| When you want a fax service, you can take either a | | | | even microwave. |
| dedicated machine, software or service. | | | | And whilst teleprinters are still in wide use for telecoms |
| The traditional approach for both small home offices | | | | users who are hard of hearing, the flexibility of the fax |
| and massive multinational corporations, the fax | | | | machine won over the business world. With a |
| machine is still very popular, even with the choices | | | | teleprinter, you are limited to the character set of the |
| available today. | | | | machine. A fax machine will transmit whatever image |
| Abbreviated from the word "telefacsimile" to "fax" in | | | | or text is picked up by the optical scanner, making it |
| the same way "telephone" turned into "phone", fax | | | | invaluable for instant transmission of signed documents. |
| machines are the electronic / mechanical combination | | | | The fax will always find a home somewhere because, |
| of an optical image scanner for the input, a modem for | | | | for some people, you just cannot beat the fact that |
| the communications interface and a printer for the | | | | you can pick up and handle the paper that comes out. |
| output. | | | | Yes, you are susceptible to fax spam, yes you have |
| They basically won one of the first of what we refer | | | | to pay for the machine, the paper and the ink, not to |
| to as "format wars". The competing product in this | | | | mention paying for a dedicated line so that it doesn't tie |
| case was the teleprinter, a typewriter that could be | | | | up your existing phone system. |
| connected in a point-to-point manner, thus allowing | | | | But the instant, paper in - paper out, bad picture quality |
| messages to be remotely transmitted and printed | | | | fax machine of old just cannot be beaten for |
| using standard wired connections, and as time | | | | accessibility and ease of use, regardless of it's |
| progressed, transmission was capable via radio and | | | | shortcomings. |
