Blogs

Access to Transparent Language Online will no longer be available through RBdigital. The same great language learning is now available directly at Transparent Languages Online.

The world's leading classical music channel is now available for free with your Dublin City Libraries card. Choose from an extensive selection of concerts, operas, ballets, documentaries and master classes:

Today is Build Your Skills Day as part of Intreo Work and Skills Week 2021, read about our relevant eResources.

Here’s one I made earlier... This is a project I made from a Mollie Makes magazine a few months ago. The message might have seemed a bit corny then but now I am reminded of the calming power of craft.My favourite craft is embroidery. When I’m focussed on the correct length of a stitch or choosing a colour, there is no room for any other thought, negative or otherwise. Embroidery is a craft that doesn’t require much equipment, you can use any textile and thread or wool. And you don’t need to know a sampler’s worth of  stitches - a simple running or back stitch can be just as effective.If you are looking for inspiration, we have excellent sources on RB Digital.Mollie Makes is a cheerful have a go magazine covering a range of crafts and it assumes no previous experience. It’s also a useful reference for anyone thinking of starting a craft business. The current edition has simple projects using what you might have around the house, for instance knit your own hairband and scrunchie (apparently the 90s are back and everyone needs help with lockdown hair).Inspirations has been described as the most beautiful embroidery magazine in the world and it probably is. The current edition has an exquisite Chinese silk pomegranate project. But there is also a fascinating article and review about the author Clare Hunter on needlework and activism - how people at historic times of crisis have expressed themselves through banners and quilts for instance the Suffragettes, Greenham Common, the AIDS quilt.Piecework is a magazine about the history of needlework. It covers handmade items from all countries and eras. For the modern craft person, it’s inspiring to feel a a kinship across time and space with other makers. The crafts people of the past worked with whatever they could find - check your cupboard and your wardrobe. You can always buy supplies online but see if you can support Irish companies online first.Register for RB Digital magazines. Watch our how to video here.Submitted by Sandra from the Business Information Centre

Have you ever wished to get an overview of a subject but were unsure where to start? Why not try Very Short Introductions from Oxford University Press, this collection of 600 books cover a range of subjects in the Arts, Law, Medicine, Sciences and Social Sciences from Abolitionism to Zionism and everything in between. All titles provide intelligent and serious introductions to a range of subjects, written by experts in the field who combine facts, analysis, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make challenging topics highly readable.For example, there’s a book by Barry Cunliffe on The Celts. I really like the way he explains the term “Celt” and shows how the meaning changed throughout history. Cunliffe has, (with J.T. Koch) published three volumes "Celtic from the West". They claim that Ireland's population came from south west Iberia, around 4,000bc. The books are expensive but the theory behind them is widely available online.Climate Change by Mark Maslin is quite topical and worth a read. He looks at the factors that influence the global climate. He considers the difference between weather and climate. He concludes by looking at the issues of climate change and what is being done to tackle it. Other science topics include The Antartic, Black Holes, Waves, Viruses, and many more.Recently I began reading “The Divine Comedy". I saw that there was a title: Dante by Peter Hainsworth and David Robey on Very Short Introductions, so I had a look. Dante wrote about people and issues from his era. Hainsworth and Robey demonstrate how these issues are often left to the reader to resolve. They look at the medieval versus modern aspects of the text and that is why, The Divine Comedy, is a masterpiece in world literature. Sometimes it's enough to dip into the book to see what interests you.Submitted by Liam in Terenure Library. Access Very Short Introductions with your Dublin City library membership card barcode number. Select 'Dublin City Public Libraries' from menu.

