Hebcal Help and Frequently Asked Questions

Contents:

1. Introduction to the Hebcal website
   • Tools
     • Hebcal Interactive Jewish Calendar
     • 1-Click Shabbat Candle Lighting Times
     • Hebrew Date Converter
     • Yahrzeit, Birthday and Anniversary Calendar
   • Do you offer a printable calendar?
   • Who maintains this service?
   • I love this site! How can I show my appreciation?
2. May my synagogue link to hebcal.com?
   • Displaying Shabbat candle-lighting times on your website
   • Displaying a Jewish Calendar on your website
   • Displaying today's Hebrew date on your website
   • RSS Feeds of Hebcal.com content
   • Customizing Yahrzeit, Birthday and Anniversary Calendar for your website
   • May I reproduce hebcal.com content in another form (e.g. printed calendars, another website, email newsletter, refrigerator magnets)?
3. Specifics about Jewish Holidays
   • What are the holidays that Hebcal displays?
   • When do the Holidays begin?
   • What does CH''M mean?
   • Why are fixed fast days sometimes observed on a different day?
4. Torah Readings and Sedra Schemes
   • What are the weekly sedrot?
   • What is the differerence between the Diaspora and Israeli sedra schemes?
   • What is the Triennial Torah Reading Cycle?
   • Can I download the aliyah-by-aliyah breakdown of Torah readings for Shabbat?
5. Hebrew Anniversaries: Yahrzeits and Birthdays
   • How does Hebcal determine an anniversary occurring in Adar?
6. How do I import Hebcal entries into my PDA or desktop calendar program?
   • Outlook CSV
   • Outlook - Removal of Hebcal entries
   • Outlook - incorrect dates for events
   • Google Calendar
   • Google Calendar (alternative instructions)
   • Apple iCal
   • Palm Date Book Archive (DBA)
   • USA Holidays for Palm DBA
   • Lotus Notes 6
7. Candle lighting times
   • When does Shabbat begin?
   • What is Havdalah (or, When does Shabbat end)?
   • If I use 72 minutes for Havdalah, why are Havdalah times ~90 minutes later than the previous day's candle-lighting time?
   • How accurate are candle lighting times?
   • How are candle lighting times determined from my zip code?
   • What cities outside of the USA are available?
   • How can I look up candle-lighting times for any city in the world?
   • What are the Daylight Saving Time options?
8. Jewish Calendar resources
   • What are other good Jewish calendar sites on the web?
   • Can you recommend any books on the Hebrew Calendar or Jewish Holidays?
   • Can I download a copy of the hebcal.com program for my computer?
9. Technical details
   • What's the Hebcal Cookie?
   • I'm a programmer. Can I see the source code?