Book Fair at Churchgate

Book Fair at:

Sunderbhai Hall,

Behind Income Tax Office,

Churchgate

Mumbai 400020

Date: 4th. to 22nd. August, 2011

Time: 9.30 am to 8.00 pm

Library Committee 2011-2012

We welcome the following members in the Library Committee:

Ms. Chinmayee Bhange - Convener

Ms. Sucheta Prabhudesai

Ms. Harshala Yadav

Ms. Savita Kandale

Ms. Dipali Parab

Mr. Abhay Bendekar

Ms. Kritika Chaudhary

Ms. Priyanka Mali

SFIT Library Newsletter Vol 3 Issue 2

We are ready with one more issue of our library's newsletter...

SFIT Library Newsletter Vol 3 Issue 2

These are some of the encouraging feedback comments we received for our current newsletter:

Bro. Melchior (Director - SFIT):

congrats to all of you at sfit library; as usual you are a trend-setter! the news letter is very, very infornative and intersting, to say the least; especially the opinion of the student is taken note of.

Prof. B.D. Gokhale (Faculty - ExTC Department)

Congratulations to all of you for bringing out such a nice Newsletter. Keep it up.

Dr. T.S. Rathore (HOD - ExTC Department)

Congratulations for doing a good job. Matter is very informative and figures/photographs are well placed. department wise List of new books is very helpful. Keep it up.

Ms. Sumitha C.H. (Faculty - CMPN Department)

This is the first time I am reading the library newsletter and proved quite useful also.

That is an interesting news letter, something we dont get to see everywhere. Institutions and departments make news letter, but not many libraries take the venture to publish a newsletter of their own. It has to be really appreciated, the effort , the motivation and the attitude of the people who made it.

The links to useful websites and online journals are really helpful to those who are new to the institution. It has to be really appreciated that a blog is also there for the library where people get to know about everything happening in the library. Quizzes would make it intersting for the students to explore the blog. The interview with a librarian was also interesting..

One suggestion I would like to make is that it would have been really helpful if some information about some of the main competitive exams are also included in the blog. ( like the date of the exams, main coaching centres, useful books etc.) ; especially if the most useful books are suggested, that would be warmly welcome by the students as they are often confused with which one they have to choose.

Also some information about higher education, like some colleges which are the best in some specialized areas etc.

Overall it is a really nice one.. a really helpful one. Thanks a lot for the support.

We (the library staff) thank all of you for your kind words and expect a continuous participation always!

Central Library welcomes new-comers!

Following faculties have availed the library cards from July 01 to July 31, 2011.

Department: Computer

Caroline Mary Mohankumar

Dimple Bohra

Neha Thombre

Priyanka Mali

Sumitha C.H.

Department: Electronics and Telecommuncations

Keyur Khatri

Kritika Gaur-Chaudhary

Quanitah Shaikh

Santosh Chapaneri

Sonia Thalavoor

Department: Information Technology

Kalpesh Kubal

Maahi Talreja

Priyanca Fargose

Savita Kandale

Vaishali Desai

Department: Basic Science and Humanities (First Year)

Charmi Chaniyara

Jayashri Mittal

Ramjee Yadav

Ravindra Garmode

Library memberships for First Year Students

First Year students can now avail the library cards by submitting a photocopy of their fee-receipt at the Circulation Counter (Room no. 209-210, second floor).

Kindly note that these library cards are temporary and once the admissions are done, you will be entitled to two new library cards which will be valid for the 4-year course. A notice with regard to this would be displayed on the Student and the Library Notice Boards.

New Arrivals (INFT) in the Central Library

Please find below the list of new arrivals of books for the branch of Information Technology:

5] B17616 OP-AMPS AND LINEAR INTEGRATED CIRCUITS-4th ed. By GAYAKWAD, RAMAKANT A. NEW DELHI/PRENTICE HALL OF INDIA/2000 621.6815 GAY

[6] B17632 DESIGN WITH PIC MICROCONTROLLERS By PEATMAN, JOHN B. NEW DELHI/PEARSON/1998 004.16 PEA

[7] B17640 DEVELOPING WEB APPLICATIONS By MOSELEY, RALPH/SAVALIYA, M.T. NEW DELHI/WILEY INDIA/2011 006.76 MOS/SAV

[8] B17650 COMPUTER NETWORKS-4th ed. By TANENBAUM, ANDREW S. NEW DELHI/PRENTICE HALL OF INDIA/2003 004.65 TAN

[9] B17656 DISTRIBUTED OPERATING SYSTEMS: CONCEPTS AND DESIGN By SINHA, PRADEEP. K. NEW DELHI/PRENTICE HALL OF INDIA/2007 005.4476 SIN

[10] B17666 ACCOUNTING FOR NON-SPECIALISTS By JONES, MICHAEL NEW DELHI/WILEY INDIA/2002 657 JON

[11] B17670 ACCOUNTING FOR NON-SPECIALISTS By JONES, MICHAEL NEW DELHI/WILEY INDIA/2002 657 JON

[12] B17677 BASIC FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING FOR MANAGEMENT By SHAH, PARESH NEW DELHI/OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS/2007 657 SHA

[13] B17686 MANAGEMENT OF TECHNOLOGY: THE KEY TO COMPETITIVENESS AND WEALTH CREATION By KHALIL,TAREK M. NEW DELHI/TATA McGRAW -HILL/2000 658 KHA

[14] B17694 REAL-TIME SYSTEMS By LIU, JANE W.S. NEW DELHI/PEARSON/2000 004.33 LIU

[15] B17698 TEXTBOOK OF ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES FOR UNDERGRADUATE COURSES By BHARUCHA, ERACH HYDERABAD/UNIVERSITIES PRESS/2008 375.0083 BHA

[16] B17703 ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES By DANIELS, RANJIT R.J./KRISHNASWAMY,JAGDISH NEW DELHI/WILEY INDIA/2009 375.0083 DAN/KRI

[17] B17708 ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES By BASAK, ANINDITA DELHI/PEARSON/2009 375.0083 BAS

[18] B17713 TEXTBOOK OF ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES By DAVE, DEEKSHA DELHI/CENGAGE LEARNING/2009 375.0083 DAV/KAT

[20] B17720 ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES By MANJUNATH, D.L. NEW DELHI/PETERSON/2009 375.0083 MAN

[21] B17723 ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES FROM CRISIS TO CURE-2nd. ed. By RAJAGOPALAN, R NEW DELHI/OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS/2008 375.0083 RAJ

[22] B17741 J2ME: THE COMPLETE REFERENCE By KEOGH, JAMES NEW DELHI/TATA McGRAW-HILL/2003 005.133 KEO

[23] B17767 PROGRAMMING WIRELESS DEVICES WITH THE JAVA 2 PLATFORM, MICRO EDITION-2nd ed. By RIGGS, ROGER/TAIVALSAARI, ANTERO/PEURSEM, JIM VAN/HUOPANIEMI, JYRI/PATEL, MARK/UOTILA, ALEKSI/HOLLIDAY, JIM NEW DELHI/PEARSON/2003 005.133 RIG/TAI

[24] B17769 DIGITAL IMAGE PROCESSING-3rd. ed. By GONZALEZ, RAFAEL C./WOODS, RICAHRD E. NEW DELHI/PEARSON/2008 006.37 GON/WOO

[26] B17797 SOFTWARE TESTING AND QUALITY ASSURANCE: THEORY AND PRACTICE By NAIK, KSHIRSAGAR/TRIPATHY, PRIYADARSHI NEW DELHI/WILEY INDIA/2008 005.14 NAI/TRI

SFIT Library re-opens from July 18, 2011

Hi,

The Central library @ SFIT will be resume functioning as usual from Monday, July 18, 2011.

