Tech Updates

I have been holding Gmail trainings for SCE staff since last November. Typically, these trainings cover usage of Email, Calendar, and Contacts in the Gmail system. One particularly useful resource has been the Google Apps Learning Center:

http://learn.googleapps.com/

There are a number of useful YouTube videos here on different portions of the Gmail interface as well as an excellent document on the switching from Microsoft Outlook page titled “Life After Microsoft Outlook”

http://goo.gl/udUtJ

Identifying and correlating the key differences between Outlook and Gmail has helped our staff during the transition. It is my opinion that mapping these features between Outlook and Gmail is key to a successful migration.

Most current web browser applications (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, Safari) allow the end user to store various login names and passwords for websites and other online services that require them. This functionality is provided for convenience and so that users do not have to remember multiple login names and passwords for various sites. You may want to think twice about storing more sensitive logins and passwords inside your Web browser - especially when you are using a Public computer. Be cautious about storing passwords for services like Online Banking, Credit Card management, Utility bills, and the like.

Specific to the SCE Email system, our IPSwitch software does not work well when storing passwords inside the Web Browser. You can store your username, but make sure you do not store your password in the browser. Many web browsers will prompt you to store a password:

Firefox:

Internet Explorer:

and one of the options on this prompt is either NO (IE7) or NOT NOW (Firefox.) Firefox offers an additional option of ‘Never for this site’ which means you will not be prompted on subsequent logins to save your password. Internet Explorer 7 offers something similiar with ‘Don’t offer to remember any more passwords.’ By storing your password in the browser for the SCE Webmail system, the risk is that your email account will get locked out and suspended. Once suspended, your account will need to be unlocked by someone from SCE Academic Computing. So if prompted to store your password in Internet Explorer or Firefox when using the SCE Webmail system, it is always best to choose the NO option and manually key in your password each and every time.

Some older methods of generating and sending spam email messages are returning. Take a look at this article from Yahoo Tech and be on the lookout for some of these old methods as they resurface:

http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/null/145642

I utilize an outside free service called Site Uptime to check our system periodically for availability of various email services running our system. For each month that passes, they generate a month end report which gives me a really good indication on the availability of our email services. In laymen’s terms, how healthy our system is and are there any periods of time when the system was down, at or above capacity, or un-available for any reason.

For the last two complete months of April and May 2009, the SCE email system has experienced 100% uptime! This is a major milestone for SCE’s email system as well as the virtual server project. I don’t recall us ever reaching 100% uptime prior to running our system as a virtual server. This is truly a testament to both the consistency and operational continuity of our system. Keep those emails rolling through the system, and stay tuned for the IMail server 11 upgrade!

Just last week, I received notice from IPSwitch that the new version of Imail server v11 has been released. Imail server is the software that has been running the School of Continuing Education email system going back several years. A number of new features and capabilities have been added in Imail version 11:

-IP REPUTATION SERVICE FROM COMMTOUCH.
Commtouch’s edge protection efficiently stops the majority of unwanted emails from ever entering your network, saving on both bandwidth and infrastructure costs. By accessing real-time IP reputation data provided by Commtouch’s GlobalView Mail Reputation service, IMail Server Premium can block malicious senders during the SMTP transaction, before any data has been sent.

-NEW AND UPDATED SERVICES.
The SMTP Service has been rewritten using .NET for performance and stability for a better and more reliable mail delivery. The updated Web Administrator has been rewritten to use ASP.Net 2.0 to provide better performance. The all new Console Administrator has also been written in .NET to provide network administrators a single console to control all aspects of their IMail Server.

-MOBILE SYNCHRONIZATION.
IMail Server v11 now supports push email and contact data to supported Windows Mobile devices that offer mobile synchronization of contacts, calendar, email, tasks and notes (Blackberry and iPhone support coming soon).

For more information, take a look at the following links to the Imail Server Blog and Release notes for Imail version 11:

http://docs.ipswitch.com/_Messaging/IMailServer/v11/ReleaseNotes/

http://blogs.imailserver.com/2009/04/14/ipswitch-brings-added-value-to-the-smb-market-with-the-release-of-imail-server-v11/