- 2 -

Contents

(1) Why Hafss? 3

(2) Hafss: Sheikh of Kuttab at your home 6

(3)Who can use Hafss? 9

(4) How far could we rely on Hafss? 10

(5) Installing and preparing Hafss: 11

Hafss installation: 11

The program main interface: 18

New user log in 22

Adjusting the microphone: 24

Sound Properties Wizard: 29

(6) Hafss lessons: 35

(7) Teaching Tajweed: 38

(8) Places of articulation: 44

(9) Technical support: 46

CC

oonn

tt eenn

tt ss

- 3 -

(1) Why Hafss?

Hafss came as a software for teaching Tajweed skills which constitute one of

the elements of preserving the Holy Qur'an which is guaranteed by Allah, the Almighty, as He said:

. Sura Al Hijr, Verse No. 9

This software comes within an integrated view that aims at preserving the

Holy Qur'an. Such view depends on the through understanding of the Holy

Qur'an by studying its related rulings as detailed by the Prophetic Sunnah and elaborated by the scholars each in their scope of specialization in the Holy

Qur'an and its related branches of knowledge such as Jurisprudence, Doctrine, History, and the Grammar of the Arabic Language.

This is the target the Engineering Company for the Development of Computer Systems seeks in this context. The company presented all-new products in

this regard. This is demonstrated by the distinguished products in the sciences of the Holy Qur'an, Islamic Jurisprudence, History and the Arabic Language, in

addition to various other products which can be surveyed through our website: www.rdi-eg.com. To produce all these products, RDI dedicated its

efforts to developing some innovated technologies ever since its establishment.

WW

hhyy HH

aaff ss

ss??

- 4 -

Among these technologies, RDI presented the Holy Qur’an Tools which include: Designing the Holy Qur'an in the `Uthmanic calligraphy - Coloring the

Qur’an characters according to their rules of Tajweed for any combination of these Ahkaam - Linking Qur'an text with translations of its meanings, written

Tafseer, Reasons for Revelation - Linking Qur'anic text with audio tafsirs - search engines in the text of Qur'an on the Semantic, Syntactic, and

Derivative levels)

In addition, there are numerous researches and technologies of the Arabic language: (Arabic morphological analysis – automatic tool of linking Arabic

texts with dictionaries - Automatic Arabic text diacritizer – Grammatical mapping of Arabic text - Arabic derivative search engine – recognition of the

printed Arabic text). The outcome of audio researches and technologies was Hafss; named after

the most famous recitation mode in the Islamic world by "Hafss on the authority of Assem". This software of teaching Tajweed rules relies on such

technology. RDI does not merely present to the Islamic world a Qur'an memorization

program to teach simplified Tajweed to the learner, but it also provides an academic curriculum to benefit Islam, which was the fruit of the efforts of a

team of developers and researchers who worked for more than ten years to develop Hafss technology.Motivated by love of knowledge, the desire to orient

the society towards hard work and the continuous endeavor to produce

WW

hhyy HH

aaff ss

ss ??

- 5 -

beneficial products, those researchers – who have MA and PhD degrees – assert that they have scientific abilities and an excellent creative energy.

WW

hhyy HH

aaff ss

ss ??

- 6 -

(2) Hafss: Sheikh of Kuttab at your home

In an ever-changing speedy world, it is becoming really difficult for those who

seek to learn recitation rules either because the difficulty to get the professional tutor, long distance between the tutor and the learner, expensive

costs or lack of time (especially the Muslim communities in non-Arab countries). Here, Hafss comes as the electronic substitute, the solution to get

rid of these problems and difficulties. "Hafss" plays the role of an electronic Sheikh of Kuttab, where the learner

listens to an example of the ideal recitation, and he is later asked to imitate it as close as he can. Thereupon, Hafss analyzes the learner's imitation and

evaluates it according to the rules of Tajweed. Thus, the learner tries gradually to be more accurate through correcting his mispronunciation till

Hafss approves it.