Timings:

Monday through Friday: 8.00 am to 6.00 pm

Working Saturdays: 9.00 am to 5.00 pm

Central Library is closed between 1 July to 16 July 2011

Hi,

The Central Library will be closed for transactions between July 1 to July 16, 2011 for its Annual Stock Verification.

All the members are requested to check their library accounts and return the borrowed books before 30th. June, 2011.

You may check your library accounts here. Enter Employee ID (for staff) and PID (for students) as your login ID.

Survey on Automation Trends in Libraries

About the Survey:

The last two decades have experienced (and are still experiencing) the banes and boons of the library automation era. There has been a constant increase in the number of library softwares - both in-house and commercial ones. Off-late, there has been an increasing trend in the adoption of Open Source Software as an ILS.

This survey (Part A of the series) is an attempt to have an upshot of the Use and impact of library softwares and the merger of electronic resources with the traditional library set-up.

Since it is a public survey, you are requested to direct as many people to the site given below for participation and informative inputs!

Click here for the survey. Your active participation would be highly appreciated.

Chinmayee Bhange

Librarian

SFIT

Springer offers free access to research articles on E. coli bacteria

Over 400 articles on the E. coli bacteria available online free of charge on SpringerLink

Springer Science+Business Media is offering all journal articles and book chapters which deal with the E. coli bacteria free of charge on its online information platform www.springerlink.com. The articles can be found by using the search terms “Enterohaemorrhagic and Escherichia and coli” or by using the link www.springer.com/ehec. A total of over 400 scientific articles are available to print out or download from now until 1 September 2011
Source: http://www.springer.com/biomed/ehec?SGWID=0-1728613-0-0-0
To download, click here

Fantasy Short Story Competition

This year, Fantasy Book Review, in association with Swift Publishers, is delighted to be able to run a short story competition. The writer of the winning fantasy short story will receive an Apple iPad (we are working on also having the winning entry published), the two runner-ups will receive Amazon Kindle. The best news of all is that each applicable entry will receive a free copy of Frank P Ryan’s fantasy ebook THE SNOWMELT RIVER (read our review here). Everybody wins!

For details, visit Fantasy Book Review

Questionnaire on Use of electronic resources

We at Central Library, SFIT have undertaken to study the usage patterns of electronic resources. You are requested to fill up the questionnaire by clicking on the below mentioned link:

Survey

How adequate is your financial record keeping?

In this era which is distinguished from yesteryears by its SPEED, we cannot (even if we desire to!) involve our parents and our spouse in financial decision making. Although financial decisions prove to be a boon or bane at every turn of life, we risk the life of our loved ones by making them ignorant about our investments. A sudden death in a family makes us realize the benefits of financial record keeping.

Here is an article which is written by Vishal Shah (Chartered Accountant) and published in DNA dated June 8, 2011.

Start your record keeping from today!!

Dons fear new credit system will burden their shoulders

Published: Tuesday, Jun 7, 2011, 23:11 IST
By Puja Pednekar | Place: Mumbai | Agency: DNA

While the credits-based choice system will bring cheer to many students as new avenues and flexibilities open up for them, the teaching community is not happy with the new system, which will be implemented from this academic session. They fear that the system, which involves 40 marks for students for project work, will mean additional burden on their shoulders. With a student teacher ratio as high as 120 students per teacher, the teachers will be overburdened with the extra work of assessing number of projects and other activities, say principals across degree colleges in the city. “Such a system works in foreign universities because they have four to five teaching assistants helping the professors. These assistants check projects, papers, tutor students so there is very little burden on the professors. However, the university has no such system in place. How many students’ assignments can one teacher correct?” said Madhu Paranjape, officiating general secretary, Buctu and university Senate member. Paranjape added that before implementing the system the university should appoint adequate number of teachers. “Due to the revised norms that require certain staff members to be PhD holders, we are facing shortage of teachers. There are vacancies that need to be filled.” However, Dr Rajpal Hande, director, board of college and university development said that the system will not add any extra burden to the teachers if followed properly. “It is a tried and tested system in several universities and it will help students in learning. The role of the teachers will be that of a mentor and guide.” Even though the colleges will start their academic year June onwards, the sensitisation workshops launched by the university at different levels are yet to gain ground. “The workshops have not yet begun for many departments,” she added. Courtesy: www.dnaindia.com (Accessed on 07/06/2011)

Apple takes a giant leap into the cloud (AFP)

June 6 2011 by admin in Apple Computer |No Comments

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) – Apple chief executive Steve Jobs on Monday interrupted his medical leave to unveil a free service called iCloud that stores music, photos and other content on the Web and shares it across multiple devices.

“We’re going to move the digital hub to the cloud,” the 56-year-old Jobs told software developers at Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) at San Francisco’s Moscone Center.

Jobs and other Apple executives also gave developers a preview of the next generation of Lion, the software that powers Macintosh computers, and iOS 5, the latest mobile operating system for the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch.

But the highlight of the event was Apple’s long-awaited iCloud service, which eliminates the need to hook up a cable to transfer music, photos, documents or electronic books between Apple devices.

“Keeping these devices in sync is driving us crazy,” Jobs said to cheers from the audience of more than 5,000 software developers. “We’ve got a great solution for this problem, and we think the solution is our next big insight.

“iCloud stores your content in the cloud and automatically pushes it to all your devices,” he said.

Apple said iCloud wirelessly synchronizes mail, contacts, calendars, photos, applications, e-books, music and other files across devices.

Apple’s “iTunes in the Cloud” lets users download previously purchased music and new music purchases to Apple devices while a Photo Stream service wirelessly pushes photos to all connected devices and computers.

For music not purchased through iTunes, Apple is offering a service called “iTunes Match” for $24.99 a year that matches music in a subscriber’s personal digital music collection and makes it available online.

Michael Gartenberg, an analyst at technology research company Gartner, said iCloud represents a “pretty big shift for Jobs.”

“Where 10 years ago he talked about the Mac as the hub for your digital life today he said the cloud is now the hub for your digital life,” Gartenberg said.

