In describing the encyclopedia of the future, John Dove, CEO of Credo Reference, told LJ recently, “Picture that scene in A Beautiful Mind...where John Nash is looking at a...vast array of numbers, but his mind is filtering this undecipherable mass so that the meaningful ones shine more brightly and patterns appear that no one else can see.” This shrewd observation speaks volumes about the current state of reference publishing. It simply is blossoming. All the more reason for LJ to continue inventing ways to keep pace with the vast array of resources being produced every year. It is with great pride that we introduce a brand-new feature:  months in the making and compiled by a group of dedicated and “plugged-in” librarians, E-Reference Ratings is a one-of-a-kind shorthand evaluation of nearly 180 core e-products in 14 categories, designed to serve as a foundation for finding your way around the intricacies of online databases. While no one knows for sure how fast we'll get to Reference 3.0, the subject of Future-Present, librarians and publishers alike have much to say about what it will look like (some of it may surprise you). What is certain, however, is, as LJ reviewer Kathleen Welton observed, that reference publishers must think of themselves as beacons of the profession—or lamps shedding light on important topics. Here we aim to shed light on those lighting the lamps. Or to put it in the words of Emily Dickinson: The Poets light but Lamps— Themselves—go out— The Wicks they stimulate— If vital Light Inhere as do the Suns— Each Age a Lens Disseminating their Circumference— Mirela Roncevic, Reference Editor