Research libraries are taking on a range of new roles in the digital age as they become more deeply engaged in the creation and dissemination of knowledge. While some of these roles are extensions of traditional library activity, others are large new. This book explores some of these emerging functions, and includes several examples of how more libraries and library organizations are forging new services in areas of collection development, information access, and user services. The book also touches briefly on the continued importance of library as place, and it suggests where new roles might emerge. The book is divided into three main sections. The first, The Evolution of Library Roles discusses three phases: (1) The Growth of Distributed Technologies; (2) The Development of Open Paradigms and Models; and (3) The Emergence of the Library as a Diffuse Agent. The second section, Library Roles in a Digital Age, discusses collection development, information access, user services, and the library as place. The third section, Realizing Diffuse Roles for Libraries, deals with tangible and intangible investments. (Contains 39 references.) (AEF)