“Apple’s talking about an entire ecosystem,” he said. “What they presented today was from a software platform perspective an entire vision of the future of the digital consumer all tied together by cloud service offerings.”

Jobs, dressed in his trademark black pullover and blue jeans, took the stage to a standing ovation shortly after the music sound system blared out the James Brown hit “I Feel Good.”

“Thank you, that always helps,” said Jobs, who appeared thin but relatively healthy in his first public appearance since March, when he unveiled the iPad 2.

Jobs, who underwent a liver transplant two years ago and has previously battled pancreatic cancer, was making just his second public appearance since going on medical leave in January with an unspecified illness.

Jobs and other Apple executives took a number of potshots at the personal computer during Monday’s event, stressing that iCloud eliminates the need for a user’s life to revolve around a PC.

“We’re going to demote the PC to just being a device,” Jobs said.

With the new version of iOS 5, for example, a personal computer would no longer be needed to set up and activate an iPad and software updates will be delivered wirelessly.

“With the new iPad we’re ushering in the post-PC world,” said Scott Forstall, senior vice president of iPhone software. “Now if you want to cut the cord, you can.”

Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide product marketing Phil Schiller demonstrated features in the next generation of Lion including “air drop,” which allows Macintosh users to transfer files with other nearby Mac users through a peer-to-peer wireless connection.

A new iMessage service lets users send text messages, photos and videos between Apple devices while Newsstand is a bookshelf for newspaper and magazine subscriptions that updates automatically with the latest issue.

A camera icon on the iPad now lets users open the camera directly from the lock screen and the volume button can be used to take a picture.

Lion will be available as a download in July for $29.99, considerably cheaper than the $129 charged for previous upgrades.

Apple said iCloud will be available this fall with the release of iOS 5 and will provide five gigabytes of free cloud storage for mail, document storage and backup.

Music, applications, books and photos do not count against the storage limit.

Apple shares lost 1.57 percent on Monday to close at $338.04.

Courtesy: http://apple-news.findtechnologynews.com/apple-takes-a-giant-leap-into-the-cloud-afp/

11 Most Impressive Libraries from the Ancient World

Libraries, regardless of whether or not they attach themselves to a university, belong to a public system, or simply sit inside someone's home, exist as an essential vertebrae in society's backbone. These intellectual institutions make knowledge and education accessible to individuals, businesses and cities alike, preventing mental — and, subsequently, collective — stagnation. By no means are they anything new, either! For millennia, libraries of all shapes and sizes have kept humanity puttering ever forward, allowing for some of the greatest innovations ever conceived. Although all but one gradually fell to fire and time, these ancient wonders deserve awe and accolades for everything they've accomplished when it comes to promoting every academic and literary subject imaginable.

1. Villa of the Papyri: Located in Herculaneum, Italy, Villa of the Papyri holds the honor of being one of the few (if not only) classical libraries to mostly survive into modern times — even after the 79 CE eruption of Mt. Vesuvius buried it beneath tons of ash. Unearthed in 1752, archaeologists discovered at least 1, 785carbonized scrolls (from which the site derives its name) still intact on the top level, while the bottom still warrants further exploration. Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus, Julius Caesar's father-in-law, may have owned the massive home, which overflowed with over 80 gorgeous sculptures (mostly bronze) and some of the era's most stylish architecture. Given the owner's predilection for philosophy, most of the reads featured in his private library were personally selected by his dear Epicurean friend Philodemus of Gadara.

2. The Royal Library of Ashurbanipal: If nothing else about this Assyrian majesty impresses readers, the fact that it possessed the original clay tablets comprising The Epic of Gilgamesh just might. Snuggled in Nineveh, the former empire's capitol, The Royal Library of Ashurbanipal — named after its last significant king — boasted thousands of holdings. The British Museum posits the exact number at around 30,943 surviving examples. Most of these were, of course, clay tablets inscribed with Akkadian cuneiform and covered a broad range of subjects piquing the king's knowledge lust. Historians believe the grand library fell along with Nineveh itself during a 612 BCE raid by the Medes, Babylonians and Scythians. Fires meant to destroy the collections actually baked the clay and kept them preserved for millennia, though the wax reads did not fare so well.

3. Library of Pergamum: Plutarch claims the pivotal Turkish library in ancient Pergamum (now Bergama) kept over 200,000 holdings, but a lack of any known surviving administrative records makes it impossible to really tell. Stories circulate of Mark Antony's emptying the collection onto Cleopatra VII as a seriously cool wedding present, which she then plopped straight into the Royal Library of Alexandria. Fans of biblical archaeology will love visiting its ruins, as St. John of Patmos explicitly mentioned it as one of the Seven Churches of Revelation.

4. Nalanda University: Bahir, India is home to one of the most lauded intellectual circles of the ancient world, with Nalanda University holding tight as its nerve center from around 427 to 1197 CE. Its library, nicknamed "Dharmaganja" ("Treasury of Truth") and Dharma Ghunj ("Mountain of Truth"), allegedly burst with hundreds of thousands of texts. During its heyday, Nalanda University was praised as the world's largest collection of Buddhist literature, nurturing followers, new philosophies and helping the faith spread across South Asia. 1193 saw Turkic invaders burn down the prestigious house of learning, and legend has it the library took months before everything ended up destroyed.

5. Theological Library of Caesarea Maritima: Before its ultimate destruction in 638 CE (estimated), the Theological Library of Caesarea Maritima existed as the biggest, most influential ecclesiastic library in the ancient world. Among the literary wonders in its possession were The Gospel According to the Hebrews, quite possibly the only complete copy of Hexapla and the works of St. Jerome, Basil the Great and Gregory of Nazareth — among other highly regarded religious philosophers. Both Origen and St. Pamphilus of Caesarea were largely responsible for the over 30,000 works collected, most of them regarding Christianity.

6. Libraries at Ugarit: Located in modern-day Syria, the ancient city of Ugarit boasted at least 5 exquisite libraries. Two of them, one owned by Rapanu (a diplomat), were actually private — quite the rarity for 1200 BCE. One was located at the palace, another to a temple. All of them largely collected clay tablets, and literature covered an incredible range of subjects in at least 7 different languages. Most of them, as one can probably imagine, involved political, legal and economic concerns, but religion, academics and fiction were by no means uncommon topics.

7. Libraries of the Forum: The Forum of Trajan, home of the Bibliotecha Ulpiana, is probably the most famous of the Roman libraries. But by no means should one consider it the only institution worth researching! Both the temple of Apollo Palatinus and the Porticus Octaviae housed their very own libraries, along with many other imperial fora. All of these would collect works in both Latin and Greek — occasionally other languages — and keep them separated from one another for more convenient access.

8. Libraries of Timbuktu: Mali's legendary city once existed as one of the most influential intellectual hubs during ancient and medieval times. As a cohesive unit, the amazing libraries (and university) housed there boasted over 700,000 now-famous manuscripts. These works have garnered far more than a modicum of attention the past few years, owing largely to the fact that they sat mostly hidden for well over a century. Most of the rightfully lauded literary treasures revolve around Islam and Islamic themes and are written in Arabic. Some even contain absolutely gorgeous examples of illuminated manuscripts, too.

