According to Director of Information Technology Phil Fitz, the College upgraded from Exchange 5.5 software, which is about seven years old, to Exchange 2000, which is already two years old. The change was supposed to occur during the summer of 2002, but members of the IT department found glitches that they needed to remedy first.
The upgrade occurred over a two-week period during the winter recess. "The conversion went smoothly until the end. When we switched the final 50 accounts, the ones with the most e-mail, the problems started," said Fitz. The IT department worked with specialists from Microsoft, the maker of Exchange, for three days, sometimes working 24-hour shifts, trying to fix the system.
On Jan. 22, Microsoft delivered the final patches for Exchange 2000. During the week of Jan. 26 an outside e-mail consultant will review the system.
Exchange 2000 is expected to bring many benefits to the college. "It is a much faster system," said Fitz. The update also allows use of a new version of Outlook Web Access with new software. According to Fitz, this new version will better handle large files and attachments.
According to Stephen Scriber '06 at the IT student help desk there have been many e-mail problems recently but few Internet access difficulties. The number of complaints rose after Thanksgiving break, and while there have not been more since winter break, the upgrade does not seem to have fixed the problems yet.
For many students, limited or zero access to email is a serious problem. "My mailbox was closed for 2 days; I almost missed notification of an appointment for a job interview," said Candy Liang '06. "Because of email problems, I've had trouble receiving information concerning closed or limited classes," said Jung Kim '06. "When I tried to open my mailbox, it froze my computer system," said Keneka Garrett '06.
Others did not report difficulties. "I didn't have any problems with my email over break," said Cindy Hahn '05. "Friday night I couldn't get online, but it was just a minor inconvenience," said Mary Taggart '06.
The college updated from the old Legacy server to a new DataTel system. The Legacy system was designed in the 1970's. It was updated over the years, but in the opinion of Fitz, it had reached its full capacity. "It just couldn't do any more," he said. According to Registrar and Director of Institutional Research Gerald Mager, it was important for Amherst to upgrade because "everybody seems to be doing it."
The server selection process began in 1997. A committee of 35, comprised of members from all sections of the college community, discussed the three options. They met for two hours each week for nine months to determine what each group needed, how the pieces tied together and which server would best suit the collective needs of the College. In 1999, the committee settled on the DataTel system and in 2000 began work on the conversion process.
Fitz would not give an estimate on the price of the DataTel system, citing many costs that would be reduced or eliminated over time, making the actual cost of the upgrade difficult to determine. "It is a major project," he said. The DataTel system is expected to last at least 10 years, and the contract includes maintenance and upgrades.
The Registrar's office has also begun transferring their records to the DataTel system. "It includes many web applications: first grade reports, then student transcripts available on the web, and ultimately students will be able to check their bills, personal data, and almost anything we have in the computer on them," said Mager. "Class lists will be available on the web. Advisors will be able to check their advisees' transcripts," he added.
The DataTel system will be integral in every part of campus life, from the departments of human resources and financial aid to that of admissions.
According to Fitz, the new server has the capacity to give applicants to the College their own accounts so that they can easily check the status of their applications and make sure the various components arrive on time.
Mager hopes that students will be happier with access to more information. "I'm convinced that the DataTel system is the best out there," he said. "I've gotten almost no comments from the students, so apparently it's working." The other systems that are available are SCT Banner, currently used by Smith College, and PeopleSoft, the system of choice at UMass.
Many students are frustrated with the dragging pace of the upgrades.
"With the new system I can't get access to unofficial transcripts, which some officials request along with online applications," said Jaime Fisher '04. "I get frustrated when the Internet is down and I need to contact professors or get information about my classes," said Alicia Fazzano '06.
While students appreciate the technological capabilities of the College, some are also very unhappy with the way the IT department has handled problems.
"I think the reports of some of these difficulties are truly atrocious. I understand that IT departments often have problems, but for a first-class institution like Amherst, things like 24-hour tech-support are necessary," said Russell Kornblith '06.
Another issue that concerns students, administrators and staff is bandwidth use. The College now leases a telecommunications circuit from Verizon that connects the College to Springfield. There, the College pays a separate fee to put traffic on to the internet. This fee is determined by the amount of information transferred.
Bandwidth traffic has doubled each year since 1997. According to Fitz, if this trend continues in six years the entire current IT budget, including the funds to pay staff, will have to go towards bandwidth fees.
To combat this problem, the College uses a technique called packet shaping to prioritize traffic. email and internet surfing, common devices for academic pursuits, are considered high-priority. Downloads and other recreational uses of the internet are low-priority.
The Five College Consortium is trying to further remedy the situation by planning a major project that would install fiberoptics among the five colleges and to Springfield. This could be implemented within a year, and is mostly "a cost issue," said Fitz. The payback period is estimated to be four years. Many issues remain to be resolved, but Fitz is "really excited" about this new prospect.