Internet Fax

Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your Internet Fax shopping experience:

1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the Internet Fax offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of Internet Fax at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.

2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about

3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a Internet Fax? Wrong! If the Internet Fax is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.

4. Questions - Got a question about Internet Fax then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....

5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling Internet Fax? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about Internet Fax and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.

6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Internet Fax wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.

7. Feedback - happy with your Internet Fax then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.

8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Internet Fax site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site

9. Contact - got a question about Internet Fax, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.

10. Payment - ready to pay for your Internet Fax, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.

Internet fax uses the internet to receive and send faxes.

Traditional faxing involves sending a scanned copy of a document (a facsimile) from one fax machine to another, over the phone network. Internet faxing (or "online faxing") is a general term which can refer to one of several methods of achieving this over the Internet - with a goal of both reduced costs and increased functionality over traditional faxing.

Depending on the specific method/implementation (see below), advantages of using the internet can include

no extra telephone line required for the fax

paperless communication, integrated with email

send and receive multiple faxes simultaneously

reduction in phone costs

Note that depending on which method is used, suitable equipment and/or the use of a gateway is required (see below).

Traditional fax The traditional method for sending faxes over telephone line (PSTN)

Fax machine → Phoneline → Fax machine

A fax machine is an electronic instrument composed of a scanner, a modem, and a printer. It transmits data in the form of pulses via a telephone line to a recipient, usually another fax machine, which then transforms these impulses into images, and prints them on paper.

The traditional method requires a phone line, and only one fax can be sent or received at a time.

Computer-based faxing As modems came into wider use with personal computers, the computer was used to send faxes directly. Instead of first printing a hard copy to be then sent via fax machine, a document could now be printed directly to the software fax, then sent via the computer's modem. Receiving faxes was accomplished similarly.

Computer → Phone line → Fax machine
Fax Machine → Phone line → Computer

A disadvantage of receiving faxes this way is that the computer has to be turned on and running the fax software to receive any faxes.
Note: This method is distinct from Internet faxing as the information is sent directly over the telephone network, not over the Internet.

Internet fax servers/gateways The Internet has enabled development of several other methods of sending and receiving a fax. The more common method is an extension of computer-based faxing, and involves using a fax server#Public fax servers .28.22internet faxing.22.29/gateway to the Internet to convert between faxes and emails. It is often referred to as "fax to mail" or "mail to fax".This technology is more and more replacing the traditional fax machine because it offers the advantage of dispensing with the machine as well as the additional telephone line.

Reception:

Fax machine → Phone line → Fax gateway → email message (over Internet) → computer email account

A fax is sent via the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) on the fax server, which receives the fax and converts it into PDF or TIFF format, according to the instructions of the user. The fax is then transmitted to the Web server which posts it in the Web interface on the account of the subscriber, who is alerted of the reception by an email containing the fax in an attached file and sometimes by a message on his mobile phone.

Sending:

Computer → Internet → Fax gateway → Phone line → Fax machine

From his/her computer, in the supplier Web site, the user chooses the document s/he wants to send and the fax number of the recipient. When sending, the document is usually converted to PDF format and sent by the Web server to the fax server, which then transmits it to the recipient fax machine via the Standard Telephone Network. Then the user receives a confirmation that the sending was carried out, in his/her web interface and/or by email.

An Internet fax service allows one to send faxes from a computer via an Internet connection, thanks to a Web interface usually available on the supplier's website. This technology has many advantages:

No fax machine → no maintenance, no paper, toner expenditure, possible repairs, etc.
Mobility → All actions are done on the Web interface; the service is thus available from any computer connected to Internet, everywhere in the world.
Confidentiality → The faxes are received directly on the account of the user; he is the only one who can access it. The received faxes are not likely to be lost any more or read by the wrong people.
No installation of software or hardware → All actions are done on the Web interface of the supplier, on the account of the user.
No telephone subscription for an additional line dedicated to the fax.
Many faxes can be sent or received simultaneously, and faxes can be received while the computer is switched off.

Fax using Voice over IP Making phone calls over the Internet (Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP) has become increasingly popular. Compressing fax signals is different from compressing voice signals, so a new standard (T.38) has been created for this. If the VoIP adapter and gateway are T.38 compliant, most fax machines can simply be plugged into the VoIP adapter instead of a regular phone line.

Fax machine → VoIP adapter → VoIP gateway → Phone line → Fax machine (or vice versa)

As with regular faxes, only one fax can be sent or received at a time.

Fax using email While the needs of computer-to-fax communications are well covered, the simplicity of quickly faxing a handwritten document combined with the advantages of email are not.

"iFax" (T.37) was designed for fax machines to directly communicate via email. Faxes are sent as e-mail attachments in a TIFF-F format.

iFax machine → email message (over Internet) → computer email account
iFax machine → email message (over Internet) → iFax machine (using email address)

A new fax machine (supporting iFax/T.37) is required, as well as a known email address for the sending and receiving machines. This has limited the standard's use, though a system for looking up a fax's email address based on its phone number is under development .

To work with existing fax machines, all iFax machines support standard faxing (requiring a regular phone line). Alternatively, an iFax can be used in conjunction with a fax gateway.

iFax machine → email message (over Internet) → Fax gateway → Phone line → traditional Fax machine (or vice versa)