9. Library of Celsus: Greco-Roman senator Tiberius Julius Celsus lay buried beneath the library bearing his name, which now sits ruined in modern-day Turkey. This dual heritage was honored in the building's architecture as well as its beautifully stocked shelves. Completed in 135 CE, it housed 12,000 scrolls and may have served as a template for similar buildings now lost to time's ravages. Celus' sarcophagus was quite the anomaly for the time, as few politicians enjoyed the sterling honor of spending eternity at their very own library.

10. Imperial Library of Constantinople: At the heart of the Byzantine Empire sat Constantinople, now Istanbul. And at the heart of Constantinople, now Istanbul, sat one of the most glorious libraries in the history of the world — ancient or otherwise. For almost a millennium, the Imperial Library (established during the reign of Constantius II, which lasted between 337 to 361 CE) kept the Greek and Roman literary tradition alive and accessible. It even boasted an awe-inspiring scriptorium dedicated to preserving and transcribing delicate papyri and other works. Fire, unfortunately, proved its undoing on two different occasions. One incident in 473 destroyed around 120,000 texts, and the Fourth Crusade in 1204 eventually finished the job.

11. The Royal Library of Alexandria: The Royal Library of Alexandria, once the shimmering jewel of ancient Egypt, probably pops to most people's minds when the subject of ancient intellectual institutions emerges. Julius Caesar infamously initiated an accident burning it to the ground in 48 BCE, destroying what was then one of the largest repositories of literary, political, legal, economic, academic, philosophical and religious texts on the globe. From the 3rd Century BCE up until the fateful folly, ancient Egypt looked towards the library for knowledge and information. It housed a museum absolutely brimming with artifacts along with its literary holdings. Allegedly, King Ptolemy II Philadelphus desired to see this prestigious institution boast at least 500,000 books, each of which requiring a number of different scrolls.
    

    Courtesy: www.onlinecollege.org (Accessed on 07/06/2011)

50 great ways to celebrate on Library Appreciation Day

From free books to career courses, libraries are a source of information and inspiration for young minds and can be a lifesaver for those facing tough economic times. Whether you choose to honor your college library or one in your community, here are a few ways that you can use this week to promote, appreciate and praise your local cornerstones.

Click here to find out more...

Courtesy: www.onlinecollege.org (Accessed on 07/06/2011)

Libraries take the digital route

PUNE: Keeping pace with the times, libraries at research institutes have begun to digitise their book collections.
The Deccan College Post Graduate and Research Institute is in the process of scanning books between 1500 AD and 1900 AD, while the Bhaskaracharya Pratishthan, which has a rare collection of pure mathematics, also plans to use the digital platform.
One of country's foremost research institutes, the Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, has digitised its books from the 16th century onwards. Plans are afoot to make it available to the public through the internet on a membership basis. The Jayakar Library of the University of Pune has also scanned over 3,000 books so far. The Deccan College received a grant from the Union government last year for this purpose. "The first phase of digitisation will consist of books published between 1500 and 1900. Work on the project began a year ago and we are half-way through. The grant is just enough for us to digitise the books in this period. Once we receive more funds, work will continue," said Trupti More, a librarian at Deccan college.
The college has a collection of 1.7 lakh books in Marathi, Hindi and English, many of them travel guides from the 16th century. They also have manuscripts on the Vedas, astronomy and ayurveda.Suresh Patil, chief librarian of Jayakar Library, said, "With changing reading habits and the advent of technology, libraries also need to update themselves. Digitising books makes it more accessible and convenient to readers, academicians and researchers. It increases the reader database and ultimately spreads knowledge."
Patil stressed that digitisation makes it easy to search for books, authors, theses and references. "Earlier, we used to spend hours searching for books or authors. Now we just have to click a few times." Jayakar Library has over five lakh books and 2,300 manuscripts in Hindi and Marathi. The Gokhale Institute will soon digitise over 20,000 books, mostly on social science and economics, dating back to the 1680s. Many of them have come apart and cannot be given to those wanting to read them. Instead the institute will scan them so that readers can either take a printout or download them, or even read them on the computer screen. The Institute has received a grant of Rs 20 lakh for the project from the University Grants Commission. Nanaji Shewale, chief librarian of the Gokhale Institute, said, "Once the project is complete, online access will become possible."
Source: Times of India dated 9 May 2011

Balbharati goes online

To beat annual shortage, Balbharati goes online
Starting June, the textbooks for Std I to VIII will be available in PDF format on the website www.balbharati.in free of cost : Deepti Khera mirrorfeedback@indiatimes.com
To tackle perennial shortage of its textbooks, Balbharati has decided to upload them on its web site (www.balbharati.in) in the PDF format. Starting from June the textbooks, for Std I to VIII, will be available online free of cost.
The PDF files will contain all the illustrations and exercises that the textbooks have. Balbharati has now been printing textbooks for nearly 55 years. An official from Balbharati, which also serves the Maharashtra State Bureau of Textbook Production and Curriculum Research, said, “Each year Balbharati prints more than six crore textbooks. With such a huge amount of print orders, there is a possibility of a time lag. In order to avoid shortages, that would cause hardships to students, we have decided to take this move.”
Priyanka Verma, a student studying in Std VI, said, “Last year, I enquired at all the local stores, but my math book was just not in stock. It was only a month after school started that I got the book. Till then I managed on photocopies.” Priyanka isn’t alone. Shimin Patel, parent of a Std VII student, had to go to the extent of writing to officials at Balbharati officials to get the science book for her daughter, as all the nearby stored were out of stock. Former Director of Balbharati Vasant Kalpande, whose idea it was to go online with the textbooks, said, “Students will no longer have to hunt for textbooks. We hope to start upload most books from the start of this academic year itself.”
He added, “Some Marathi medium textbooks for Std I and II have already been uploaded.”
Chairperson of Maharashtra’s Education Board Ujwala Patil also approved of the move, saying, “Students can now heave a sigh of relief.” Currently, Balbharati prints more than six crore textbooks every year
Source: Mumbai Mirror dated 9 May 2011

Alternatives to Photoshop

Fotoflexer.com
A free online image editing software. You can add animation to your photos, cut a person out of the background, crop, resize, and lots more! There is even a neat feature for creating posters! A great little tool for basic image editing techniques.
Gimp.org
An open source image manipulation program. Great tool for photo retouching, image composition, and image authoring.
Inkscape.org"
An Open Source vector graphics editor, with capabilities similar to Illustrator, CorelDraw, or Xara X, using the W3C standard Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) file format."
Pixlr.com
For photoediting