For the gardeners among you the extra time being spent at home is a golden opportunity to get outside more than ever and have the garden looking its best. For the rest of us, whether we have access to a garden, big or small, a balcony or a sunny windowsill we can still start growing plants and developing our green fingers.Gardening can also be a great family-friendly activity to get children outdoors and involved in growing flowers or fruit and vegetables. Children love to grow things and there are great learning opportunities in all aspects of gardening.Whatever your level of gardening know-how we have lots of resources to help you develop basic skills or brush up on your existing knowledge and access advice from experts.Let our library e-resources get you started.RBdigitalRBDigital gives access to numerous gardening magazines to browse for inspiration or delve into for practical tips and projects.Gardeners World – offers topical practical advice for gardeners and ideas for garden projects.Amateur Gardening – offers advice and fresh ideas for beginners and more knowledgeable gardeners.If you want to take this time to start planning your dream garden or just appreciate some beautiful gardens from around the world there is plenty of inspiration on offer from Gardens Illustrated, House & Garden and Homes & Gardens.When it comes to garden design and landscaping Modern Gardens gives advice on how to create fresh, exciting outdoor spaces.With a focus on growing your own fruit and vegetables Kitchen Garden offers growing tips, recipes and much more.Download the RBdigital app:  Google Play - Android | iTunes - iOS | Kindle Fire. Watch our how to video here.PressreaderThe young gardeners of the future have their very own mini magazine available on Press Reader, Kids Go Gardening. Register for Press Reader, select Categories, and then gardening.Sign in with your Dublin City library membership card barcode number to access the service. Check out the how to video here.The Great Courses Library CollectionIf you want to get into specific gardening topics in more detail The Great Courses Library Collection offers courses with in-depth video lectures delivered by experts. Each course in this vast collection is taught by experts in their field.How to Grow Anything - Learn the fundamental rules of gardening in this clear and useful guide consisting of 6 lectures.How To Grow Trees & Shrubs – a horticulturist and certified arborist takes you through different landscapes, climates and seasons to reveal strategies for shopping, planting and caring for trees and shrubs in 12 lectures.The Science of Gardening – guides you in developing a science-based, sustainable, vibrant home landscape in 24 lectures.Download the RBdigital app: Google Play - Android | iTunes - iOS | Kindle FireUniversal ClassIf you want to get into even more detail Universal Class offers courses with instructors, video-based exams and assignments and certificates of achievement at the end.Try Landscaping 101 or Introduction to Gardening to get you started. To access online, register with your library card number and email address. Watch our how to video.BorrowboxDon’t forget to check out our BorrowBox to find garden related e-books and e-audiobooks. And if the beautiful blooms in your garden attract even more birds than usual you could take the time to sit back and enjoy all your hard work while observing the visitors with books to identify the birds of Ireland. Access eBooks/eAudiobooks on your phone, tablet or reader. Once you have installed the app, search for Dublin in the ‘Library’ field provided and then sign in using your library membership card number and PIN. Watch our how to video on Borrowbox. Members of other library authorities will need to log in using a different link. 

How often have you heard it said "I couldn't draw to save my life" or '"I couldn't draw a straight line" You CAN draw! The ability to draw is a skill that anyone can learn and does not depend on talent. It is a fundamental life skill, just like reading and writing. Want to learn how to draw? Or to improve your artistic skills and discover new techniques?Let our online classes show you how, our colleague Marie from the relief staff panel will guide you through them.Universal ClassLet’s look at How to Draw 101.Over the course of 15 lessons you will learn the following:•    The tools you'll need and how to use them•    Drawing lines•    Shading•    Texture•    Perspectives•    Drawing  Animals, Trees, Flowers, People•    To see the world as an Artist•    and much, much moreLike all Universal Class courses, it includes tutorials, lessons, assignments, discussion boards, and feedback on work you’ve submitted.  It is also one of the select few courses which offers a VIDEO ONLY mode if you would like to watch the lessons only and not participate in assignments/exams or get instructor feedback. To access online, register with your library card number and email address.The Great Courses Library CollectionHow to Draw has 36 thought-provoking half-hour video lectures. You can play, pause, and rewind as often as you like. This course is taught by award winning art Professor, David Brody of the University of Washington.  As with all courses in this collection, this has a supplementary guide book.Among other things, you will•    discover that the ability to draw is a skill that anyone can learn and does not depend on talent•    study colour theory•    change the way you see art and the world around you and•    understand how to draw from observation and your imaginationWhen you register for The Great Courses Library Collection you have access to as many courses as you want to for 7 days.  When your 7-day unlimited access pass has expired simply log in again for another 7 days. Your account and your “recently viewed” titles will be stored until you access The Great Courses Library Collection again.RBdigitalCheck out these eMagazines•    Drawing: Regardless of which medium you prefer, drawing is essential to give your art foundation. You'll find this magazine to be the single source for everything related to drawing.•    Paint and Draw: Each issue will keep you enthused and inspired with exclusive interviews, features, news and reviews.  Step-by--step tutorials from professional artists to help you improve at your own pace. It also covers all types of media from pencils and pastels to oils,  acrylic and watercolours.Watch our how to video here.And finally, if you're looking for further inspiration, browse art from around the globe and through the centuries at Oxford Art Online. Look to the left of the Oxford Reference screen for the prompt to ‘Sign in with your Library card’, then select 'Dublin City Libraries’. Check out a full listing of all our great online resources.Stay home, stay safe and happy drawing! 

