed light on the futureof the library. Joining him is DrSusan Whitfield, who will speakon the International DunhuangProject, a collaborative internationaldigitisation project between theBritish Library, the National Libraryof China and a few other libraries.Dr Whitfield has also kindly agreedto speak to the public on Sunday,13 November, 2005. Please look outfor the details of this interesting talk,and sign up for it.In this quarter, the NationalLibrary will also be launching twoexhibitions to mark its officialopening. As the nation’s NationalLibrary, we want to promote thelove for reading and writing.Therefore, in the Singapore LiteraryPioneers Gallery, we celebrate thelives and times of our early literarypioneers where the likes of ProfEdwin Thumboo, Mr MuhammadAriff Ahmad, Mr P Krishnan andYao Zi will be featured. Throughthis insightful exhibition, we hopeto encourage budding writers topen their thoughts and words. Inanother exhibition, From Books toBytes, we chronicle the story of howthe National Library has evolvedand grown over the years. Comeand join us as we take a walk downthe memory lane of the NationalLibrary.Speaking of memory lanes, Dr DerekHeng from the History Departmentat the National University ofSingapore will share on the storyof Singapore’s port in this issue ofBiblioAsia. Read about the littleknownactivities and the role ofthe port in early Singapore. Also, aspecial feature on the Rare MaterialsCollection will present to you thetreasure trove of historical books,journals and manuscripts foundin the Lee Kong Chian ReferenceLibrary. Explore the new NationalLibrary with our in-depth layout ofthe building and catch a glimpseof our Lee Kong Chian ReferenceLibrarians through a specialmontage of pictures. In addition,familiarise yourself with ourreference and audio-visual servicesat the Lee Kong Chian ReferenceLibrary by reading the detailedwrite-ups. Finally, enjoy the bookreviews and our forthcoming eventsand programmes.We look forward to seeing you atthe library, and happy reading!Ms Ngian Lek ChohDirectorNational LibraryYour Say...On the Zheng He & MaritimeAsia Exhibition“The free booklet and bookmarkare very beautifully presented assouvenirs. However, I found therecorded music being played ratheroff-putting especially when there areother ‘talking’ exhibits. Otherwise,this exhibition is really good!”Mrs J Popp Claremont, WesternAustraliaOn StaffMr Alex Ong deserved my heartycompliments. Because of therelevent information provided,I managed to trace a press report,published in Nanyang Siang Pau, onthe then Prime Minister Lee KuanYew’s visit to the Lim Tai See Gongtemple on 16 June 1963 during hisconstituency tour in Ulu Pandancarried. That was 42 years ago. Nowthat the new Library is openingsoon, I look forward to visiting yourstaff in the Reference section tothank them personally.Mr Ong Chuan Kim…For Eng Ann Alexander OngI would like to thank the wonderfullady from the Reference Librarywho helped me identify literally allpossible sources of parliamentaryspeeches. She was incrediblyresourceful and even knew aboutthose archived online by ParliamentHouse. My boss was very pleasedwith the Legal Workbench hostedby Lawnet and I will be one of thefirst in line to visit the new NationalLibrary when it opens next week.Ms Cheng Yew Kuann…For Yashodha Devi NadarajanI wish there were more staff likethis young lady who left animpression of courtesy, care,diligence and helpfulness, not toforget knowledgeable. Employmore staff of her nature.Mr Kashmir Singh…For Celestine Carissa Yu LiHe is a good customer service staffand a good listener. A staff withpatience and good attitude. Keep upthe good work.Ms Loo Hoe Ann…For Anwar Hadi RamliThanks so much for the two articlesas well as the references that youemailed me after my visit to thelibrary. Thanks for the efforts inhelping me retrieve the articles.Mr James…For Seow Leng AngThank you for your great effort.The information has been veryuseful indeed!Mr Dan Lee…For Haslinda Md YusofMs Yeo is very helpful andcourteous. Excellent service.She helped me to retrive theinformation that I needed.Ms Ng Lee Cheng…For Alicia Kay Ling YeoThank you for your help whenI was searching for informationon any possible auroral sightingsin Singapore in August/September1859. This is useful informationfor our research. I very muchappreciated your assistance.Dr J. E. Humble…For Bonny Muliani TanYes, I am very satisfied withthe service! Ms Gao is highlyprofessional and very competentin her duties. She has guided mequickly to the location of the booksand information I was looking for.I have saved a lot of my precioustime getting what I wanted. I amalso very glad that she is able tohelp me locate further information,which were not available at thereference books, from the database.Many thanks, Ms Gao!Mr Koh Guan Keng…For Vicky Xiaohang GaoThank you so much! The informationthat you have provided me isvery useful for my presentation.2 Thumbs UP!!Ms Suzanna Lim R…For Leng Leng Pek, SaraWe would like to hear fromyou! Please email yourfeedback, suggestions andcompliments to:Quality Service Manager (QSM)Telephone: 1800-332 3370Fax: +65 6332 3611Email: qsm@nlb.gov.sg0405