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Since its debut in 1988, BlitzMail has become so
ingrained in Dartmouth culture, it’s even woven into the College’s lexicon. But
the program has not kept pace with today’s faster computers and high user
expectations.
The Alternative E-mail Program Committee has been seeking a new program
to supplement Dartmouth's venerable BlitzMail.
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‘BlitzMail has not been significantly updated in many years,’ says
Ellen Young, Manager of Consulting Services. ‘When people come to Dartmouth
from other institutions where they used e-mail programs that had more features,
many find BlitzMail to be restrictive. We’re trying to come up with an
alternative that is commercial and for which someone else is responsible for
adding new features and keeping it up with current trends in e-mail
programs.’
Young and other members of the Alternative E-mail Program Committee have
been charged with investigating options and recommending a new, fast,
inexpensive e-mail program to be used on campus. In addition to Young, the
committee includes Thomas Luxon, Department of English; Ted Cooley, Thayer
School of Engineering; Susan Bibeau, Humanities Computing; David Gelhar,
Computing Services; Bethanne Tillotson, Upperclass Deans office; Jennifer
Nelson, Development and Alumni Relations; Alex Middleton, Class of ‘06; and
William Weyrick, DHMC.
The committee posted an online survey and alerted the Dartmouth community,
asking BlitzMail users to let them know what e-mail qualities they
like and don’t like, and what BlitzMail features they use and don’t
use. By the end of February, the group had received more than 1,200 responses.
Later this month, Rick Barton, a statistical consultant with Academic
Computing, will evaluate the data.
‘We’re not forcing anyone to get rid of BlitzMail. It’s part of
Dartmouth’s culture, and we recognized that from the beginning,’ says Young.
‘Currently, we have no plans to stop supporting BlitzMail, but we’re
not developing it, nor are we adding new features to it anymore. We want to be
able to offer a supported alternative to users who want to take advantage of
it.’
Young says she expects the committee to offer its recommendation at the end
of this month. If the decision is approved by the College administration, a new
e-mail client may be installed on computers purchased through Dartmouth by
incoming ’08s.
A Short History of BlitzMail
Development of BlitzMail began in November 1987, and the system was
available for use in the summer of 1988. In 1991, the system was modified to
support multiple servers, and two years later, it was extended to support mail
folders. In 1994, BlitzMail was made available outside of Dartmouth,
and the first non-Dartmouth sites got up and running.
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