We begin this issue with a selection of papers presented at the ICLAM 2011 International Conference on the Convergence of Libraries, Archives and Museums, held in New Delhi, India, from 15–17 February 2011 on the theme, ‘User empowerment through digital technologies’. The conference was organized by the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) in collaboration with the Art Libraries Section of IFLA, and the four papers presented here have been revised for publication in IFLA Journal. We are grateful for the assistance of Ms Nandini Dutta, Head of the NIFT National Resource Centre in New Delhi, in organizing this selection of papers. The first ICLAM paper included here, ‘Painted lines – Preservation connections’, is by Heather Brown, Assistant Director, Artlab Australia. Starting from the premise that preservation management is essentially a ‘way of seeing,’ providing the framework that underpins and guides different strategies for safeguarding collections, the paper uses the metaphor of connected ‘painted lines’ to explore how an interconnected ‘way of seeing’ can potentially shape practical and effective preservation strategies for both the digital and physical worlds. The next two papers continue with a focus on the convergence of libraries, archives and museums. In his paper, ‘Digital preservation: Converging and diverging factors of libraries, archives and museums – An Indian perspective’, Dr Dinesh Katre of the Human-Centred Design & Computing Group at the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing in Pune, emphasizes the need to expand the scope of convergence beyond integrated access. It is important to protect the role, focus, scope and identities of the three disciplines, rather than adopting the mixed approach manifested in many generalized software solutions which claim to manage archives, museums, libraries and repositories together. A gap analysis of digitalization in libraries, archives and museums from the Indian perspective provides the basis for and a set of actions proposed to bridge this gap.