7th International Bielefeld Conference 2004: “Thinking beyond digital libraries – designing the information strategy for the next decade”

From 3‐5 February 2004, the Bielefeld University Library in Germany was host to the 7th International Bielefeld Conference, “Thinking beyond digital libraries – designing the information strategy for the next decade”. Main themes to the conference were the strategic positioning and future direction of research libraries and their institutions that will lead to e‐scholarship. The agenda included: new challenges and services of academic libraries: scholarly publishing and the implication on future strategies for scholars, libraries and publishers; the potential of search engine technology for digital libraries; and next generation scholarly information portals. In the excellent talks from experts from all around the world, stimulus was provided to integrate the theories and information presented and discussed into everyday practices and routine business.