Frequently Asked Questions
About Faximum
This document provides a general background to Faximum Software's
products and addresses the most commonly asked questions about
them.
Faximum’s fax software is available for a range of UNIX
and Windows platforms including AIX, DG/UX, HP-UX, Intel UNIX
(i.e. AT&T, Interactive, SCO, Solaris x86 Base Server, UnixWare,
etc.), Sun SPARC Solaris, and others. For a comprehensive list
of supported systems or for detailed product specifications, please
refer to the Specifications sheet for the various versions of
the Faximum product or visit our web site (http://www.faximum.com/products.html).
Enhancement of Faximum’s software is continuous. Please
contact Faximum Software for the most recent information on our
product line including lists of workstations, operating systems,
and modems currently supported.
Please note that free time-limited fully-functional copies
of our software are available from our web site (http://www.faximum.com).
Please feel free to download a copy of the software and to try
it out on your system.
If you have questions that are not answered here, please check
our Frequently Asked Questions
on Fax Technology or send us your question.
List of Questions
Faximum Software is the developer of fax software for UNIX workstations
and servers as well as computers running Microsoft Windows (3.x,
95, or NT). Faximum Software’s products also include gateways
to enable faxes to be sent or received through Web browsers (such
as Netscape Navigator) and to be sent or received through email
programs (such as Z-Mail or Eudora Pro).
Faximum allows users to send faxes directly from their workstation
or terminal without having to print the document first, without
having to type up a cover sheet, without having to line up for
the fax machine, and without having to nurse the document through
the machine. Faximum cuts costs to make you more efficient and
your company more profitable.
Faximum will also receive faxes that can be viewed on the workstation
or X terminal and/or printed on plain paper using almost any laser
printer. If you thought fax was wonderful, just wait until
you try Faximum!
Faximum Cuts Costs
- By automatically scheduling domestic and international faxes
to be sent when the phone rates are lowest (saving up to 60%
on your long-distance fax phone bill)
- By preventing unauthorised people from making long-distance
calls; and by keeping detailed accounting records of each fax
sent
- By permitting a single modem and fax line to support both
data and fax calls
- By broadcasting price lists, special offers, or invoices without
the cost or trouble of pre-printed forms, postage, envelopes,
or stuffing
- By improving cash flow by delivering invoices faster, more
reliably, and less expensively than by mail
The result is that, depending on your volume of long-distance
faxing, the reduction in your phone bill alone can pay for Faximum
in a matter of weeks.
Faximum Saves Time
- No need to print messages and stand waiting in front of your
printer before faxing them
- No need to type up a cover sheet
- No need to wait for the fax machine to become available; and
no need to nurse the paper through the machine or check for
jams
- No need to check for success or handle retries
The result is that a Faximum fax takes a scant 20% of the
time consumed by a manual fax.
Faximum is quick and so easy to use
- Users will start sending faxes of short notes instead of picking
up the phone. And since fax calls are almost always shorter
than voice calls, phone costs are lowered further
- Applications can easily be fax-enabled using the line print
intercept which can capture the output of accounting and other
applications and fax invoices or other documents (optionally
overlaying invoice, letterhead, or other business form images)
without any customisation or programming
Finally, Faximum allows you to trace costs by providing detailed
call accounting by user and project that can be tied to
your CDR (call detail recording) or phone system accounting mechanism.
Almost any office that is concerned about their fax phone bill,
the presentation quality of their faxes, or about the time and
money wasted printing documents and then coaxing them through
the office fax machine.
Accounting & Administration
Office workers will benefit from being able to send faxes without
leaving their desks. Purchase Orders, Invoices, Confirmations,
and Requests for Proposals can all be sent via fax directly from
the operator’s terminal. With our new line printer interface,
your accounting program can feed invoices and other business documents
directly to Faximum as if it were just another printer!
