Why email hasn’t killed the fax

[ZLoth]

From InfoWorld:

Why email hasn't killed the fax
We should have had a suitable alternative to the fax long ago, but email failed

Of all of the computing or digital technologies commercially available in 1964, you probably won't find any of them in a Staples today -- except the fax machine. We don't use dot-matrix printers anymore or CRT monitors or televisions. We've largely migrated from landlines to cellphones, and even our landlines are digital in most places these days. The technologies from that era are all museum pieces now, with the glaring exception of this ancient document transmission system that continues on like a zombie, devouring forests of paper and screaming 14,400bps modem tones.

FULL ARTICLE HERE

[SSOWorld]

There are plenty of reasons for this - one is them is fraud.

[sparker]

There are plenty of reasons for this - one is them is fraud.

Another reason is confirmation -- the sender knows that the receiver has gotten the message; there's no "gee -- must have been a problem with my mailbox!" excuses.  Now -- whether they respond..............

[jeffandnicole]

There are plenty of reasons for this - one is them is fraud.

Another reason is confirmation -- the sender knows that the receiver has gotten the message; there's no "gee -- must have been a problem with my mailbox!" excuses.  Now -- whether they respond..............

Sadly, even that is false.  I have a bank that requires us to fax them info on a daily basis, and occasionally I'll receive an email stating "Please remember to fax over...".  When I respond saying I have a confirmation showing it went at XX:YY:ZZ, they come back with "Nope, we don't have it".   Either I engage in a standoff where I won't fax it again and they won't process what we need done, or I simply refax it.

Of course, the OP's quoted paragraph screams of exaggeration.  Most people have the modem tones turned off.  Most companies get their incoming faxes on a networked computer program.  It's doubtful you found many computer monitors in Staples in 1964...same with faxes.  And like the early days of computer monitors, the early days of fax machines have been long replaced by much smaller, more efficient printers that handle multiple functions, including faxing.

[Scott5114]

I had a fax line in my office for a little while, since a vendor I was dealing with liked things faxed. Then I realized it was a stupid expense and cancelled the line. Now, when a fax is requested, I let them know I don't have a fax machine and offer to email a scan. If they insist on doing a fax I just don't do business with them.

[kphoger]

There are plenty of reasons for this - one is them is fraud.

Another reason is confirmation -- the sender knows that the receiver has gotten the message; there's no "gee -- must have been a problem with my mailbox!" excuses.  Now -- whether they respond..............

Sadly, even that is false.  I have a bank that requires us to fax them info on a daily basis, and occasionally I'll receive an email stating "Please remember to fax over...".  When I respond saying I have a confirmation showing it went at XX:YY:ZZ, they come back with "Nope, we don't have it".   Either I engage in a standoff where I won't fax it again and they won't process what we need done, or I simply refax it.

Yep, I've encountered that too, and I hardly ever send or receive faxes–so rarely, in fact, that I have to be reminded how to do it every single time.  I can only imagine how often that happens to people who fax stuff every day.

We don't use ... CRT monitors or televisions.

Our family has two TV sets, and both of them are CRT.  I've never owned a flat screen TV.

[abefroman329]

Judges' chambers only accepted faxes (never emails, on occasion not even hand-delivered paper copies) of courtesy copies of briefs and letters and such as recently as 2011, and it's probably the case today.  I suspect that saves a clerk the work of having to monitor an email inbox and print copies of everything that comes in for the judge.  Occasionally they would have a limit on the number of pages that could be accepted by fax, no 100-page faxes.

[1995hoo]

I know some people who prefer faxes either because they're technically inept when it comes to scanning and e-mailing documents or because they cheaped out and bought crappy scanners that make it a hassle to do this. In particular, it seems like the people who get the multifunction printers are more likely to prefer faxing.

[webny99]

Also, there are some people, such as Amish, that have no email. A minority, sure, but they do exist, and they have to do business just like everyone else.

[abefroman329]

Also, there are some people, such as Amish, that have no email. A minority, sure, but they do exist, and they have to do business just like everyone else.

