One of the biggest benefits of using the new OWA is its efficiency in finding the email addresses of other UAB students and faculty. You no longer have to go to the Phonebook, search for a name and then go to your email program to send a message. The new OWA does all this at once. In the "Send to" field of the email, simply type in the person's name you want to send a message to. The same goes for UAB departments. In addition, if there is more than one result from the search, OWA will give you a list of options to choose from (for instance, if you type in Doe in the "Send to" field, the OWA will give you a choice of JohnDoe@uab.edu or JaneDoe@uab.edu). Literally, any one or thing listed in the UAB Phonebook can be found with OWA. In addition, any changes made in the Phonebook are automatically updated, and will not affect the OWA's searches. Most browsers already have this enabled.
OWA also has a calendar and daily planner, which will store appointments and notes, and an "Out of Office Assistant" which can auto-reply to e-mails if you are away.
OWA also has an innovative function called the Appointment Scheduler. Using the Appointment form, you can compose invitations to meetings or functions; if the recipient accepts the invitation, OWA will automatically add the meeting time and place to each OWA user's calendar, as well as send a reminder as the appointment time grows near.