Take a moment to calculate the number of invoices your office
sends out in a week. Multiply that by the number of stamps and
envelopes that are used, and add in the cost of lost productivity
of your employees as they shuffle paper, stuff envelopes, and
"move the mail". The earlier your client gets the invoice,
the sooner 30 days is up!
In addition, calculate the number of faxes that your office sends
out in a week. What portion of those faxes are urgent, and what
portion could wait until lower phone rates are available? Even
today’s most advanced fax machine can only delay, at most,
50 pages of fax material -- all of which has to be fed into the
machine manually. With Faximum’s Intelligent Delayed Transmission
(IDT) the user specifies if the fax is "urgent", "not
urgent", or should be sent "lowest cost". There
is no limit to the number of faxes that can be queued for later
transmission. Selecting "lowest cost" ensures that when
the greatest discount period is in effect for that particular
destination, the fax will be sent at that time. All this without
operator intervention.
Significant cost savings can also be realized by taking advantage
of our exclusive Least-Cost Routing (LCR) feature. Least-cost
routing is the ability to select the telephone line that is the
least expensive for a given destination. For example, a multi-line
installation might have a normal long-distance (DDD) line, a foreign
exchange line into another city, and several WATS (wide-area telephone
service) lines into different regions of the country. With least-cost
routing, Faximum will automatically determine the line that is
cheapest for each call.
Sales & Marketing
Professional sales people who need to send sales literature by
fax will benefit not only from the convenience and immediacy but
also from the desktop publishing quality of Faximum-generated
faxes. Organizations invest a lot of time and money in creating
documents to have the greatest impact on their clients. Imagine
the sales edge that your organization will have over the competition
when laser printer quality documents, complete with pictures,
graphs, diagrams, and schematics, are delivered to your client’s
desk, at the same time as you are speaking with your client! Intangibles
and concepts instantly become hard-copy facts.
Using Faximum further benefits those organizations that send
faxes to many people at once. Broadcast a new price list or other
announcement to just ten or even ten thousand fax machines. The
number of lines [Multi-line support is a separately-priced option.]
you may use is limited only by your hardware.
Companies that need to send sales literature by fax will benefit
from the desktop publishing quality of Faximum-generated faxes.
By generating the fax image in the memory of the computer and
sending it directly to the other fax machine, Faximum generates
faxes that are clearer and sharper than anything that can be sent
using a standard fax machine. The result out of the other fax
machine is just like desktop publishing. Unlike email or the Web,
you can send your marketing material with confidence knowing it
will look good and command attention.
People who have to broadcast a new price list or other announcement
whether to ten or a thousand fax machines will benefit from the
broadcast capabilities of Faximum.
Managers will benefit from the lower telephone costs that result
from the automatic scheduling and least-cost routing.
Software developers will benefit from the easy integration of
Faximum with their software, permitting invoices, statements,
or other computer-generated forms to be faxed automatically. There
is just no comparison. Faximum is as far ahead of the traditional
office fax machine as desktop publishing is ahead of the manual
typewriter.
UNIXWORLD Magazine:
"If I had to pick one product over the other—which
reviewers are wont to do—my vote would be for Faximum"
Guru Magazine:
"In looking at FAX software, I have found Faximum
to be most complete and comprehensive. This great product...will
more than pay for itself in no time at all."
UNIX Review Magazine:
"...Faximum is the system of choice."
"Choosing one winner? For straight UNIX, we
take Faximum over both DigiFAX and ArnetFAX..."
SCO Magazine:
"Faximum’s main menu is easily understandable,
with major features grouped together. Sending a fax is easy...
Receiving faxes is equally as simple.... "
"Excellent character-based interface. Flawless
performance in testing. Feature-rich and robust."
Please contact Faximum Software for more complete excerpts from
these reviews or visit our web site (http://www.faximum.com/company.d/press.html).
