As fax is a three letter word, I can’t do a search for it here.
This discussion came up at work. No one could come up with arguments how keeping fax machines at work erved a purpose.
The only thing people came up with was:
There is not really a standard yet for sending documents over the "net (not everyone can use PDF’s)
-…no. Even signed documents can be scanned and sent by e-mail. In fact, nothing is easier the gluiing a stolen signature to a document and faxing it, due to the low quality of most faxes.
“Is there still a place for fax machines in the office ?”
What about over there by the printer?
But back when I was writing and submitting government grant applications, there would be many instances when they would insist I send them signatures via fax. Even when it would be far easier to scan and e-mail, they’d insist on being faxed. Stupid? Yes - but we had to keep a fax machine in the office for that reason.
The faxing process is still a lot faster than scanning and emailing, and has fewer steps. For individual documents that don’t exist digitally it’s still a really convenient process.
Scanning and e-mailing has way less steps now on the newer copiers. We have a copier in the office that takes paper just like you were copying, except you can just e-mail it to somebody. All you have to do is go in the screen and select your name off the address book, or put in a new e-mail addy. No harder than dialing a number.
Ever since we went totally over to VOIP our old fax doesn’t play nice with the new systems and sometimes works, sometimes doesn’t. We’ve had the help desk look at it a thousand times and I for one wish it would go away forever.
Major reason we still have one is service of documents on us. The fax physically spits paper out and will be noticed. If something is e-mailed, there’s no guarantee of the same notice factor. The recipient may be away, may not be checking e-mail because he’s working on some project, etc.
When it’s a legal document, time may be of the essence.
Our office gets alerts from the PTWCvia fax. Don’t want to miss one if we really need it. They send the same alert via email but we have had times that the IT department filtered those to junk folders! :eek:
in some cases a signed document may only be valid as a fax, not as email.
you can get phone devices to add old phone devices, like a fax, into a VOIP system. they would have to be supported by or compatible with your VOIP provider.
Somebody would have to drag their ass to this office to help us do it. Nooooo, they expect ME to do it. Do I have the expertise? Only what I’ve cobbled together from years of being “expected” to do it.
Fax machines shouldn’t be necessary in the modern office. Unfortunately, there are enough other offices that you still have to do business with that are still stuck sufficiently far in the past that fax machines nonetheless are still necessary.
Really? Color me shocked. A few years ago I was getting faxes intended for a local high-school. I notified sender and intended recipient about their error, but it kept happening.
One day I received a sheet of medical info about a student. I called the student’s home (their number was on the fax) and spoke with the mother. I told her I knew her daughter was on a certain medication and other “secure” information. Mom was livid. I explained that her anger should be directed at the school.
That was the last erroneous fax from/to that school.
I don’t get out much, but my impression is that a lot of businesses and government agencies still use them. I’ve never been offered the option of scanning/e-mail when someone needs a signature. That makes me think we’re not all on the same page, technologically.
I’m city clerk for a small town, and I’ve done business with other small towns and small businesses who don’t even have a fax machine, let alone scanning capability. I guess we’re trying to keep the post office in business.
Quite often the only contact information I am given for where to send a document is a fax number, not an email address. Especially when I’m sending a document to a faceless corporatioin (e.g. an insurance company) rather than a particular person.