There are lots of businesses in Amish country that help them with this.

[abefroman329]

I know some people who prefer faxes either because they're technically inept when it comes to scanning and e-mailing documents or because they cheaped out and bought crappy scanners that make it a hassle to do this. In particular, it seems like the people who get the multifunction printers are more likely to prefer faxing.

I feel like I'm more technically inept with faxing than scanning, and I'm not too young to have spent many years having to send faxes.

[Brandon]

Also, there are some people, such as Amish, that have no email. A minority, sure, but they do exist, and they have to do business just like everyone else.

I'll beg to differ on that.  There are more than a few Amish who own smartphones, believe it or not.  Oddly enough, there are communities that allow cell phones, but not land line phones.  The charging station is outside though.  Here's a primer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amish_life_in_the_modern_world

[US71]

[webny99]

Also, there are some people, such as Amish, that have no email. A minority, sure, but they do exist, and they have to do business just like everyone else.

I'll beg to differ on that.  There are more than a few Amish who own smartphones, believe it or not.  Oddly enough, there are communities that allow cell phones, but not land line phones.  The charging station is outside though.  Here's a primer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amish_life_in_the_modern_world

Cell phones does not equal email. And there still are some that don't, even if there are some that do.

[abefroman329]

Except Joe Friday never said "just the facts, ma'am," just like Captain Kirk never said "beam me up, Scotty."

[inkyatari]

Except Joe Friday never said "just the facts, ma'am,"

But Bruce Willis DID


As far as Fax machines go, seems all we ever got at work were for "YOU JUST WON A FREE VACATION" scams.

[abefroman329]

Except Joe Friday never said "just the facts, ma'am,"

But Bruce Willis DID


As far as Fax machines go, seems all we ever got at work were for "YOU JUST WON A FREE VACATION" scams.

Bruce Willis said "Just the fax, ma'am."

[Roadgeekteen]

From googling fax, it seems like a weird combo of calling and mail.

[US71]

Except Joe Friday never said "just the facts, ma'am," just like Captain Kirk never said "beam me up, Scotty."

I guess that means he never went to Whole Foods and asked for "just the flax" ?   

[cjk374]

We receive faxes everyday at my railroad. We are required by federal law to have, in our possession onboard our train, a list of all cars in our train that carry hazardous materials and their placement in the train. The law specifies a paper list...not a list on any electronic device. So we get all of this information from our customer service department via a fax.

[kphoger]

From googling fax,

Wow.  Just..... wow.  You didn't know what a fax is?  Mind blown.

it seems like a weird combo of calling and mail.

That's basically what e-mail and text messaging are, right?
Except, with a fax, you make a copy of something and it spits out from someone else's copier on the other side of the country.

[jp the roadgeek]

From googling fax, it seems like a weird combo of calling and mail.

You just made me feel old.  I can remember the day when people sent NEFW broadcast faxes  much like we get emails of that type today.

I used to have a FAX machine, and used my landline specifically for it.  Now with encrypted PDF's, they've pretty much become passe for me.  Plus, there are plenty of plug-in's for Microsoft Office where a FAX can be received in digital form, and printed out from a link in an email message.  i very rarely use a scanner anymore either; with email, cameras and voice to text features, scanners have kind of become outdated as well.

[Brandon]

From googling fax, it seems like a weird combo of calling and mail.

Wanna know the sound?

[US71]

When I worked for Holiday Inn, we had to fax the Night Audit report to the owner's office. We'd occasionally receive reservations via fax, as well as corporate announcements. Also lots of junk.

HI Corporate faxed all the hotels on 9/11 advising not to bill No Shows for the next two weeks.

[hbelkins]

For a time in the 1970s, my mom's office had some sort of telecopier machine that I presume was the predecessor of the modern fax machine. You actually put the receiver of a telephone into a cradle on the machine to make it work. I remember that it took an agonizingly long time for the photocopy to spit out, and the ink smelled horrible.

The first fax machine we had at my workplace in the early 1990s used rolls of thermal paper instead of plain paper.