In addition to being the reviewer’s choice in every comparative
review of UNIX fax software to date, our company has been selected,
after rigorous evaluations, by two different major UNIX workstation
vendors for OEM licensing. Faximum provided the key components
for Hewlett-Packard’s HP 9000 Fax product and developed
all of SunFax for Sun Microsystems. No other UNIX fax software
company has won one (not to mention two) such competitions.
These are only a selection of the glowing letters and comments
we have received. For more testimonials, please visit our web
server (http://www.faximum.com/products.d/testimonials.html).
"SCO Canada uses Faximum to automate
its distribution of sales and marketing literature
to our customers. Our staff can now handle more calls
with better efficiency and throughput."
-Jim Sullivan, Manager, Systems Engineering, SCO Canada
"The software itself is a joy to use,
and has definitely improved productivity in
the office. We no longer see our staff trekking down the hall
to the fax machine, standing over it feeding documents into the
hopper, or whiling away the hours waiting for a redial. Being
able to fax a WordPerfect document from within WP
by using a simple macro is a real boon as well."
Peter Rogers, Wilson King (a law firm)
"We have been using...Faximum...and have sent
faxes all over the world....the system has performed
several times in excess of 24 hours (continuous faxing) without
any problems. The results were very impressive
to us as well as [to] the people who received them."
- Robbie Gilbert, Stingray Powerboats (a manufacturer)
"Between November and July 1993 with one CPU
and ten lines we sent over 1.2 million faxes! We have
now sent over 6 million faxes! Our subscription fax business would
not be possible without Faximum. In fact, we’re
planning further expansion throughout North America."
- Rick Rolston, CONFAX (a construction bid information service)
"Thank you for your marvellous product.
It has saved this company much time. The Faximum product
is exceptional. It is created with both the programmer
and end user in mind."
"As a programmer, it is refreshing to find a
product that is both. We were able to put it into a working environment
in less than 24 hours."
"Our users immediately started using it. Our
primary application had Faximum integrated into most areas and
creating automated faxes in less than two days from
installation."
- Cheryl Gross, Red River Parts & Equipment Co.
"I wanted to let you know I think Faximum
is a super product which is easy and fun
to use. In fact, it’s the best office
efficiency product I’ve run across in years."
- Jay Sanders, Zorfas & Sanders, CPAs
Faximum has been designed from the beginning to be as easy as
possible to use. The user interface uses pull-down menus, point-and-select
lists, and an extensive context-sensitive help system to make
Faximum accessible to all office users.
Most users will be faxing away after only a few minutes’
instruction from the system administrator.
Users of WordPerfect for UNIX are able to prepare documents and
have them sent by Faximum merely by running a WordPerfect macro
provided as part of the package (this macro is easily adapted
to other word processing packages).
Users running Microsoft Windows merely select Faximum
from their Print Setup menu and print from any application.
Faximum provides PCL-5 (HP LaserJet III emulation) and/or PostScript
support, depending on your platform. Please check the specifications
sheet for details or contact Faximum for the latest information.
If you are using WordPerfect for UNIX, then all you have to do
is invoke the fax macro supplied with Faximum and your
document will be formatted and transferred from WordPerfect or
Word to Faximum automatically. The Faximum user interface will
then appear for you to address the fax. Once the fax is addressed,
it will be sent in the background and you will be returned to
WordPerfect/Word.
With other word processing packages under UNIX the first step
is to format and print your document to a file in one of the supported
formats: ASCII, PCL-4, PCL-5, or PostScript.
The next step is to run Faximum and select the saved file as
the file to be faxed. That is all there is to it.
If you are running your word-processing package under Microsoft
Windows then see the answer to the next question.
With the Line Printer Intercept (LPI) feature of Faximum it is
also possible to use the mail-merge feature of your word processing
program to generate fax broadcasts. Faximum will take the output
of your mail-merge, extract the fax numbers from the print file,
separate the print file into the separate pieces intended for
each recipient, optionally overlay your letterhead or other business
form, and manage the broadcast.
