New Email Lists Promise Speedy Delivery

A new mailing list system that offers faster mail service and an improved interface is debuting this week as the Harvard Computer Society migrates lists from the old system onto the new one.

The new mailing list system, part of a broader package of new services called “HCS-NextGen,” eliminates delays in receiving mail sent over the 4,595 mailing lists hosted by HCS, according to Joshua A. Kroll ’09, a former HCS president.

Funded by Faculty of Arts and Sciences Information Technology and the Undergraduate Council, “HCS-NextGen” includes the mailing list service, an updated web hosting service for students and clubs, and more services that, according to former HCS president Grant W. Dasher ’09, will be announced in the coming weeks.

Dasher said that the impetus behind “HCS-NextGen” was a combination of antiquated technology, mailing list slowdowns, and limited storage space.

“We had capacity problems in our existing systems. We were running out of storage space for our mail archives. We were having slowdowns that were happening on high traffic days like prefrosh weekend and whatnot,” said Dasher. “Our current systems are about three years old, so we decided it was about time to upgrade our systems.”

Kroll said that mailing list subscribers will no longer notice delays when posting or receiving messages. Furthermore, the interface through which users can manage their mailing list subscriptions—an open-source program called Mailman—will be more intuitive and visually appealing.

As for list administrators, the ability to customize options such as posting access has been made easier, according to Kroll.

Kroll said that migration began early Tuesday. Dasher said that mailing lists were prioritized based on user traffic, with more active lists such as house lists migrated before others. All house lists have been migrated.

Along with changes in mailing lists, “HCS-NextGen” modernizes the ability for users to take advantage of HCS’ web hosting capabilities. According to Kroll, the new service enables more dynamic web applications, which increases functionality for site administrators.

Kroll said there was one disturbance due to the migration process Tuesday night where e-mail was being delayed for about three hours. Dasher said that despite minor kinks, things are going according to plan.

“There’s always glitches,” said Dasher. “Generally speaking, it’s going smoothly.”