New software is to replace the present email and calendar system for all staff and research postgraduates.

The new system will be rolled out over a period of up to four weeks from the end of March.

Email accounts will be moved from 23 March onwards, with each school or unit being moved as a group on a scheduled day. You will be informed well in advance of this date - and your email address will stay the same.

After their accounts have been transferred, it is expected that most email users will switch from Mulberry to Microsoft Outlook, although other programs - including Thunderbird and Apple Mail - are also compatible with the new system.

During the change-over, Meeting Maker will continue to be used as the central calendar for the University. Once all email accounts have been moved, Meeting Maker will be replaced by Outlook (for PC users) and iCal (on Apple Macs).

A new web mail system will also be introduced. This is Outlook Web App (OWA), which is almost identical to the Outlook program for Windows and which provides access to Sussex email, calendars and address books. You will be able to access OWA from any computer with internet access.

In addition, most smartphones will be able to connect to the new system. See the ITS website for information showing how popular models of phone can be configured to use Sussex email and calendaring. If you are already using your phone for this, ITS will provide guidance on changes to the settings required when your account is transferred to the new system.

For more information, see www.sussex.ac.uk/its/mailexchange

You will receive detailed information by email about the timing of and procedure for the changes.

This is what you can do in the meantime:

• Log in to Sussex Direct (even if you don't normally use it), to ensure that the new system is aware of your user name and password.
• Because of the volume of email on the University's systems, moving data will take a long time and consume a lot of resources. It would be helpful if you delete old emails or folders that you no longer require.
• The main University staff address book will be available in the new system. If you have set up your own contacts or address books in Mulberry or Meeting Maker, delete any address books or contacts you no longer need.

There are no changes to the email system for undergraduates and taught postgraduate students.