Faximum provides a native fax client [Fax clients work with Faximum
Client/Server only and not Faximum PLUS. ] for MS Windows (3.x,
95, and NT) that allows you to print to the "Faximum"
printer from any Windows application. The Faximum Fax Client for
Windows then captures the printed output and pops up a window
to allow you to enter the fax number and any other coversheet
information. That done, the fax is sent over the network to the
Faximum Fax Server for transmission. In this manner a large network
of users can share the resources of a single non-dedicated fax
server.
With the Line Printer Intercept Faximum can now take the printed
output from your accounting or other application, extract the
fax numbers from the print file, separate the print file into
the separate pieces intended for each recipient, optionally overlay
your invoice or other business form, and manage the broadcast.
This permits you to have your invoices or other business information
faxed automatically without any customisation or programming required.
Faximum allows you to store the images of your various letterheads
and specify the letterhead image that is to be used when the fax
is sent. This can be done automatically without requiring any
change to your existing documents. This facility can also be used
to send faxes that appear to have been printed on pre-printed
business forms such as invoices or purchase orders.
Because the display of fax images is so dependent on the capabilities
of the hardware, the ability to view faxes varies with the Faximum
product being used.
- Faximum PLUS / Intel
- Console (Hercules, CGA, EGA, or VGA)
- Wyse WY-160 terminal
- X Terminal (or PC running an X server)
- Faximum PLUS / AIX
- Wyse WY-160
- Console running X (available soon)
- X Terminal or PC running an X server (available soon)
- Faximum Client/Server
- X Terminal
- PC running an X server
- Microsoft Windows
- Fax/Email Gateway
- Fax viewer provided for Microsoft Windows (3.x, 95, NT)
- Fax viewer for other operating systems in development
(contact Faximum Software for the latest)
- Fax/Web Gateway
- Any Web browser that supports GIF images
Faximum (running on a UNIX workstation or server) will print
faxes on any printer that is compatible with HP Laser Jet or PostScript
printers. Refer to your printer manual for your printer’s
compatibility, or call your dealer. The Faximum Fax Client for
MS Windows can print faxes on any printer connected to your Windows
system that is capable of printing graphics.
Yes, unlike many other computer-based fax systems, Faximum permits
multiple cover- sheet designs to co-exist and be selected by the
user from a list. Faximum’s coversheet design language supports
multiple fonts, arbitrary placement of routing information, white
on black text, lines, circles, and boxes. In addition, Faximum
permits a short message (usually up to 20 lines) to be placed
on the cover sheet. This means that short faxes can be sent as
a single page. Other systems require two pages (one for the cover
sheet and the second for the message itself).
Faximum can support up to 16 or more external fax modems, depending
on the power of your computer system.
Some customers are using Faximum to send 5,000-10,000 faxes every
night, with more planned. Note, however, that Faximum is priced
according to the number of fax lines supported (see the Faximum
price list for details).
Customers planning systems with more than ten lines are urged
to contact their reseller (or Faximum) to obtain special pre-sales
information from Faximum in order to configure the system properly.
Faximum supports several methods for automatically routing received
faxes. Faxes can be identified by the fax line they are on (i.e.
all faxes on line 3 are printed on the laser printer in the accounting
department) or by the fax machine that sent the fax (i.e. all
faxes from head office are printed in the director’s office).
Faximum also supports DID routing (see the next question).
Faxes that cannot be automatically routed are placed in "general
delivery". Users with sufficient authorisation may examine
the first page of each fax in general delivery and route it to
the appropriate user.
Direct-Inward Dialling (DID) phone lines are special telephone
trunks that assign multiple phone numbers to a single phone line.
When someone dials one of the phone numbers associated with the
DID line, the phone company sends a signal down the line indicating
what number was dialled. In this manner one can have (say) 20
fax numbers (each assigned to a different employee or department)
and a single phone line. When a fax is sent to one of the 20 numbers,
Faximum detects the number being used and routes the fax to the
specified user.
