SU Mail offers great chance to improve mail service, offer SU-only tools
The Syracuse University Information and Technology Services department recently announced new updates to the campus MyMail e-mail system and confirmed plans to launch a completely new e-mail system called SU Mail in the future.
This announcement is a welcome step, as the MyMail system leaves much to be desired and has many students choosing to forward their mail to other e-mail systems like Gmail from Google.
This is a great time for ITS to learn from the shortcomings of MyMail and offer a much more usable mail system.
One of MyMails biggest failings is its counterintuitive layout: tools like ‘sent mail’ were buried behind multiple clicks in inconvenient locations. Basic things like inbox storage size and attachment size make MyMail occasionally frustrating to use.
While SU Mail can’t realistically compete with other big e-mail providers, such as Gmail, it can learn from their user-friendly layouts and even capitalize on features that Gmail can’t.
Things like adding more storage space and attachment size to a new e-mail system are a given. But ITS might also consider adding localized features. Applications such as an SU people search function, which currently is only available on the university’s home Web page, would be a useful tool.
SU Mail could also offer direct access to Blackboard or even MySlice to provide a centralized solution to all the platforms the ITS department currently uses. A notification system that alerts SU Mail users when their Blackboard classes are updated or their MySlice registration times are changed would be a valuable improvement.
ITS should try to perfect an e-mail system based around what it can do best. There is no way ITS can keep up with billion dollar corporations and their e-mail services. But ITS can make SU Mail an invaluable tool for their niche SU users.