There are lots of programs dealing with the Holy Qur'an memorization, Tajweed and other related Qur'anic subjects. Such programs are similar in

their approach, i.e. they leave the learner himself compare his recitation to the ideal one. However, this method supposes that the learner is able to do

such comparison. The matter is very optimistic because the person who can do such comparisons must be good at recitation and doesn't need such

programs to help. Unprecedentedly, "Hafss" presents its unique and distinguished technique represented in its ability to perform a deep

HHaaff ss

ss::

SShh

eeii kk

hh oo

ff KK

uutt tt aa

bb aa

tt yy

oouu

rr hh

oomm

ee

- 7 -

mathematical analysis of the learner's recitation through innovated methods of artificial intelligence and judging it mechanically in terms of right and

wrong. In addition, our analytical methods professionally produce a detailed report of errors and their correction as an experienced sheikh of Kuttab would

do. Hafss generates tests and exercises that cover what the learner has studied and measures his performance in degrees to evaluate his level in the

science of Tajweed.

HHaaff ss

ss::

SShh

eeii kk

hh oo

ff KK

uutt tt aa

bb aa

tt yy

oouu

rr hh

oomm

ee

- 8 -

The above figure illustrates that the user incorrectly recited this verse. The wrong positions are in red. The user could listen to his own recording as well

as the ideal recitation. He could also listen to an audio message which identifies the wrong positions and the correct mode of recitation. Later, the

user could click on the Record button to recite it again.

HHaaff ss

ss::

SShh

eeii kk

hh oo

ff KK

uutt tt aa

bb aa

tt yy

oouu

rr hh

oomm

ee

- 9 -

(3)Who can use Hafss?

Hafss technology is designed for all ages, genders, nationalities and local

tongues. This means that Hafss is the friend of the whole family wherever they are.

??WW

hhoo

ccaann

uussee HH

aaff ss

ss

- 10 -

(4) How far could we rely on Hafss?

As far as the accuracy of the contents is concerned, you can ultimately rely on

Hafss as it is authorized by Al-Azhar Ash-Sharief through a committee supervised by His Excellency Dr. Ahmed Al-Maasarawi, the sheikh of the

Egyptian General Recitation Sessions. The members of this committee are: - Sheikh Sayyed Abdul-Majeed deputy manager of Al-Azahr committee of

revising the Holy Qur'an. - Sheikh Hassan Al-Maasarawi, a member of Al-Azahr committee of revising

the Holy Qur'an. But there is a question that may be arisen here: Can Hafss be a substitute for

the Sheikh of Kuttab? Actually there is nothing that could be equal to the human skill. Though

accurate, this technology does not cancel the role of a Sheikh. On the

contrary, it helps him. The science of Tajweed depends on acquiring skills which require extensive training. Such training may be burdensome to the

Sheikh, or the tutor and even the student. Using the software and seeking the help of a Sheikh lead to fast learning and excellent pronunciation. Using the

software alone will lead to a little bit slow learning, but it greatly helps in mastering the rules. It is all about the time dedicated to learning.

Ho

w f

ar c

ou

ld w

e r

ely

on

Hafs

s?

- 11 -

(5) Installing and preparing Hafss:

Hafss installation: 1- Insert the CD in the CD-ROM. 2- A dialog box appears. Click (Next).

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 12 -

3- Select the path on your PC to set up the software.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 13 -

4- Click on (Next).

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 14 -

5- Click on (Next).

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 15 -

6- Click on (Install).

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 16 -

7- After selecting (Install), the program starts setup.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 17 -

8- The process will take a long time. Following that, the word (Finish) will appear. Click on it.

9- After finishing these steps, you can run the program either from its

shortcut on the desktop or from the (Start) menu.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 18 -

The program main interface: After the setup is finished, run the software by making sure that the CD is

inserted in the CD-ROM. Hafss main interface will appear. This interface is both elegant and easy to use, as illustrated in the following example:

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 19 -

List of contents: 1- It contains:

The Holy Qur'an button: Click it to link you to Hafss website in order to listen to the recitation of

sheikh Abd El-Basset Abd El-Samad as well as other Qur'an famous reciters, in addition to the Holy Qur'an tools such as multi-modal search,

interpretation book of Al Jalalayn, meanings of the difficult words, and grammatical analysis of the Holy Qur'an.

Teaching Tajweed button:

Click it to access the program exercises. Please note that the exercises will not be accessible unless you log in; a process that will be explained

later.