Note that connecting DID lines to fax modems requires special
equipment. Please contact Faximum Software for details.
Faximum can use any of:
- the ID string (TSI) from the sending fax machine;
- the fax line the fax was received on; or
- the DID number dialled to send the fax to Faximum;
to look up a table of possible actions. The action list can request
that the received fax file be copied to any directory (on the
local machine or over the network); printed on one or more printers
automatically; forwarded by fax to another fax machine or computer;
or passed to any arbitrary program or shell script for further
processing. In addition, email can be sent to a list of users
alerting them to the incoming fax.
With SWIIFT (see What is SWIIFT?)
the actual received fax can be emailed to the recipient as a MIME
message (MIME is a type of Internet email message).
Faximum stores all received faxes in TIFF-F format. This format
is compatible with most graphics and word processing packages
and fax images may be included with WordPerfect, FrameMaker, and
other WP documents. SWIIFT [] can optionally convert received
faxes into GIF format for viewing using a Web browser.
Faximum will accept and transmit images stored in most variations
of the TIFF file format for black and white bi-level images. Images
which have been created at resolutions other than 100 x 200 or
200 x 200, however, may not appear to scale. Most compression
methods are supported except LZW and Group IV.
Faximum on Sun platforms also supports Sun Raster files.
Faximum includes a command line interface that allows programs
written in the shell or other languages to generate and send faxes
automatically.
Faximum also provides a Line Printer Intercept (LPI) which can
capture the print streams generated by applications, extract the
fax number and other coversheet information, and fax the print
file as an attachment to the automatically generated cover sheet.
SWIIFT is Faximum’s "Suite of Web and Internet/Intranet
Fax Tools", a software suite that can fax-enable most UNIX-based
web or email servers on the Internet.
SWIIFT, when added to a web or email server, allows users of
that service to send and receive faxes simply by using their existing
web browser or email utility.
(SWIIFT is a trademark of Faximum Software.)
SWIIFT allows your Internet/Intranet users to send and receive
faxes without the cost and complexity of installing and learning
special fax software on the users’ machines.
The SWIIFT WFG allows users of company Intranets to send and
receive faxes as easily as clicking on a web page and filling
out a form. The information on the form is sent to the web server
(when the "Send Fax" button is clicked) where SWIIFT
passes it to Faximum to send.
The SWIIFT WFG is not limited just to messages the user can type
in from his browser. By using HTML extensions supported by Netscape
and others, SWIIFT allows users to select any compatible file
on their machines to be attached to his fax.
All of the major features of more traditional fax software are
supported by SWIIFT including personal telephone books, default
parameters stored on a per-user basis (including signatures),
broadcast lists, and arbitrary file attachments.
In addition to enabling users to send and receive faxes using
their existing Internet tools, SWIIFT can be used to provide additional
web-related services. For example, using the "Web Fax-On-Demand"
feature of SWIIFT, web content creators can make it easy for visitors
to request documents be faxed to them (rather than spending the
time to download and print them individually).
Furthermore, ISPs can use SWIIFT to tap exciting new web business
opportunities such as pizza order forms on the Web that send the
orders by fax to the pizzeria.
Examples of the pizza order form as well as the other components
of SWIIFT can be found on the Web (http://www.faximum.com/swiift).
The SWIIFT FWG enables users to browse a list of their received
faxes using their existing Web browser. They can then select a
fax, view it, print it (from the web server), or download it to
their machine to be printed locally or viewed at a later date.
The SWIIFT EFG allows users to send email to the fax server where
it is converted into a fax message and sent using Faximum. The
user merely composes his email message as usual and sends it to
the
SWIIFT EFG by addressing it (say) to:
"John Doe/ACME Company/1 604 926 8182 <fax@server.com>"
The SWIIFT EFN is designed to fax notification of new incoming
email (for people who do not receive enough email to justify dialling
up their mail server a couple of times a day). This allows users
and businesses to be responsive to the occasional email message
without having to spend any effort monitoring their email inbox.
