There are currently 100200 microbiology-related databases in existence, although it is impossible to find answers to queries that span even a few of these. The Center for Microbial Ecology (CME) at Michigan State University seeks to change this situation by coordinating the creation of an Integrated Microbial Database (IMD), accessible through the World Wide Web (WWW). Such a system will contain up-to-date phylogeny and taxonomy, gene sequences (including genomes), biochemical data, metabolic models, ecological and phenotypic data. Current main obstacles to creation of an IMD are the lack of a single freely available organismal nomenclature with synonyms and the availability of much critical data. An IMD will have major impacts on microbial biology: currently intractable fundamental questions might be answered, experiments could be refocused, and new commercial possibilities created. An IMD should remain freely available and be created under an open development model.