BlitzMail turns 21 this November, but no one expects the software to stick around to celebrate many more birthdays. Despite its iconic status, the e-mail program's age and limited capability make it a candidate for replacement.
"When I first came to Dartmouth in the fall of 2006 I heard that everyone loved Blitz," says Ellen Waite-Franzen, the College's CIO and vice president for information technologies. "But lately I've been hearing a lot more complaints—the first-year office reported that incoming students weren't happy with it, and faculty coming from other institutions, who were used to having more features, didn't like it either."
BlitzMail doesn't offer the sorting features, keyword searches, nested folders and support for Non-Roman alphabets that many other services offer.
An e-mail task force of faculty, staff and students began seeking a replacement last spring. "We have already listed all possible e-mail and calendar features as well as collaborative document technologies," says Waite-Franzen. "Right now we're looking into what features we want in a new program."
Waite-Franzen says improving the existing software isn't much of an option. "Updating BlitzMail is not a possibility when you compare it to other options—we can't compete with Google," she says.
The task force will bring various system vendors to campus in coming months. Current considerations are Microsoft, Zimbra, and Google. The faculty's computing council and Waite-Franzen plan to make a decision by January about what will replace BlitzMail. A multi-year implementation schedule should start next year.
—Kate Wooler ’08