SMS e-library to show live surgeries

JAIPUR: Now, the resident surgeons would be able to see live surgeries performed by eminent doctors from the operation theatres (OT) of Sawai Man Singh Hospital as the surgery department has developed an e-library on the premises.
HoD of the surgery department Dinesh Jindal said, "We want to connect our e-library with our OT, this would help our students to study various kind of surgeries watching them live." The newly developed e-library has books on surgery written by notable doctors, journals and videos of surgeries. "Videos are important as they help in imparting practical knowledge to the students. We are trying to bring more videos of surgeries performed in prominent hospitals like AIIMS." The surgery department plans to connect its e-library with other hospitals so that the resident doctors could see the live convention on latest technologies organised in other hospitals. "There would be a code, which the other hospitals would provide us. Through that code we would be able to see the convention live on surgeries organised in the other hospitals," he said. The e-library has computers and also projectors, where around 40 resident doctors could access the library at a time.
SMS hospital superintendent LC Sharma said that the e-library could be used for saving records of operations, could be used in future for reference of the cases. He said the authorities plan to open such e-libraries in other departments too.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/jaipur/SMS-e-library-to-show-live-surgeries/articleshow/8130272.cms

A Harmonium of 22 Shruti

http://www.22shruti.com/

Indian music is composed using Shadaja, 4 types of Rishabh, Gandhar, Madhyam, Pancham, 4 Dhaivat and 4 Nishads making a total of 22 Shruti. A novel idea of a Harmonium with these 22 Shruti is the brainchild of Dr. Vidyadhar Oak. Videos depicting this concept and for a more explanation, visit the site.

Courtesy: Vivek Mehetre, Web Jagat, Loksatta dated 27/04/2011

Listen to kids' stories by kids

www.smories.com

A site which takes you on a roller-coaster of stories told by kids and for kids. A must-see for all the children in this summer vacation.

Rich Kid Smart Kid

Rich Kid Smart Kid (RKSK) is the youth initiative of The Rich Dad Company – seeking to increase the financial literacy of the next generation of future entrepreneurs. By utilizing games as a means to teach challenging subjects like finance, business and investing, we are training a fresh, new group of business owners and creative thinkers who will become their community's leaders. The Rich Dad mission is one of education and empowerment. Knowledge is power. The Rich Dad Company is committed to improving the awareness of and opportunities for improved financial literacy for adults and children around the world.
Source: http://www.richkidsmartkid.com/about.html

Reminder to staff for returning books

This is a gentle request to all the staff members to return all the text-books borrowed by them latest by 30th. April, 2011 for the benefit of students. They may although renew the reference books.

Borrowal duration for books will be 15 days

Starting from April 30, 2011, the home-issue duration for books will be 15 days.

Congratulations to Book-Mark Contest Winners!

The Central Library and the Library Advisory Committee have announced the winners for the Book Mark Making Contest. Come and have a look at the winning book-marks on the notice board. The winners are as follows:
First place: Melinda Gomes
Second place: Aaron D'souza
Third place: Kinjal Shah and Nidhi Panchal

Free Access to superb GALE resources

In celebration of National Library Week, you will have FREE access to superb Gale resources listed below from April 10th - April 24th. Access the products below or add the access widget to your homepage: Gale NewsVault — The definitive cross-searching experience for exploring Gale's historical newspaper and periodical collections — with access to more than 10 million digitized pages. Global Issues in Context — Empower your users with the tools they need to understand today's world issues from a truly global perspective. GREENR (Global Reference on the Environment, Energy, and Natural Resources) — From the green-collar economy to questions of energy and resource management, GREENR is the foremost online reference portal for sustainability and environmental studies. Powerspeak Languages — The perfect language learning resource teaches users how to immerse into cultural authenticity. New languages include ESL Mandarin, Italian, Japanese, Russian and Korean. Science in Context — From global warming to space exploration, students are drawn into the subject by integrating pure information with today's headlines and videos — showing how scientific disciplines relate to real-world issues. Slavery and Anti-Slavery: A Transnational Archive — The largest, most ambitious collection devoted to the study of slavery. In its entirety, it will consist of more than 5 million cross-searchable pages. Part I: Debates over Slavery & Abolition available now.

Source: http://www.gale.cengage.com/NLW/, Accessed on 13/04/2011

ProQuest Celebrates National Library Week with Free Resources

Company asks Facebook friends why libraries rock and opens access to popular databases April 10 through 16 ANN ARBOR, Mich., April 11, 2011 - ProQuest, an information firm central to research, is celebrating National Library Week (April 10-16) by giving libraries new opportunities to market their rich online database services to their communities and giving citizens a chance to share their love of libraries on the company’s Facebook page. ProQuest will provide free internet access to a variety of popular resources found exclusively through library web sites. ProQuest has also created new web icons, banners, and a screensaver to help libraries highlight the online research databases available through their websites year-round. "Libraries have a wealth of unique, online resources that address all sorts of questions challenging their communities. Whether people are building a family tree or completing a homework assignment, their library can help, and it's open 24/7 through any internet connection," said Lynda James-Gilboe, ProQuest senior vice-president of marketing and customer care. "National Library Week is a perfect opportunity to take a look at the reliable information that's available online through the library." During National Library Week, ProQuest will open databases that support some of the most common information questions posed to libraries. Resources for genealogy, history, general reference, and homework help will be open at www.proquest.com/go/celebrate. Among the resources are patron favorites such as ebrary's Public Library Complete and School Collection, ProQuest African American Heritage, ProQuest Civil War Era, CultureGrams, eLibrary, SIRS Issues Researcher, and SIRS Discoverer. All of the databases are filled with carefully selected content that passes ProQuest's high standards for quality and reliability. None include advertising. April 11-15, ProQuest is gathering comments from Facebook friends, asking them to fill in the blank in "My library rocks because...?" The company will post a short video each day on Facebook, asking a question about libraries. Fans are encouraged to respond to the question in the comments section. To enter, users "Like" ProQuest on Facebook at www.facebook.com/proquest, then click the Sweepstakes tab, and fill out the entry form for a chance to win one of five $50 Amazon.com gift cards or a grand prize of an iPad 2. All libraries are encouraged to add www.proquest.com/go/celebrate to their web sites during National Library Week. Free marketing resources are available at www.proquest.com/go/nlwaccess. ProQuest's celebration of National Library Week is rooted in its longstanding support of libraries and librarianship. ProQuest's outreach and advocacy efforts extend deep into the library community. Among its varied programs are tools and services that help librarians connect with their communities, free database access and scholarship support for library students, and sponsorship of a range of awards that recognize outstanding library school educators and honor local efforts to protect intellectual freedom. In 2009, ProQuest initiated the Library Volunteer Program, which organized volunteer efforts to support Washtenaw County (MI) libraries and community groups. The Library Volunteer Program will kick off its third year this spring. ProQuest is also a corporate member and premier partner to numerous library organizations including the American Library Association's short list of Library Champions, corporate membership in the Urban Libraries Council, a sponsor of the Association of Library Trustees, Advocates, Friends and Foundations, as well as many others. Involvement with these organizations is part of ProQuest's commitment to the role of libraries as cornerstones of healthy, informed communities. Source http://www.proquest.com/en-US/aboutus/pressroom/11/20110411.shtml

Birthday Book Program

SFIT LIBRARY INVITES YOU TO ……CELEBRATE YOUR BIRTHDAY WITH A BOOK Be a part of the new “Birthday Book” program, which starts this year! We would like to give you an opportunity to make a personal contribution to our central library in honour of your own birthday or of your beloved ones. You may purchase a NEW book of your choice to place in the library. You are requested to write your name on the first page of the gifted book. So, start your birthday celebrations by helping us grow the library collection. You may choose a book from the “Wish List” available at the Central Library. Remember that this gift is not mandatory at all, but at the same time, you would be sharing your world of thoughts and books with the fraternity.

