The articles in this volume show the range of attention that librarians are currently giving to the creation of reference and instructional services to distance learners. They reveal that librarians do not make a sharp distinction between reference and instruction in the distance learning context, and that there is no clear demarcation between “true” distance learners and more traditional students who might use the services designed with distance learners in mind. Nevertheless, librarians are being driven, in part by accreditation requirements and in part by their desire to serve users well, to provide distance learners with services that approximate those already provided on campus to the traditional user.