Fax connection to Broadband Help

[pptay]

This is my first post so please excuse any mistakes in protocol.
I have broadband connection through a cable modem and am attempting to hook up a multifunctional fax to the computer. I have managed to get the fax to work but while it is on my telephone malfunctions as if every phone call is a fax - do I need a 'splitter'? Any help would be welcome.

[erol]

If you have a fax and a phone on same phone line (single number) - then when someone rings that number it should be a case of who 'answers' the call first. If the fax answers it will start 'whining' and try and get a handshake tone from the calling fax. If you pick up the phone first the fax should not reply. There may be an option on the fax machine to set how many times the phone should ring before it picks up the call.

HTH

[paulyoung666]

Originally Posted by pptay

This is my first post so please excuse any mistakes in protocol.
I have broadband connection through a cable modem and am attempting to hook up a multifunctional fax to the computer. I have managed to get the fax to work but while it is on my telephone malfunctions as if every phone call is a fax - do I need a 'splitter'? Any help would be welcome.

hi and the site , why are you trying to hook up a fax machine to the computer , excuse my ignorance

[dragon]

Originally Posted by paulyoung666

hi and the site , why are you trying to hook up a fax machine to the computer , excuse my ignorance

he said it was one of those multifunction machines

so im guess it can be used as a printer and scanner

that would probably be why he hooked it up to the computer

[paulyoung666]

Originally Posted by dragon

he said it was one of those multifunction machines

so im guess it can be used as a printer and scanner

that would probably be why he hooked it up to the computer

like i said , excuse my ignorance

[Stuartbe]

Hi and to nthellworld.co.uk its nice to have you onboard

Fax machines send a tone during transmision. You can hear this if you answer a fax call by mistake a regular beep every 4 secs or so. this tone can be very usefull . There are three ways you can solve this.

1. Get a fax switch - this acts as a switch and will connect the line to the fax machine if it hears the tone. If there is no tone it will connect the line to the normal phone. These used to be pretty pricey but I dont know how much one will set you back now.

2. Program the multifuntion unit not to answer fax calls. When you answer the phone and here a fax machine press start/copy to recive the fax. You will of course need to get to the fax machine fast if you have another phone somewhere in the house then you will have to get to your computer room fast. This is the best option if you are a good runner

3. Buy a bog standard fax modem card for around 10-20 pounds, Program the multifunction unit not to answer the calls and use windows to answer the fax. You will need a splitter between the modem in the pc and the fax machine. If you have windows 2000 or xp then this software is built in and will put the fax in your my documents folder as an image. Please check if xp home does this. I know pro does but I am not so sure about home..

Hope this is of some help. If you need any more info then give me a shout.

[paulyoung666]

good info as always , morning stu

[Stuartbe]

LOL - Morning m8

[Pritch]

Originally Posted by stuartbe

1. Get a fax switch - this acts as a switch and will connect the line to the fax machine if it hears the tone. If there is no tone it will connect the line to the normal phone. These used to be pretty pricey but I dont know how much one will set you back now.

A word of warning I'd like to throw in here is that fax switches can confuse people. Certain models will give silence for a second or two, then carry on with something that sounds almost, but not quite, like ringtone, leading some people to believe that there's a problem with the line.

The type that I prefer (from a calling perspective) is the type that has the facility to give the caller a message, something along the lines of 'to send a fax, start transmission now, or hold the line to speak to someone'.

Of course, what you choose depends largely on how often you're going to be using it.

[Stuartbe]

Originally Posted by Pritch

The type that I prefer (from a calling perspective) is the type that has the facility to give the caller a message, something along the lines of 'to send a fax, start transmission now, or hold the line to speak to someone'.

Thanks for that m8.. I knew you would find this being that its right up your street

Does the above not depend on the sender to use this facilty ?

[Pritch]

Originally Posted by stuartbe

Thanks for that m8.. I knew you would find this being that its right up your street

Does the above not depend on the sender to use this facilty ?

Nah. What generally happens is that you'll get one cycle of ringtone, then the fax switch will pick up. As soon as this picks up, the calling machine will start sending fax tones even though there's a message being played. This scenario will be familiar to anyone who's ever had a wrong number from a fax machine, the damn things just can't be reasoned with

"Hello?"
"Beep..."
"Hello?"
"Beep... beep... beep... eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwweeeeeeeaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaa"

If the line is going to be used for faxes on a regular basis, I maintain that you're far better off getting a dedicated fax line.

[Stuartbe]

Originally Posted by Pritch

"Hello?"
"Beep..."
"Hello?"
"Beep... beep... beep... eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwweeeeeeeaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaa"
.

* Pictures Pritch swearing at the phone *

Cheers for that m8... I used to do something like that myself using supervoice.

[dragon]

just tell the machine not to anwser the phone for say 10 rings or somit, read the manuall on how to do it

[Shaun]

Originally Posted by stuartbe

I know pro does but I am not so sure about home..

Yer, home does it too, I use my modem to send and receive faxes

HTH

[Stuartbe]

Originally Posted by dellwear

Yer, home does it too, I use my modem to send and receive faxes

HTH

Cheers m8...

PPtay.... Looks like the seperate modem is the way to go if you have xp or 2k