World Book and Copyright Day Celebrations

World Book and Copyright Day on April 23

SCOPE

By celebrating this Day throughout the world, UNESCO seeks to promote reading, publishing and the protection of intellectual property through copyright. ORIGIN April 23: A symbolic date for world literature for on this date and in the same year of 1616, Cervantes, Shakespeare and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega all died. It is also the date of birth or death of other prominent authors such as Maurice Druon, K.Laxness, Vladimir Nabokov, Josep Pla and Manuel Mejía Vallejo. It was a natural choice for UNESCO's General Conference to pay a world-wide tribute to books and authors on this date, encouraging everyone, and in particular young people, to discover the pleasure of reading and gain a renewed respect for the irreplaceable contributions of those who have furthered the social and cultural progress of humanity. The idea for this celebration originated in Catalonia where on 23 April, Saint George's Day, a rose is traditionally given as a gift for each book sold. The success of the World Book and Copyright Day will depend primarily on the support received from all parties concerned (authors, publishers, teachers, librarians, public and private institutions) and by all those who feel motivated to work together in this world celebration of books and authors.

(Source: http://portal.unesco.org, accessed on 05/04/2011)

ACTIVITIES PLANNED AT SFIT In view of the aforementioned, the Central Library and the Library Advisory Committee invite you to be part of any / all of the below mentioned events: 1) Book-Mark making contest: Make a catchy book-mark (a marker made using paper to enable a reader to trace back the page he / she were reading) and drop it in the box kept in the library before 18/04/2011. 2) Your Dream Library: Draw a picture of your dream SFIT Library and drop it in the box kept in the library before 20/04/2011. 3) Cover page design: Design a cover page for the Library e-newsletter which is brought out every six months & drop it in the box kept in the library before 18/04/2011. The previous newsletters may be accessed on the library webpage. 4) Book Crossword: Test your knowledge of book names by solving this cross-word. Register for this event before 18/04/2011. Contact Ms. Namrata Mankad (Room No. 505) or the Library. The event will be held on 20th. April, 2011 between 3.00 pm to 4.00 pm. 5) Author Puzzle: Search for the names of the authors in this puzzle. Register for this event before 18/04/2011. Contact Ms. Namrata Mankad (Room No. 505) or the Library. The event will be held on 20th. April, 2011 between 3.00 pm to 4.00 pm. 6) Donate a book on your birthday: This would be an on-going program; the details of which are given overleaf. For staff: If you are participating in the Book Crossword or Author Puzzle, kindly put a tick against the space provided against your name in the signature list which will be circulated.

Overdue Fines

The Central Library at SFIT imposes fines on overdue items. These fines are designed to ensure prompt and timely return of library items and give everybody a reasonable chance to access the items. We do not want anybody to stop making use of the Library because of its fine structure. Please do not hesitate to come up to us if you have problems related to lost books and /or overdue books.
We have always encouraged the practice of informing us at your earliest in case of any matters pertaining to the library.
Nonetheless, the fine structure is given below:
Rupee 1/- per day for the first five days (inclusive of the due date stamped on the date slip)
Rupees 3/- per day for the next ten days
Rupees 10/- per day for the following days

Overdues amounting to more than rupees one hundred should be paid by a A/C Payee cheque drawn in favour of "St. Francis Institute of Technology" in "The Catholic Syrian Bank", Borivali (W), which is just opposite the institute and the deposit slip be submitted to the Library, against which your library cards will be released.
The above practice will be followed with effect from 25th March, 2011.

New books in the Central Library

Hi,
Following new books have been added:
Introduction to Evolutionary Computing / A.E. Eiben and J.E. Smith - 03 copies
Distributed Operating Systems: Concepts and Design / Pradeep Sinha - 10 copies
Healthcare Information Management Systems: cases, strategies and solutions / Ball Marion, Charlotte Weaver and Joan Kiel - 01 copy (REFERENCE ONLY)

SFIT Library Quiz 3

Library Quiz - March 2011: The quiz will be live for the period 03/03/2011 to 31/03/2011.
Click on the link below to answer the quiz.
SFIT Library Think Tank

International Women's Day

International Women's Day 2011 Theme

Each year around the world, International Women's Day (IWD) is celebrated on March 8. Hundreds of events occur not just on this day but throughout March to mark the economic, political and social achievements of women.

Organisations, governments and women's groups around the world choose different themes each year that reflect global and local gender issues.

THEME: So while many people may think there is one global theme each year, this is not always correct. It is completely up to each country and group as to what appropriate theme they select.

Below are some of the global United Nation themes used for International Women's Day to date:

- 2011: Equal access to education, training and science and technology: Pathway to decent work for women
- 2010: Equal rights, equal opportunities: Progress for all
- 2009: Women and men united to end violence against women and girls
- 2008: Investing in Women and Girls
- 2007: Ending Impunity for Violence against Women and Girls
- 2006: Women in decision-making
- 2005: Gender Equality Beyond 2005: Building a More Secure Future
- 2004: Women and HIV/AIDS
- 2003: Gender Equality and the Millennium Development Goals
- 2002: Afghan Women Today: Realities and Opportunities
- 2001: Women and Peace: Women Managing Conflicts
- 2000: Women Uniting for Peace
- 1999: World Free of Violence against Women
- 1998: Women and Human Rights
- 1997: Women at the Peace Table
- 1996: Celebrating the Past, Planning for the Future
- 1975: First IWD celebrated by the United Nations

Reference Source: http://www.internationalwomensday.com/theme/ (Accessed on 08/03/2011)

Marathi Bhasha Diwas Photos

We celebrated "Marathi Bhasha Diwas" on 28th. February, 2011 in our Institute.
Marathi Bhasha Diwas is celebrated on 27th. February every year as it is the birthday of the legendary poet V.V. Shirwadkar, popularly known as Kusumagraj. This year marks the centenary of the birth anniversary of the poet.

