Chapter List

Overview

Fax, infrequently called telecopying, is the transmission of scanned-in or computer-based text and images to a telephone number associated with an output device. The information is transmitted digitally as electrical signals through the telephone network. A receiving fax device (machine, server, PC card) reconverts the coded image and stores and/or prints a paper copy of the document.

Fax on demand and fax broadcasting are powerful tools for boosting sales and are relatively inexpensive. Fax on demand gives your customers and prospects the ability to call your voicemail system anytime and request fax documents. It s an inexpensive, labor-saving way to disseminate product brochures and technical support notes and FOD can capture data, turning callers into prospects. Fax broadcasting is essentially telemarketing via fax-you re sending one fax document to a large group of possible customers.

Faxes can be sent to and from network-based fax servers, voicemail systems, PC-based fax modems and fax service-bureaus. LCR (Least Costing Routing) schemes over intranets and the Internet and DID inbound fax routing are the latest technologies to look at. Fax identification and routing is today s biggest technological condrum.

Technical Basics

The standards promulgated by the ITU (International Telecommunications Union) are called Recommendations and the recommendations for fax are the T series which govern the fax protocols and the V series which govern modem operation.

The most widely known industry standards...