Mary S. Moore
Fax is a method of sending an exact facsimile of your document almost anywhere in the world in seconds. Fax machines are easy to use and increasingly versatile. The basic function of a fax machine is having transceiver plugs connected to a standard telephone socket, which scans the document fed into it, and then transmits the result electronically to a similar machine at the other end of the line where a facsimile document is printed out.
The two units may be separated by only a few feet of wire or they may be thousands of miles apart. The fax machine can also be looked upon as a cross between a telex machine and a copier, as it can transmit anything that the telex can and many things that it cannot—such as graphs, charts, photographs and signatures.
The procedure for sending a document is really quite simple, and although it may vary slightly from machine to machine, the basic process is the same. The operator places the original in the feed slot and then dials the telephone number of the facsimile machine to which he or she wishes to transmit. When the receiving unit “answers,” a high-pitched tone is heard in the sender’s telephone receiver. The facsimile machines of today automatically select the transmission speed (measured in bits-per-second, or bps), and the document is sent. The entire transmission usually takes less than 30 seconds per page.
The standard telephone toll charge is the only expense you’ll have in a fax transmission. The fax machine lets your get the most out of each phone connection, reducing the time and expense of placing additional calls. After transmission is completed on some of the more advanced machines, the fax automatically requests the receiving terminal to transmit any documents it may have waiting.
Voice request lets you carry on a conversation with someone at the other end before, during or after a document transfer. There’s no need to pay for a separate call. Fax machines lets you take advantage of the bargain off-peak rates of many common carriers. Savings of 60%, 70% and even more can be realized, depending on your carrier and whatever special rates may be in effect.
The more advanced fax machines comes with a built-in autodialer, send later capability, recorded voice announcement, monitor speaker, 64-shade halftone control, full 8 1/2 in. scanning and recording width, transaction confirmation report, error report, page header with batch numbering and delayed sequential polling.
The biggest factor in fax’s success, is the emergence of machines for small business and departmental use that cost under $2,000. Facsimile is expected to reach a million placements a year in 1990.
AT&T’s Bell laboratories developed the modern facsimile machine in 1925, and U. S. companies were the first-generation leaders. But in recent years, they allowed the technology to languish, and no significant U. S. makers exist today. All other faxes sold in the U. S. are either marketed directly by Japanese makers such as NEC Corp, and Matsushita Communications, or made in Japan and sold under a U. S. Label.