In 1989, poet Kusumagraj was honoured with the Dnyanpeeth Award, the topmost award for literature instituted by the Government of India, for his contribution to Marathi literature. He was only the second Marathi litterateur after V. S. Khandekar to receive this award. He served as the President of the first International Marathi Parishad (Convention) in 1989.
Kusumagraj’s contribution to Marathi literature and his love for the language prompted the International Marathi Convention to dedicate his birthday, 27th February, as the Marathi Language Day. The idea behind observing this day is to create awareness and pride about Marathi culture and its roots, apart from encouraging research and development of the language.

The Marathi Abhimaan Geet composed by Shri. Kaushal Inamdar also completed a year in the month of February this year. This very song is sung by 105 singers, accompanied by 356 co-singers. The video for the song follows this post.

A slant to English Language

www.engrish.com

www.tinyurl.com/funnyeng

A board on a road, next to the University of Mumbai was for a long time displaying "UNIVERCITY". It was corrected soon after an evening newspaper reported the mistake. Many labels in Japan bear English names, which are sometimes mis-spelt, creating a humorous havoc. Such incidences are housed on the above websites. Go forward and have some fun!

Book Exhibition Photos

Telephone Directory of the World

www.teldir.com

www.infobel.com/en/world

Cultivate your hidden talents

www.teras-wish.com/articles

www.teraliegh.com

Some people, it seems, are born knowing their own purpose, and go after it with a single-minded purpose.

Most of us, however, spend our lives searching for that purpose, while we live a fearful and unhappy life, afraid to take the risks involved with change.

Source: www.teras-wish.com

Courtesy: Vivek Mehetre, Webjagat, Loksatta dated 23/02/2011.

SFIT Library Blog crosses 1 thousand hits!

Our Library Blog was launched in the month of April 2010...today it has crossed one thousand hits!

Thanks to all those who have contributed toward this venture!

Book Exhibition

We cordially invite all the SFITians for the 3rd. Book Exhibition on February 22, 2011 between 9.00 am to 5.00 pm at the following venue:

Assembly Hall, SFIT

Book Art

www.tinyurl.com/bookartorigami

www.flicker.com/photos/bookofart

Isaac Salazar is an accountant in New Mexico. When he's not crunching numbers he's working on his side project, called "Book of Art," which is pretty freaking awesome!

Source: http://www.core77.com/blog/object_culture/isaac_salazar_pop-up_books_for_typographers_18546.asp

Courtesy: Vivek Mehetre, Webjagat, Loksatta dated 17/02/2011

Download Engineering Books

For downloading engineering books, click here.

Stamp Exhibition

www.coolstamps.com

http://home.scarlet.be/evan.belle/stamp

www.collectiblestampsgallery.com

Courtsey: Vivek Mehetre, Webjagat, Loksatta dated 11/02/2011

How is a physical archive still relevant in today's hyper-connected world?

How is a physical archive still relevant in today’s hyper-connected world?
Published: Wednesday, Feb 9, 2011, 2:27 IST Place: Mumbai Agency: DNA
It helps address the digital divide
With scarce archiving of women’s perspectives, every effort counts. An outfit such as ours is completely digital and has its own audience. But there is still a vast digital divide; there are voices that still struggle to find a place in cyberspace. So the SPARROW archive plays an important role. At the same time, I relate to their need to be financially independent. When you're trying to build an organisation, you need consistent funding.
Sapna Shahani, director, Women Aloud: Videoblogging for Empowerment (WAVE)
It rescues and preserves lost voices
CS Lakshmi started SPARROW at a time where it was not very common to have things dedicated to women. Instead of just archiving published material, she has rescued creative works by women that would otherwise be languishing in a cupboard somewhere.Despite the move towards digitisation, I believe some things have to be kept in the form they were created in. So there is definitely a place for real archiving. Just because it’s expensive, it shouldn’t be made redundant.
Chandita Mukherjee, director, Comet Media Foundation, NGO
It helps documents personal histories
I became involved with SPARROW when CS Lakshmi began documenting the lives of Indian women artistes. In their oral history workshops, a lot of spontaneous creation took place. I remember doing an improv dance and music session with the late Kathak dancer, Damayanti Joshi. I admire Lakshmi’s resolve in documenting the inner struggles of artists, instead of just seeking out celebrities. In that sense, SPARROW serves a great purpose in documenting cultural history.
Neela Bhagwat, Hindustani classical singer
It provides reliable information
I remember flipping through these little booklets SPARROW had published about Indian women in cinema history. I still have them in my collection. There’s something about the physicality of a book that is comforting to me. As a journalist, I use a combination of the internet and books for my research. The internet tends to be limited to excerpts and cross-references, but for in-depth knowledge about a subject, I prefer referring to books, where the likelihood of errors is far lower than on the internet.
Meenakshi Shedde, journalist
Source: DNA dated 09/02/2011

Preserve 'her story' before it's lost

Preserve ‘her story’ before it’s lost
Published: Wednesday, Feb 9, 2011, 1:23 IST By Uttarika Kumaran Place: Mumbai Agency: DNA
Why is it we all know that Jawaharlal Nehru was India’s first prime minister, but many would struggle to remember his sister, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit —the first Indian woman to hold a cabinet post and later became governor of Maharashtra? Or the fact that RK Laxman is considered India’s greatest cartoonist, while the name of Maya Kamath barely registers? And who would’ve thought something as frivolous as rangolis could give one a glimpse into the political and social concerns of the women who drew them?
The Sound and Picture Archive for Research On Women (SPARROW) library in a non-descript building in Dahisar (East), doesn’t claim to have the answers. But in an ostensibly pluralist world, where even bringing up the gender issue is increasingly being considered myopic, it definitely raises some interesting questions.
Taking flightSet up in 1988 by Dr CS Lakshmi, Dr Neera Desai and Dr Maithreyi Krishna Raj, all pioneering figures in the field of women’s studies in India, SPARROW was an unusual name for what was, back then, an unusual endeavour. “In most of our work, we were always looking for material currently found in SPARROW but usually absent in other archives and documentation centres,” says DR CS Lakshmi, director, SPARROW.
With funding from the Dutch organisation HIVOS in 1997, the ten-year grant period that followed were the most crucial years in the growth of the archive. Today, the archive stores 5,000 books in 11 Indian languages and countless more journals, journal articles and newspaper clippings covering all areas of history and culture related to women. SPARROW’s anchor project on oral history has produced video and audio recordings of a diverse set of women, from those involved in the freedom movement, practitioners of traditional systems of medicine, artists, writers and educationists.
Losing speedToday, the library that holds this veritable treasure house of women’s histories is called Dr Neera Desai Memorial Library, named after the late Dr Neera Desai who taught an entire generation of feminists to rise above abstractions and examine their own realities.
In this spirit, SPARROW has consistently organised exhibitions, writers’ camps and cultural festivals to take the archive out of the library and into public spaces. However, over the past two years, the absence of adequate funding has meant that such activities have considerably reduced. For now, SPARROW has been able to tide over the fund crunch via donations from individual donors as well as a Charity Art Raffle organised last year.
But the atmosphere at the SPARROW office, despite many leaving for better-paying jobs, remains upbeat. And although the immaculately kept library finds few visitors, except for researchers and stray students, the team, buried deep in newspapers, women’s magazines, audio tapes and transcripts, keeps the archiving mission going on full steam.
Malsawmi Jacob, a Mizo poet and writer, and currently editor at SPARROW, claims the best thing about her work is that it gives her a window into so many different lives. Speaking as an employee, however, Jacob admits times have been tough. “Several people have left since they haven’t had a rise in salary in the past four years. I myself have had to take up a part-time position here,” she says.
The sky’s the limit“The function of an archive is to retrieve marginal histories,” explains Dr Lakshmi. As a case in point, she talks of the 1998 SPARROW publication on Sakhubai, a tribal woman and member of Kashtakari Sanghatana, an organisation in Maharashtra that saves tribal communities from exploitation. She adds, “Sakhubai will never be part of any textbook. That’s why I strongly feel that if you want to change the education system, change the material that people can have access to.”
With this in mind, SPARROW has also taken up ‘Women in Science’, a project commissioned by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, to document the achievements of 20 Indian women scientists. “We will also publish a small booklet about these scientists, aimed at young girls who are on the verge of making a career choice,” says Dr Lakshmi.
However, SPARROW’s primary concern is to generate enough funds to become self-sufficient. “For an archive like ours, we need commerce. Otherwise we are project-dependent and at the mercy of funding agencies. If we have an adequate corpus, we won’t need to compromise,” says Dr Lakshmi.
Giving wings to SPARROWSPARROW recently launched A Sky to Fly, an initiative to find 2,000 supporters to contribute Rs2,500 annually for the next four years. This amount will translate into archival activities, publications, outreach projects and infrastructural expenses for SPARROW.
To donate, email sparrow1988@gmail.com or visit www.sparrowonline.org
Source: DNA dated 09/02/2011