If you are interested in learning or improving a language (including English), our colleague Simon from Inchicore Library recently reviewed three of our excellent online resources. There are also a variety of other aids to language learning which you might not expect to find in our suite of online resources and which Simon outlines for you here.Here is a quick refresher on Transparent Language Online, uTalk, and Road to IELTS.RBdigitalIn addition to the 460 English language magazines available to you through this resource, there are also a number of titles in other languages as follows:•    French - Marie Claire, Marie Claire Idées & Avantages•    German - Vogue, Brigitte, Arte Mag & Zuhause Wohnen•    Italian - Focus Extra & Marie-Claire•    Spanish - Harper’s Bazaar, Muy Interesante, Muy Historia & Marie-ClaireWatch our how to video here. Register for RBdigital. Pressreader.You have free access to 7,400 publications with this online resource (yes, seven thousand four hundred!). From a language learning point of view, there are publications in 63 languages from over 120 countries. These include the major world languages such as French, German, Spanish, all the EU languages, Russian, Arabic, Chinese, and Japanese etc., but also languages like Thai, Vietnamese, Uzbek, Swahili and Ukrainian. For example, there are 832 publications in Spanish – mainly from Spain but also from Latin America. 346 of these are newspapers, both national and regional including El País, Clarín, La Vanguardia and La Voz de Galicia.There are 546 French publications including Libération, L’Équipe, Jeune Afrique, Nice Matin and Ouest France. Even if you are not totally fluent in the language you can, with a simple click, translate the page you are reading into English and 17 other languages. So, it’s a particularly good tool for learners and improvers too. Also, at the click of a button you can listen to the page recorded by a native speaker in 63 languages, thus honing your listening and comprehension skills.To access Press Reader, sign in with your Dublin City library membership card number.Oxford DictionariesWith this resource, you have access to online dictionaries, thesauri, translations, and language & culture reference content in 9 languages. These are English, Spanish, German, French, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Chinese, and Arabic. Taking Spanish as an example, there is a search box where you type the word or phrase and click on Spanish to English or English to Spanish to get the desired translation.With the resulting definition, you also see the word as used in sentences and some idioms including that word. There is a section with most popular and trending words and a ‘test yourself’ section with a series of ten quiz questions on vocabulary. In the Explore the Language section, you will discover comprehensive grammar resources, useful phrases, and writing resources.          Oxford Dictionaries is can be accessed here.If you are studying English, the OED Online gives you access to 600,000 words and phrases either by a quick search or browsing from A to Z. It shows not just definitions of words, but also their etymologies and use in quotations. To access Oxford English Dictionary Online, click on the ‘Sign in’ button on the top right hand of the screen and then enter your library card number where indicated and select’ Dublin City Libraries’.Universal ClassThis resource offers a unique online education experience.  There are over 400 courses available. The self-paced courses involve real instructors to guide your learning, video-based lessons, and certificates of achievement. You can learn in your own time, at your own pace.  For those studying English, in the Language Arts category of courses you will find an ESL section (English as a Second Language) with a 7-hour course on basic Speaking Skills and Grammar Skills from Basic to Level 5, totalling 58 hours.For example, Grammars Skills Level 1 has 32 video lessons including personal pronouns, the present and past simple tenses and frequency adverbs. You can choose to take the Certificate Course or the Video-Only course with no certificate. The Certificate Course includes assignments, printable lessons, instructor feedback, class email and class discussions. There are also courses on writing improvement and essay writing. Obviously, these can be taken even if English is your first language. There are also short Cultural Studies courses which can help you understand the culture and society which underpin a language. These are available for French, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese and one on Spanish cooking. To access Universal Class, register with your library card number and email address.World Book OnlineWorld Book Online is a suite of websites from the publishers of the famous World Book Encyclopaedia. Among these you will find one in French – L’Éncyclopédie Découverte with information on Peoples, Plants & Animals, Science & Maths, World Religions, History & Government and much more. A beginner-level reference source, Découverte provides users with a database written at basic French reading levels, suitable for primary level children, or even adult beginners. It also contains a visual dictionary and activities in French.You will also find a Spanish language version called Enciclopedia Estudantil Hallazgos with the exact same content. Also in Spanish, there is Banco de Contenidos aulaPlaneta - an educational platform that allows access to up-to-date information through the use of virtual dictionaries, atlases, and a virtual museum. It contains content for ages 6 to 11 and 12 to 18 year olds, but an adult with intermediate level Spanish would find this a particularly good resource to improve their Spanish.[To note: the French and Spanish resources outlined above have been made temporarily available during the pandemic to Dublin City Libraries by World Book Online, and may no longer be available to our members later this year.]The Great Courses Library CollectionThe Literature & Language section includes an English Grammar Bootcamp, a series of 24 lectures of about 30 minutes each, suitable for Upper Intermediate and Advanced students. Learning French (30 video lectures of about 45 minutes each) teaches you to conjugate verbs in the present, past, future, and conditional tenses in addition to practice pronunciation. It’s not a French for travellers course but claims to give you a solid foundation in the language. There are also Learning Spanish and Learning Spanish level 2 courses (30 lectures in each).For those who would like to try older languages, there are courses in Latin, Ancient Greek, and Biblical Hebrew – all with 36 lectures. There is even a course on Egyptian Hieroglyphics by the renowned Bob Brier. Note that each course mentioned has lots of ancillary resources. By clicking on Guidebook, you get a course workbook (245 pages in the case of learning Spanish) containing the lessons in more detail with exercises and an answer key.Register for The Great Courses here.TumbleBook LibraryTumbleBook Library is a curated database of over 1100 children’s e-books, and includes animated talking picture books, read-along chapter books, non-fiction books, graphic novels, and National Geographic videos. These are mostly in English but there are 58 books in Spanish and 54 in French, so your child can get some practice in these languages at an early age. Visit TumbleBook and sign in using your library membership card number or check out our how to video.Good Luck!   Bonne Chance!  Go n-éirí an t-ádh libh! In bocca al lupo!

