for the last two years , nucleic acids research has published a special issue devoted to web servers . this web server issue highlights bioinformatics servers that are provided to the research community using internet technologies . this issue represents a rich repository of resources that are freely accessible , ready to use , and have been subjected to rigorous peer review . in the 2005 web server issue the scope of the server applications described in this issue covers diverse ground and is hosted on servers in many different locations around the world . among the tools included are those for text mining ( 1,2 ) , sequence feature detection ( 3,4 ) , predicting aspects of protein 3d structure ( 5,6 ) and performing expression analyses ( 7,8 ) . combined with the annual database issue ( 9 ) , these special issues at nucleic acids research represent a valuable directory of resources for the global life sciences research community . starting in 2005 , nucleic acids research has teamed with the ubc bioinformatics centre at the university of british columbia ( ubc ) to ensure that all of the urls and a short description from the web server issue are listed in the bioinformatics links directory , a curated listing of bioinformatics resources . the bioinformatics links directory ( ) is a community resource that contains a directory of freely available tools , databases and resources for bioinformatics research organized within categories familiar to a biologist . all servers from the web server issue , as well as other selected resources , are categorized within the directory . table 1 displays a summary of web servers from this issue organized within the bioinformatics links directory classification scheme . this scheme organizes links under 11 top level categories ( dna , protein , rna , other molecules , expression , sequence comparison , model organisms , human genome , education , literature and computer related ) to enable quick and easy access to listings of relevant servers . for an online version of this listing of the 2005 nucleic acids research web server issue servers , the bioinformatics links directory highlights web resources by providing a short synopsis for each link , placing links within descriptive biological categories , providing relevant pubmed citations , and identifying links as servers from the nucleic acids research web server issue . the bioinformatics links directory is fully searchable and can be browsed through the biological categories . the bioinformatics links directory is a community - driven resource and aims to offer a useful resource that is more than just a search engine . therefore , the sites listed in the directory are suggested by the research community , are carefully selected and are curated by experts . individuals who know of a resource that should be listed in the bioinformatics links directory should suggest the url here : summary of servers from the nucleic acids research 2005 web server issue in the bioinformatics links directory listed by category a complete listing of these urls can be accessed online at .
the bioinformatics links directory is an online community resource that contains a directory of freely available tools , databases , and resources for bioinformatics and molecular biology research . 
 the listing of the servers published in this and previous issues of nucleic acids research together with other useful tools and websites represents a rich repository of resources that are openly provided to the research community using internet technologies . 
 the 166 servers highlighted in the 2005 web server issue are included in the more than 700 links to useful online resources that are currently contained within the descriptive biological categories of the bioinformatics links directory . 
 this curated listing of bioinformatics resources is available online at the bioinformatics links directory web site , . 
 a complete listing of the 2005 nucleic acids research web server issue servers is available online at the nucleic acids web site , , and on the bioinformatics links directory web site , .