Footfalls increase as Mumbai bookstores experiment

Footfalls increase as Mumbai bookstores experiment
Published: Friday, Feb 11, 2011, 3:28 IST By Humaira Ansari Place: Mumbai Agency: DNA
In the name of live events, one would typically associate bookstores with book launches and reading sessions.
The audience — an assorted concoction of society’s high-heeled, the literati and of course the quintessential book lovers. Few book browsers present at the venue would stick along. But that was then.
Picture this: It’s a Sunday morning and a bunch of gleeful kids are engrossed in making props — Akbar’s crown or a capseller’s hat, which they will later put to creative use while enacting famous childhood tales. An art-cum-story-telling workshop, only that the venue is not a conventional private art class. Walk into a Crossword Bookstore on a Sunday morning, and you’ll realise it’s a regular feature here.
The activity is part of Crossword Children’s Hour, something the bookstore started with its first store at Mahalaxmi, 14 years back. But what started as a mere story-telling session on a Sunday morning has now evolved into much more.
The result, a gamut of activities — colouring contest, extempore story narrations, singing, drama, fancy dress and dancing contests to festive workshops around Diwali and Christmas...you name it, and they have it all.
“Our target audience is essentially children between the ages of 4-12 years. Through these workshops we want to inculcate reading as a habit. We are sowing the seeds now, so we can reap its benefits 7-8 years down the line,” says Sivaraman Balakrishnan, manager marketing, Crossword Bookstores.
And since the stores are selling more than just books, read: toys, stationery, DVDs, there is a constant need to take on marketing initiatives to push sales in the respective categories.
“Landmark caters to not just books. We have large areas dedicated to toys, DVDs and games. Hence the promotional activities need to be balanced out,” says Lijin Thomas, head marketing, Landmark.
From Scrabble to Squap contests and Hot Wheels Racing to Lego Block Building Challenge — Landmark conducts periodic contests. Many of the events are organised to get the products off the shelves. And kid’s fare is a regular event every December. “Toy activation in a coordinated fashion started in 2008 and every year in the month of December sales go up by 25-30%,” Thomas adds.Besides tangible sales, these events also mean an increase in footfalls at the store. Children’s Hour at Crossword for instance has no registration fee, but the attendance for the Sunday sessions have increased by 30% last year alone.
Thomas also contends that the toy specific events are essentially hosted in a challenge or contest format because, “children like to experience certain toys rather than just seeing demos”.
It is of little surprise that when famed cartoon superstars, Spiderman or Dora visit the store, sales of stationery that includes these characters increases.
Moving outside the ambit of children-related activities, Oxford hosts a variety of non-children centric events as well. Panel discussions on social issues like LGBT and 26/11, theatre workshops, live music performances, tarot reading and occasional movie screenings etc, the store has ventured out to include a bouquet of events other than just readings.
Tathagata Chowdhary, a theatre producer, was looking for fresh actors for his play. And he chose Oxford (at Churchgate) as the venue to hold his theatre workshop. “The store is one place in town which is close to many colleges in the city. The crowd is young and there’s a lot of connect,” says Chowdhary who was happy with the response.
Earlier, Chowdhary had also organised a panel discussion on one of the longest running plays in the history of English theatre The Mousetrap based on Agatha Christie’s novel. And for people who see these events as a distraction; Chowdhary holds that these activities, be it at coffee shops or bookstores are value additions. “A person who reads Agatha is more than likely to attend a related discussion,” says he.
To each to his own. But for now, as bookstore shelves become all inclusive, and marketing minds dish out fun activities, customers aren’t complaining. Not just as yet.
Browsing books, how about a tarot reading?
I have been doing tarot reading at Oxford for three years. The energy of the shop makes a lot of difference. And the candles and bright table cloth attracts many walk-in customers. The bookstore also ensures that the footfalls comprise educated people. My clientele includes bankers, corporates, government officials, students and home-makers. Over three yearsmany repeat clients have become my brand ambassadors. Earlier I used to operate from 5-8, now I am sitting there till 10pm. People like the idea that a tarot reader is sitting there and not running away the next day.They can always get back to me. Rajni Tandon, tarot reader at Oxford Bookstore
Stories, song, dance and more for kids...
We’ve been organising events around our new storybook series, The Adventures of Toto the Auto, at various Landmark stores and the kids have absolutely loved it. The bookstore is a great venue to connect with parents and engage the children in stories, songs, dance and drawing. We see the crowds growing with each subsequent event and now even have parents contacting us to do the same event for them at their kid’s birthday party.Preeti Vyas, CEO, FunOKPlease Publishing India
Story-telling with a difference
I think it’s very exciting to use alternate spaces and not stick to conventional ones. The story-telling workshops we hold at Crossword include reading, story-telling and story enacting. And the creative workshops use art and craft as a medium to hook the children. Though the various media —internet, gaming, television —are stimulating, there’s very little left to the imagination. It is important to inculcate the habit of reading in children. And the art story workshops at Crossword is one of the ways we try to generate and retain children’s interest in reading. Raell Padamsee, head, Academy for Creative Expression
Source: DNA dated 11/02/2011