Always wanted to learn a new language or improve your school French or German? Well, there’s no excuse now as you as you may have found yourself with time on your hands during this current pandemic, and not least because you can do it for free with some of Dublin City Libraries’ online resources – Transparent Language Online, uTalk and Road to IELTS. This blog is brought to you by our colleague Simon from Inchicore Library. Simon likes travelling and languages and is currently reading  "Milkman" by Anna Burns.Transparent Language OnlineYou can learn 110 plus languages including French, German, Spanish, Italian and Irish but also more exotic tongues such as Afrikaans, Bengali, Breton, Dakota, Farsi, and Maori. For those of you learning English as a second language, you can do so through 31 interface languages. Thus, you can study English through French, German and Spanish etc. but also through Thai, Arabic, Turkish and Romanian for example.Transparent features a flexible learning path, meaning you can stick to a structured course made up of a number of units containing three lessons and an assessment, or you can follow the Practice activities in Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing. You could, of course, do a combination of both. The units feature real-life themes such as Organising your Trip, Staying at a Hotel and Dealing with Money. You can follow your progress through reports that are automatically generated and a Learned Vocabulary tracker, which also act as a motivation to progress. A grammatical approach is also catered for with a comprehensive grammar reference section including verb conjugations, nouns, adjectives, adverbs, and commonly confused words.In my opinion, the best and most fun feature is the speech recognition tool where you listen to a word or phrase spoken by a native speaker, then record your own attempt at pronunciation and see your score on a dial. You can listen to your attempt and compare with the original and repeat the process to try and increase your score. A graphic speech wave pattern also appears as an aid to pronunciation.If you are learning English or one of the major European languages, in addition to the structured course you have access under the Browse tab to many practice activities such as immersion conversation activities at elementary to advanced levels. These include topics such as Finance, Medical, Moving Overseas and Home Sweet Home (topical or what?). Under the Resources tab there is access to features such as Word of the Day, Blogs, Transparent on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, PDF resources and a Proficiency Test with 50 questions.There are courses for children too with “Kidspeak” in 6 languages: Chinese, English, French, German, Italian and Spanish. Using colourful animation this contains lessons on the alphabet, colours, numbers, and songs along with downloadable puzzles and activity PDFs.Library members can access Transparent Language through RB Digital on our Dublin City Libraries website using their Library card number and PIN. If you are not a library member, you can get a card number.To use Transparent Languages Online (TLO) app, please follow these steps:1. Register or log on (if you are already registered to use RBdigital magazines you can use the same log-in details)2. You need to select a language course when logged in on a browser.3. Now click Menu >Get the app > use the log-in credentials supplied by TLO.4. Download the TLO Mobile App on Google Play - Android | iTunes - iOS and enter the log-in credentials supplied by TLOuTalk is another of Dublin City Libraries’ online language-learning resources. With this you can learn the basics of over 140 languages including familiar languages such as Italian, Russian, German, French, Chinese, Japanese, French, Spanish and Irish. There are also lots of minority languages like Albanian, Basque, Burmese, Esperanto, Sicilian, Mongolian, Urdu and even Cockney! There are almost as many (130) interface/help languages, so for example, if you are Brazilian you could learn Polish through Brazilian Portuguese or if you are from Spain you could try Irish through Spanish.Each language consists of 64 topics with 35+ words/phrases in each – a total of 2,200 phrases. The topics cover real-life situations you could encounter on a visit to that country, including sections on transport, restaurant, shopping, directions, emergencies, and social phrases. Intelligence gathering is also a topic, perhaps not a real-life situation for most of us! In addition, there are sections on the alphabet, prepositions, and adjectives.The method of learning is chiefly through listening, speaking and game playing. You listen repeatedly to words and phrases spoken by native speakers - each phrase is heard with a male and female voice for diversity. You can listen at