Built-in fax: where's the demand?

S

slightly

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Maybe I've missed the point, but built-in faxing must have a minority market that's only going to get smaller. For one thing, faxing from a computer won't work if you have broadband or other high-speed internet access.

In an office, you're likely to be part of a network where access is provided via the LAN, so, again, you won't be able to fax out from your computer.

In fact, the only instance it would be useful is where you have a home office with dial-up access. Shouldn't Apple be innovating rather than supporting a dwindling and archaic technology?

If it's really so set on supporting fax, why not set up a system of broadband faxing free for .Mac members? They should be able to set something up using VoIP.

Just my 2p.

Matt
 
All Macs still come with a built-in 56k modem. Attach a phone line and voilá, you have a fax machine. Regardless of internet connection - broadband or dialup. So yes, it will work if you have broadband. I do it all the time, except I have to use programs from other companies. With Panther, I won't need additional software.

That's why they did it - now people don't have to buy a separate fax machine: it's built in to their computer.
 
Well, if I got you right, it's actually not about built-in fax, but built-in 56k-modem. And I think the modem is more useful than you think. When I travel around and I spend the night in some really cheap hotel, I appreciate my 56k modem. No other way to get online. Broadband? Yes, at home and on work. And for a long "in between"? ;)
Well, and making a modem become a fax... just a matter of software...
Your arguement looks like everyone has broadband. Than, why would someone use fax when you can mail?
 
Opensource faxing software is available on the UNIX platform and I imagine all Apple is doing is adding a GUI and calling it a day. Probably some programmer did that in their sleep and said, look what I did... and so they are including it.

Sometimes it's the little things that really add up.

You might say that the "slow motion" genie effect might be a waste of programming time eh?

Scott
 
I still need faxed signatures from clients. They won't put that in an e-mail (and I'm too paranoid to let them ;) )
 
Not to mention the ones that can get rid of the bulky fax they have - since Panther's also able to answer fax calls, even from its sleep mode. Cool! :)

Originally posted by GraphicUmp
That's why they did it - now people don't have to buy a separate fax machine: it's built in to their computer.
Click to expand...
 
"Where's the demand?"

- Usually not where the question stems. There are businesses that rely on 'written' stuff. "Send us a fax." they say. "I could e-mail it to you..." - "No, no, no. Fax it in." --- And for those people, there's a demand. Steve also said something I thought was nice. "Faxing equals remote printing."
 
I could use it and would love nothing better than to throw out my fax machine and not have to worry about yet another toner cartridge. If the interface it well with scanners I'm sold, but nobody gets this right - One step - one click - scan this thing and fax it to 555-5555... and let me walk away.
 
If you had Photoshop with TWAIN, or if you use the built in scanning program(forget the name), once it's scanned, you just go to print, and click fax instead of print. It's that easy.
 
STF is the long-standing Fax software for Mac. Oh well. Bye bye.

btw.... "Where's the demand?" .... My dad. As much as he hates it, he still has to fax things to people. Businesses still love receiving things on paper. Hopefully this feature will be a little convenience for him.
 
Yes, I often need to fax invoices to clients, and this a) eliminates my needing to print and THEN fax and b) gives me a nice digital storage and retrieval system for all my faxes. I can't wait!
 
i work every day to replace paper in our company. in fact, i'm antiprinter... i refuse to buy one. yet there is something magical and mystifying about the fax that people love. its unexplainable. why pdf / email didn't replace it long ago, I will never know.
 
I think built in faxing is a nice addition. Besides, it was probably cheaper to do this than to bundle FaxSTF in Panther.

It's a shame though, Cocoa eFax--I mean, Fax Center--was looking pretty sweet.
 
FYI, try buying a house, realize your $100 dedicated home fax machine's $50 cartridge is empty (despite hardly ever being used) and then have your realtor tell you that you have to receive and then fax them back a signed document within an hour. Despite having a firewire scanner, printer and a nice expensive Mac, I found it easier and far less stressful to just drive to the local Staples to receive and send the fax than deal with getting this all to work. I know it is probably low on the list, but when faxing is needed, and it really is when you need to sign something legal, our home/office computers come up short.

FYI, faxing from a computer was a BREEZE in my old Quadra 660 AV in 1994!!! It is not about technical issues so much as providing well thought out applications. Too bad FaxSTF is such a lousy app. Apple should have partnered with someone else - sounds like Pagesender or eFax were much better candidates.
 
I use it daily for work, mainly on contracts or addendums. We're required to have a fax as a temp solution (signed), then supplement it with a signed original. Works great for me since I'm always mobile, and the iBook is my office.
 
I use eFax. (efax.com). It's a fairly minimal fee and works great, right through email. You simply email to the fax number. Cool. It has converted any file I have thrown at it so far (docs/pdfs/jpgs/tifs/etc.). Far better and faster than tieing up a phone line. Though with a small price. Admittedly, it does have a downside (which applis to Apple's method as well), which is that if your document isn't digital, you have to scan it in first, which is a pain. 99% of my stuff is digital, so not a big deal. And for stuff that needs signatures, I just paste in a pre-scanned signature file.

Oh, I almost forgot the best part. eFax.com allows you to have your own fax number that anybody can fax to and you receive the fax as an email. Sweet. Oh, and it's a toll-free number too. Bonus.

As for FAX built-in. I presume it was probably easy enough to do that Apple felt is worth it. Really all they are doing is printing to the modem. The print engine is already in place, so it's not a big technical hurdle.
 
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