Five of us, without realizing that others had also signed up, joined a tour on 1 August Friday organized by the Diversity and Equal Opportunities Unit and guided by WEDO Global Cultural Ambassadors. The destination was the Sikh Temple (Gurdwara Sahib). History of the Sikh Temple The Gurdwara Sahib is the only Sikh temple in Hong Kong. Built in 1901 on land allotted to the Sikh community by the British government, the temple was damaged during World War II by a Japanese bomb. It was subsequently rebuilt with donations from both local Sikh and non-Sikh communities at its current location: 371 Queen’s Road East, Wanchai. Etiquette for Visitors Visitors to the Sikh temple are expected to follow a few important guidelines: Remove shoes and socks on the ground floor and place them in the racks provided, then wash feet before entering. Cover the head at all times. Beautiful blue headscarves were kindly provided by WEDO Global and given to us as souvenirs. Dress modestly, with long pants or skirts and tops that cover the shoulders. Refrain from bringing alcohol, cigarettes, tobacco, or meat onto the temple premises.

We are excited to announce that the upgraded iMac stations are now ready for use in the Library starting 29 August 2025, just in time for the new semester! More Than Just New Machines.The new iMac stations deliver faster performance and enhanced security. To better accommodate diverse study preferences, we've refreshed the space with a balanced mix of iMac stations and open seating. Whether you prefer working on our new iMacs or your personal laptop, a comfortable study environment awaits you. Overcoming Delivery Delays Despite delays in delivery, our team didn’t wait around. We proactively rearranged preparation work before their arrival in late July to expedite the process. Our goal was to ensure the new iMac stations would be ready before the semester began. Technical Challenge During setup, we encountered a challenge connecting the new iMacs to the HKUST domain to allow HKUST account login. To protect your privacy, we adopted an alternative solution using reborn software, which wipes all changes upon reboot and provides a secure and consistent user experience. A Team Effort Worth Applauding. Special thanks to the Systems Support Team colleagues for their efforts in deploying the new iMac stations. Their work went beyond installation—they managed iMac registration, software deployment, and thoroughly tested existing network cables to guarantee stable and reliable connectivity for all users. Visit Us in E-Learning Classroom A, LG1 The new iMac stations are located in E-Learning Classroom A, LG1. Please drop by and experience the upgrade firsthand. If you need help, our library staff are always ready to assist.Happy studying!

You have probably already seen the new carrels on LG4.  We went with a colourful mix in a 'hexagon' or honeycomb arrangement.  We changed the carpet too, giving a more engaging and dramatic visual effect. Why this change?  Previously, that area held several large reading tables and a collection of sofas.  For the past couple of years we have been receiving complaints about noise travelling from there to higher floors, especially LG3 and G/F.  And the recent LibQUAL user survey showed a strong student demand for more individual study carrels.  And the sofas were really being underutilised, and sometimes used for sleeping instead of studying. So we killed two birds with one stone, as the western saying goes. Groups of students discussing were switched to individual study options meeting user demands for quiet individual study space.

What is ILLiad? I bet this question comes to most of your minds immediately when you read the title. It is our interlibrary loan system used since 2004! ILLiad is totally separate from the operating system we used in managing the Library. Each user has to register as an ILLiad user before placing a request and we staff have to install its software in order to process your requests. Do you remember this login page? As of 30 May 2025, we stopped receiving new requests through ILLiad. After wrapping up with outstanding requests, ILLiad finished its 21-year service for our library in June 2025. Let’s give a big hand to ILLiad for serving our community for over two decades! What’s new?

Writing the text for the project Tales from a 1493 World Map: Playing with Augmented Reality (AR) was meant to be a straightforward task - just a bit of history, a touch of mythology, and voilà, a finished story. In reality, it turned into a full-scale expedition through time, culture, and a bestiary of fantastical creatures that make Godzilla seem downright tame. Though my journalism background prepared me for chasing deadlines and digging for facts, tackling a 1493 German medieval map brimming with monsters borrowed from Greek, Roman, and other mythologies was an entirely different challenge. Let’s just say neither history nor myth was accompanied by a user guide. For an entire month, Tory, the Head of the library’s Research & Learning Support, and I became part-time historians and mythical creature specialists. We scoured the HKUST library as if it were a treasure trove, navigating dusty tomes and digital archives from museums across Europe and North America. We encountered ancient manuscripts, encyclopedias, and artistic interpretations that looked like the creative output of medieval monks during a very long sermon. The greatest challenge? Distinguishing fact from fiction - or, as I came to call it, playing medieval myth-whack-a-mole. One source portrayed a beast as a noble fire-breather; another insisted it was merely an irritable lizard with attitude problems.