normal speed and use a slow speed option, then record yourself and compare your effort to the native pronunciation, repeating as often as you wish. Your learning is then consolidated by use of a game where you match the card shown to a phrase you have just learned. With the Speaking Game you record yourself against your own pronunciation. Having recorded a few given phrases, you then must identify these phrases when they are presented back to you visually by a virtual card. There are also memory games in which you match the phrase to a card, playing against the clock and a final game where you test your recall and pronunciation of all the phrases in the topic.Access to uTalk is administered by the Central Library Dublin and is offered mainly to learners participating in courses such as City of Dublin ETB, and group-learning settings for ESOL (English as a Second Language). Normally, you have to register in person but for the duration of the Covid_19 pandemic you can send an email to [email protected] requesting a link to the registration page and a log-in code. Once you have registered you can then download uTalk to your PC or the uTalk app to your device/phone/tablet and sign in using your email address and password.Road to IELTSRoad to IELTS is another online language learning resource provided by Dublin City Libraries for those learning English and specifically those preparing for the IELTS exam. The International English Language Testing System, or IELTS™, is an international standardised test of English language proficiency for non-native English language speakers, very often needed to work or study in an English-speaking country. Road to IELTS is the British Council’s official website for preparation for this exam.The course includes material to prepare for the 4 skills tested in the General Exam: Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing. Material for each skill is very clearly laid-out in four areas: Starting Out, Advice & Tutorials, Practice Zone and Test Practice. Starting Out contains short videos giving you key facts on each test along with a 7-page e-book/pdf with information and tips on how to approach the test. Advice & Tutorials contains more videos with practical advice and suggestions from British Council teachers on how to maximise your score in each skill test. For example, under Speaking there’s advice on how to cope with nerves and a video of a real test with a real candidate.The Practice Zones are the real bones of the course and are divided into sets, about 12 in each, with real examples of the type of questions used in the exam. They are ordered in increasing level of difficulty. For example, under Reading you can practice sentence completion, matching information to paragraphs and multiple choice, among others. Clicking on Tips, you can get relevant advice before you start. Then, after writing your answers click on Marking and you get your result. You can start again to try and correct wrong answers or click on Show the Answers to see the correct version.In Test Practice there is access to 36 real tests. You can do simulated timed tests on a PC which you submit and get your score immediately or you can do it by paper by printing test papers, answer sheets and the answer key. Other features include a Resource bank featuring a study planner and study guide for each skill test. There are videos of former candidates giving their advice on how to approach each test. Progress Report shows you how much you have done and compares your score in each practice area, giving you a score breakdown in each skill. As in the case of uTalk, access to Road to IELTS is administered by the Central Library Dublin. Send an email to [email protected] requesting a link to the registration page. 

For this Spring into Storytime session we have chosen 'The Biggest Job of All', written by Harriet Ziefert, illustrated by Lauren Browne. Lulu wants a really big, important job when she grows up but she has no idea what that could be. Join Lula as she considers lots of jobs from being a doctor to washing elephants.This April, we are choosing one story per day from the TumbleBook Library collection for you to enjoy. To find today's story just log into Tumble Book Library and search for the title.About TumbleBookCheck out details of TumbleBook Library and how to acces it on our website? TumbleBook Library is a curated database of over 1100 children’s e-books, and includes their unique animated, talking picture books, read-along chapter books, national geographic videos, non-fiction books, playlists, as well as books in Spanish and French.It's full of great stories to listen to with videos showing all of the wonderful illustrations. You can even follow the text as the story is being read to you.To learn more about how to use Tumblebooks please check out our how to video.