So much for waiting for February

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Robert Brown
Robert Brown
Tenth Anniversary 25 Likes 10 Comments Photogenic
in Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT®: General Discussion

By now, I'm sure we're all aware that Blackbaud is removing Microsoft Word and other programs (Excel, etc.) from the hosted environment. The email I received and the articles I've read said this would happen on February 28, 2022. Yet what do I find today when I log in to do some needed work because I was off Friday for my birthday? It's already been removed. 6 weeks ahead of what was promised.

I suggest everyone log in when you can and check your exports and merge files. I get the feeling I'm not the only one that this has happened to. If it is just me and this was a mistake? I hope they fix it; I've already entered a support ticket over this. But if it's everyone? I admit I'm really salty over this.

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  • Margaret Lieder 3
    Margaret Lieder 3
    Tenth Anniversary Photogenic First Comment Loyalty Badge

    You aren't alone, Robert - I'm just trying to run some canned reports and the font settings are changed so I am frustrated trying to get the reports to be readable. How did you create a case? Does the phone number work?

  • Mark Chapman 2
    Mark Chapman 2
    Fifth Anniversary First Comment

    Does this have anything to do with why tonight, Saturday 1/15/22, when I tried to run more conditional mail merges in RE: Mail (database view), it's all messed up and there seems to be no mail-merge function to export my letters? If so, I am furious.

  • Robert Brown
    Robert Brown
    Tenth Anniversary 25 Likes 10 Comments Photogenic

    I called the after hours support line. They said it was for “mission critical support only" and I thought this qualified. The woman who answered told me it did not but she understood my frustration and opened up a case for me. I also received an email this morning stating that the research team implemented a fix for this case. And when I checked this morning, the functionality has returned, so check yours again. Maybe this got it to work for everyone?

  • Robert Brown
    Robert Brown
    Tenth Anniversary 25 Likes 10 Comments Photogenic

    Yeah, the removal of Microsoft functionality would absolutely have affected that. But I got an email this morning saying they implemented a fix, so hopefully this applies to you as well.

  • Margaret Lieder 3
    Margaret Lieder 3
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    Thank you for your persistence Robert! Looks like the MS Office functionality is back working for us as well!

  • Mark Chapman 2
    Mark Chapman 2
    Fifth Anniversary First Comment
    Thanks from me, too, Robert. Sorry for the delay in my follow-up. My home Mac is not interfacing well with this webpage. When I first noticed a problem, there was no longer a mail-merge prompt within the Mail setup I used for my conditional gift acknowledgement merge I've been using for 20+ years. And then after you did what you did, I logged back on and saw that the mail-merge function magically reappeared. If what you did solved this for us, I thank you immensely. I just don't understand how companies like Blackbaud can make these kinds of changes to their programs and software without working with end-users like us. I am still in the middle of an immense amount of catch-up work from end-of-calendar-year gift management, to the tune of dozens of gift batches. I need this kind of snafu right now like I need another hole in my head.


    Mark C.
  • Mark Chapman 2
    Mark Chapman 2
    Fifth Anniversary First Comment
    * Sigh *. Before this started, I have having intermittent trouble completing merges, and getting a very odd error. This Knowledgebase article refers to it: https://kb.blackbaud.com/knowledgebase/articles/Article/39589


    But our tech guy here says that a whole bunch of that advice is outdated.


    So I'm back to dealing with merge problems.
  • Joanne Felci 2
    Joanne Felci 2
    Ninth Anniversary 1,000 Likes 1000 Comments Photogenic

    ok I saw the announcement and focused on Word - which we do not do mail merges in RE. But Excel as well - does that mean CSV files??? UGH!!

  • Austen Brown
    Austen Brown Community All-Star
    Ninth Anniversary 2,500 Likes 1000 Comments Photogenic

    Hi @Joanne Felci - I recommend you read through the FAQ BB produced (https://www.blackbaud.com/hosting-integration-update-resources). There are more features being affected within system than merging letters in Mail - essentially anything that utilizes a Microsoft Office application to view data within Database View is going away.

    In terms of exporting, you will still be able to do this. You will need to open the CSV in a Microsoft Office application on your desktop.

  • Joanne Felci 2
    Joanne Felci 2
    Ninth Anniversary 1,000 Likes 1000 Comments Photogenic

    Thanks @Austen Brown ! I am relieved CSV will still be an option. That is how I export everything as Excel exports always seemed to be screwy. I also didn't realize we are using Mail Merge - ugh! March is going to be interesting…

  • Tom Klimchak
    Tom Klimchak
    Tenth Anniversary 500 Likes 100 Comments Name Dropper

    I received a nice phone call from a very concerned gentleman at Blackbaud today who wanted to talk to me about the “poor scores” I gave Blackbaud in a recent survey. This is yet another example of WHY long-time Blackbaud customers are so upset. You can't put out a statement saying “services will end on this date” and then just cut them off WEEKS early.

    I rest easy know that we'll all receive sizable refunds for all the recently removed features from Raiser's Edge ?

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