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An electronic library (colloquially referred to as a digital library) is a focused collection of digital objects that can include text, visual material, audio material, video material, stored as electronic media formats (as opposed to print, microform, or other media), along with means for organizing, storing, and retrieving the files and media contained in the library collection. Digital libraries can vary immensely in size and scope, and can be maintained by individuals, organizations, or affiliated with established physical library buildings or institutions, or with academic institutions.The electronic content may be stored locally, or accessed remotely via computer networks. An electronic library is a type of information retrieval system.

In the context of the DELOS, a Network of Excellence on Digital Libraries, and DL.org, a Coordination Action on Digital Library Interoperability, Best Practices and Modelling Foundations, Digital Library researchers and practitioners and software developer produced a Digital Library Reference Mode which defines a digital library as: "A potentially virtual organisation, that comprehensively collects, manages and preserves for the long depth of time rich digital content, and offers to its targeted user communities specialised functionality on that content, of defined quality and according to comprehensive codified policies.

The term digital libraries was first popularized by the NSF/DARPA/NASA Digital Libraries Initiative in 1994.These draw heavily on As We May Think by Vannevar Bush in 1945, which set out a vision not in terms of technology, but user experience.The term virtual library was initially used interchangeably with digital library, but is now primarily used for libraries that are virtual in other senses (such as libraries which aggregate distributed content).