Working in the field of IT forensics, I have to report that the idiotic "fax confirmation page" carries a lot of weight.
I wish the fax would just f'n die already. > On Nov 4, 2014, at 19:23, Dean Yorke <[email protected]> wrote: > > The big argument that I have seen is that you get proof that the fax was > delivered. Confirmation page! > > > > Sent from my iPhone > >> On Nov 4, 2014, at 7:02 PM, Douglas Pickett <[email protected]> >> wrote: >> >> Alexander, >> I'd have to agree that the only really reliable fax solution is to plug a >> machine into an actual analog line. I suppose if there had been the demand >> someone would have made widely available a traditional fax machine type of >> device that actually talked SIP (or what have you) directly, or communicated >> with a service via the Internet that would then deliver the pages as faxes. >> >> Your comments about getting customers away from using faxes seems all too >> familiar to me - same arguments, same pushback. >> >> Fax-to-email seems to be the most cost effective solution - and it is what I >> use for my business. For me the service is much less expensive than the >> cost of a phone line. Really handy for incoming, and for small volume >> outgoing using the web interface is OK. >> >> I think fax technology is almost at the point I remember in 1988-ish where >> the company I was working for moved to a new office, and the move included >> moving the Telex machine. The office move also marked getting a fax machine >> for the company. Within weeks the Telex machine was gathering dust, having >> been supplanted by the fax machine. >> >> I suppose the only argument for a fax is that (as I understand it) a faxed >> document is considered a legal copy of the original, although a scanned and >> emailed copy isn't. The line here becomes very blurry when you scan a >> document, upload it to your fax service, then it is faxed, and possibly then >> it is converted to an attachment to an email when it is delivered. >> >> Regards, >> Doug. >> >> >>> On 04/11/2014 6:01 PM, Alex Robar wrote: >>> Doug, >>> >>> We spent a long time trying to find an ATA that worked reliably for >>> outbound faxing, but the reality is that it's just too flakey. It doesn't >>> work in the moment that customers need it, and they get ticked off. >>> >>> So we started telling customers they can spend $60+/month on an analog line >>> from Bell, or they can change their process and spend $10/month on a >>> fax-by-email service. Initially we got a lot of pushback - customers feel >>> it's crazy to pay that much per month just to send 10 pages. So we told >>> them to go talk to their vendors who require communication by fax. >>> >>> At the beginning of the conversation, customers tell us that vendors >>> require faxing, and there's no other option. After speaking with their >>> vendors, most customers are finding that they can actually email the >>> vendors, or submit data through online forms. The customers simply hadn't >>> asked the vendors about how they could contact them in so long that they >>> just assumed fax was the only real option. >>> >>> Today we had a customer who did this, and found only one vendor out of ten >>> that required faxing. They shopped around, found a competitor who didn't >>> need faxing, and told the original vendor they needed to accept forms via >>> email, or they were losing business. Suprise... An hour later the vendor >>> had a way for my customer to email the vendor everything they needed. >>> >>> Fax is a dying technology, but it's been very hard to get rid of. The past >>> few months have started to seem like the tide is finally turning. At this >>> point we are always encouraging customers to reach out to any vendor who >>> requires faxing and ask for alternative communication methods. The results >>> have been excellent. >>> >>> Cheers, >>> Alexander >>> >>> On Tue Nov 04 2014 at 5:45:30 PM Douglas Pickett >>> <[email protected]> >>> wrote: >>> >>>> I'd be especially interested in the consensus on how best to deal with >>>> fax machines in a SIP environment today. >>>> >>>> Once upon a time I'd have leaned towards keeping the fax systems on >>>> analog lines all for themselves (maybe also using them as the backup >>>> lines). Or else use a fax-to-email for the incoming. Outgoing was >>>> always a question mark - how to do the hardcopy original outbound in a >>>> way that is as low fuss as a physical fax machine. >>>> >>>> Regards, >>>> Doug. >> >> >> --------------------------------------------------------------------- >> To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected] >> For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected] > > --------------------------------------------------------------------- > To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected] > For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected] > --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected] For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected]