Tajweed books button:

When you click this button, it shows three gradual levels of Tajweed books for learning the rules by reading their contents and listening to the

explanatory examples. Later, you can perform tests on what you have learnt with Hafss.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 20 -

Tuhfat Al-Atfal button: It is a pleasant poem that teaches the rulings of Tajweed. You can access

the poem in order to listen to it in an excellent voice once you click on this button.

Places of articulation button:

Learn how to pronounce the letters from their right articulation points through an animated, easy and simplified explanation.

2- The login list:

It is related to the procedures of the program users, which are:

Login

Through this button, you can sign in as a registered user in order to independently save your exercises and settings.

New user:

Start using this button, because the user's login in the previous button means that he has been already registered. Use this button to sign in as a

new user.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 21 -

Personal settings: Here the user's pre-determined settings could be adjusted and edited.

Such settings are identified when signing in as a new user.

3- The lower bar:

In the above figure, there is a number of icons on the farthest right corner. When pointing the cursor on any of them, a pop-up appears to state the

function of each. These buttons are similar to those in the Contents List in order to easily access all contents.

On the farthest left corner, we find two icons. The first one, on the right side, has the word Hafss on it. When clicking on this icon, we find a brief definition

of the program and its importance. Next to it is the RDI icon. When clicking on it, you will find a brief note about the company ant its activities.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 22 -

New user log in 1- If you are a new user, the (New User) option will be selected from the

login list. A screen will appear where the personal data should be carefully typed. It is to be taken into consideration that the program

allows for a maximum of seven users.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 23 -

2- If the user would like to log in several times after registering his data, he should select (Log in) from the login list. Then, the program will

prompt him to type his name and password.

3- If you forget the password, you could press on (Forget the Password?) icon to view the security question as well as its answer to provide the

security answer then, the program will ask you to change the password

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 24 -

Adjusting the microphone: After the program setup, start to adjust the microphone by placing it at a level

lower than the two lips and higher than the chin. You could place it in parallel with the cheek on a moderate distance, but do not place it immediately in

front of your lips or under your nose to guarantee the best use of Hafss software. Then, follow these steps:

1- After signing in, the program starts to adjust the microphone and the user should select (Next).

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 25 -

2- Then, the program will measure the level of noise surrounding the user. The user should select the word (Start).

3- The user shall remain silent for a little while

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 26 -

4- Then, the program will start to adjust the microphone in terms of volume and adaptation with the surrounding noise. Please recite the

verses appearing before the user normally while checking the blue pointer movement.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 27 -

5- Record this sentence and listen to it to properly to check the sound.

After you are done with this step, a message will appear and ask you if you would like to access the Sound Properties Wizard. Click on the (Yes) button to

initiate the Wizard.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 28 -

It is recommended to adjust the microphone whenever the Wizard advises you to do so, because the accuracy of recognizing your sound properties will

guarantee Hafss best performance, God willing.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 29 -

Sound Properties Wizard: The sound properties wizard consists of two stages:

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 30 -

First stage: primary sound recognition You are asked to recite two verses only ((In the Name of Allah, the Most

Beneficent, the Most Merciful.)) and ((All the praises and thanks

be to Allah, the Lord of the 'Alamin (mankind, jinns and all that exists)))

. You have to recite both verses as accurate as you could.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 31 -

First, listen to the correct recitation. If you need to listen to the verse again,

click and then click and wait till the red signal is highlighted. Then,

imitate the correct recitation. After finishing, wait a moment while Hafss automatically detects your recitation.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 32 -

Second stage: accurate sound recognition This stage is longer than the first one, but it is necessary, as Hafss presents

one-word examples to analyze your pronunciation of the different letters. You aren't demanded to perfect your recitation of these examples. Hafss will

bypass any errors in Tajweed rules such as lengthening (madd), but it never allows any errors in pronunciation. Hafss will repeat what you said.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 33 -

Hafss contains 15-minute samples of some short Suras to correctly recite them.

After reciting the required examples, Hafss will process the recited examples.

Such process will not take more than several minutes. Later on, you can reuse

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 34 -

the sound properties recognition wizard to recite the examples in a better way in order to improve the accuracy of your sound properties.

