Researchers at the Institute for Information Processing and Computer Supported New Media (IICM) at Graz University of Technology, Austria, are currently developing GENTLE, an electronic lecturing system combined with a digital lecture library, for teachers and students. The system contains collections of lessons, synchronous and asynchronous discussions, an annotation system that allows teachers and student to make remarks, and a background library consisting of static (e.g., digital books, journals) and dynamic (e.g., indexed World Wide Web sites, discussion forums, and a human expert knowledge database) components. Modules of the background library include an information gatherer, content analyzer, cross reference generator, knowledge integrator, background library manager, and knowledge broker. The background library represents a knowledge repository that is automatically enlarged and improved by the users themselves according to their needs. The gained relevant information is used to improve the learning process and to support the courseware authoring. GENTLE has already been used by hundreds of students at the University; feedback gained during the lectures is leading to continuous improvements of the system as well as new research concepts. (Contains 15 references.) (AEF)