Fax Help

I would like to have the use of a fax at home.

A couple of times recently a number of companies that I have been dealing with through e-mail have asked to send me a fax. or for me to fax them (as I don't have a fax machine this has become something of a problem!!) this usually involves having the fax sent to a fax user across the road and collecting it later.
(although I do have a scanner/ copier/ printer, I should be able to use this as my fax with the right software)



I think I might be able to get my hands on an old fax machine from a clear out at a friend's house

The question I have is can I use it on my existing telephone line using my telephone number as the fax number or do I have to have a special line.

I was also considering using computer based fax programs.
I downloaded a program called MIGHTY FAX on trial from the internet but it had problems sending when I first tried to use it.

What is the best option??

Any help/suggestions gratefully appreciated

The question I have is can I use it on my existing telephone line using my telephone number as the fax number or do I have to have a special line.

A fax uses a normal telephone line so it should work with your normal line. Obviously you will probably not be able to dedicate the line to the fax if you want to use it for other purposes so will have to schedule faxing (in particular incoming faxes) appropriately. Many PC modems (including cheap and cheerful :\ ) software based WinModems have built-in fax capabilities so it may be possible to send and receive faxes using your computer with a suitable setup and software. I've never set this up myself so can't advise on the specifics but might help.

Rudimentary, but Windoze 2K and XP have fax software - Start/Control Panel/Fax. Personal choice is Symantec's WinFax PRO offering. All the bells and whistles. And I have not seen a modem (ISA or PCI) built since 2400 baud was new, not have fax support.

Or if you have a Vodafone mobile you could use the voice mail to also receive faxes. This works the same was a voice mail in that you get a notification of a fax , then you can either print it to any fax machine or access it via Vodafone Live. A quite handy system if you don't want the bother of a fax machine.

Good one, . Same with

Yes but I don't think you can access them over the web with O2, with the vodafone system you can listen to your voicemails and see the faxes on the web which can be useful at times.

I use E-FAX

Delivers incoming faxes straight to your inbox.

Not so sure how you send outgoing........

Pay annually in advance to get a good deal.