After the end of this process, the user will be ready for training on some Tajweed rules using Hafss software.

In

sta

llin

g a

nd

prep

arin

g H

afs

s

- 35 -

(6) Hafss lessons:

Hafss presents to the learner three Tajweed books with gradual levels to

teach Tajweed rulings. Such books will be helpful in explaining and simplifying Tajweed rules before starting tests or exercises.

H

afs

s l

esso

ns

- 36 -

In the above figure, there is a classification tree of the book subjects on the right side of the window where you can click the subject to browse its

contents, while on the left side of the window, there is an explanation of this content. Every rule contains elucidated examples; the user can listen to their

right pronunciation by clicking on them. Under the explanation, there is a button of (Exercises). Click it to go to

another window, where you are prompted to recite some Qur'anic verses on the current lesson to test what you have studied.

Tajweed lessons of Hafss are arranged according to the level of difficulty. To make learning Tajweed easy and simple, Hafss not only provides you with

the main Tajweed book but it also provides a summary of it, as well as a brief summary to make sure that you get the core of the rules to make it easy to

revise and study them.

Besides, Hafss contains the most famous poem about Tajweed for children; Tuhfat Al-Atfal.

H

afs

s lesso

ns

- 37 -

Click the play button to listen to the poem in a beautiful voice.

H

afs

s l

esso

ns

- 38 -

(7) Teaching Tajweed:

The basic technology of Hafss is the automatic teaching of the rules of

Tajweed. The user can access it by clicking the button of teaching Tajweed in the main window, or through the button of Tajweed lessons, where you find in

the lower part of the window the button "Exercises". By clicking it, you can access the exercises page, but you must sign in first.

Now let's learn Tajweed

Let's start with the main window. Click the Tajweed teaching button and the following message appears and it contains the titles of Tajweed

lessons:

Teach

ing

Tajw

eed

- 39 -

Click any button like (Right Recitation) and you will go to a new window with more details which enables you to directly access the Exercises

window.

Teach

ing

Tajw

eed

- 40 -

But if the following window appears, you must sign in as a user of the program:

Teach

ing

Tajw

eed

- 41 -

For example, let's access the page of separated lengthening exercises... Let's start exercise.

The previous screen shows the Exercise window. It looks like the window of sound properties recognition. Not only does it analyze the pronunciation of the

user but it also tells him whether he is correct or not in terms of Tajweed rules in the recited verse.

Teach

ing

Tajw

eed

- 42 -

In the above figure, the user incorrectly recites the verse. The wrong positions appear in red. By clicking any of these positions, Hafss tells you the reason for

this error in a typed and audio message.

After the user knows the reason for such mistake, he can click the button

to listen again to the verse, and then click the button to recite it once more.

Teach

ing

Tajw

eed

- 43 -

By clicking the "Reports" button, the program evaluation of the various lessons will be displayed. The user came to know his level and know how far

he excelled in mastering the rules of the Holy Qur'an.

Teach

ing

Tajw

eed

- 44 -

(8) Places of articulation:

Hafss also presents an audio explanation with Flash animation which describes

all places of articulation and their related rules to help you pronounce them correctly.

Pla

ces o

f arti

cu

lati

on

- 45 -

Click any letter and it will be pronounced. The two animations will move to show how the letter is pronounced through its place of articulation.

In the lower part of the window, you will know the qualities of every place of articulation with simplified explanation.

Pla

ces o

f arti

cu

lati

on

- 46 -

(9) Technical support:

You could get answers for any inquiries or questions about Hafss either by

email or via phone on the following addresses: The Engineering Company for the Development of Computer Systems (RDI)

Headquarter 171 Al-Haram St., Giza, Egypt

Tel: +202 33 83 20 97 +202 33 83 52 85

Fax: +202 33 83 0 416 E-mails: support@hafss.com, info@hafss.com

Websites: www.Hafss.com, www.rdi-eg.com

Finally, we hope that we are all of those about whom our prophet Muhammad

(peace be upon him) said: ((The best among you are those who learn the Qur'an and teach it)).

May Allah grant us success

The Engineering Company for the Development of Computer Systems RDI

Tech

nic

al su

pp

ort