Most vital reference books on the fauna and flora of South East Asia are very expensive, very rare or out of print.  Many, published in Europe or America, are so expensive that even libraries find it difficult to justify purchasing them.  This poses a major problem for research students in under-developed countries.

We hope to redress this, in part, at least.  The Birds of Sarawak, for which this livingbooks site was started, got the ball rolling by going online, permitting free and unlimited access to any part or all of its pages.

Unfortunately, The Birds of Sarawak project has been stalled, not only due to work pressure but also due to a startling lack of information.  Very little ornithological research is being done, or encouraged.

Many birders visit Sarawak regularly, armed with an array of high-powered cameras.  If at all they publish anything, they produce simple checklists of birds seen, rarely giving details of habitat or behaviour.

Having worked in Singapore in between projects in Sarawak, I have been very pleasantly surprised by the amount of information is being gathered on a daily basis by similarly equipped photographers.

I feel confident that publishing an online book on the birds of Singapore is now a viable proposition.