I'm glad to see that my suggestion has already resulted in some reactions. Let me clarify two points and add another comment. First clarification: I am perfectly aware of the time frame. Aior needs time to establish and develop itself. In addition (and apart from the rather important point that I'm not even sure if GOR members would want a joint conference; we'd have to check on that) a joint conference is even harder to organize. Not counting October, I figured maybe the third year or so from now as the earliest possible. Second clarification: I would not encouraged joining GOR and AIoR into one organization. They should stay separate. However, I believe a joint conference is exciting. Paper acceptance is more competitive, people who have not (and possibly never will) attend air might show up to a joint conference, etc. Remember, a million years ago, first day of Grad School? You walk into this room with all kinds of strangers, and you smile, trying to be polite. And then they start talking, and you realize, "Hey, I've heard that before, except..." and suddenly, you're all excited, mentally rolling up your shirt sleeves. To me, that's what it feels like when I talk about my research with people from different disciplines and cultures. It's rather addictive. Finally, my additional comment. I only found out about the German Online Research conference through a posting on this list. So, I can't possibly be the only tie. Plus, I agree with Steve, let's hear more about similar conferences. I'd like to encourage more comments and maybe more suggestions on this topic. ulla