This service can be a lucrative value-added service for ISPs
to offer their low-volume email customers.
The SWIIFT FEG converts received faxes into email messages (by
sending the fax image as a MIME attachment). Users can then view,
print, and manage their faxes locally using the same inbox and
email program as currently used for email.
SWIIFT provides two options. The default behaviour is for SWIIFT
to convert received faxes into GIF format which can be viewed
by any Web browser that supports icons or graphics (which is to
say all except those designed to run on dumb terminals, such as
lynx).
The alternative is to download the fax (as a multi-page TIFF
file) to the user’s machine (using the web browser) and view
the fax using the fax viewers provided by Faximum. These viewers
are currently available for MS Windows 3.x, 95, and NT and allow
the user to zoom, rotate, and print faxes. Most web browsers can
be configured to invoke the Faximum fax viewer automatically when
presented with a TIFF file. (Viewers for other systems are in
development, please contact Faximum Software for current availability.)
SWIIFT includes viewers for MS Windows 3.x, 95, and NT that allow
the user to zoom, rotate, and print faxes that are received by
email. Most email programs can be configured to automatically
invoke the Faximum fax viewer when presented with an email message
that includes a fax. (Viewers for other systems are in development,
please contact Faximum Software for current availability.)
SWIIFT adheres to all applicable Internet standards and recommendations
including RFCs 822, 1314, 1521, 1522, and 1806. For more information
on these Internet standards, please visit our Web site (http://www.faximum.com/swiift).
SWIIFT is compatible with most web servers that support standard
CGI scripts including web servers by Netscape, NCSA, and others.
SWIIFT is compatible with the native email systems of the supported
UNIX hosts. SWIIFT uses the security mechanism of the web server,
email server, and network it runs under. This can be as relaxed
or as restricted as the systems administrator wishes (and the
server software and network support).
Faximum’s advanced features [Some of these features are
only available with Faximum PLUS or Client/Server (and not the
ELS or Lite products). Some features (such as support for multiple
lines) are separately priced options. Please refer to the product
specifications for complete details.] include:
- supports personal dialling directories of unlimited size for
each user;
- handles multiple fax telephone lines;
- works with a wide range of Class 2 and 2.0 fax modems;
- provides call accounting by user as well as project (or client);
- includes a simple yet powerful command line interface for
faxing from within applications and shell programs;
- allows the system administrator to restrict access to long
distance calls by user, time, type of phone line (in multi-line
installations), and area code;
- reduces telephone toll charges by using intelligent dialling,
least-cost routing, and intelligent delayed transmission (see
below);
- routes received faxes using by fax line, sender’s phone
number (TSI), or DID;
- provides native fax clients for Microsoft Windows (3.x, 95,
and NT) at no additional charge (i.e. no per seat charges, see
17);
- integrates with PBX call-detail recording, and third-party
DDD accounts (i.e. MCI or Sprint, when the user’s account
must be dialled with the number); and
- supports data/fax sharing which permits a single modem and
phone line to handle both data and fax calls (available only
with certain modems and systems, contact Faximum for current
information).
Intelligent dialling is the ability of the fax software to add
(or remove) dialling prefixes as necessary. When intelligent dialling
is enabled, all phone numbers are entered fully qualified (that
means with the country code and area code) even if local to the
calling system.
Intelligent dialling would recognize that if a San Francisco
number ‘555 1212’ were to be dialled, say, from San
Francisco, all that needs to be dialled is ‘555 1212’
(or possibly ‘9 555 1212’, ‘9’ being dialled
to get an outside line). Similarly, if the same number were entered
into a Faximum system installed in San Jose, then Faximum would
dial ‘1 555 1212’. And if the number were entered into
a Faximum system installed in New York, Faximum would dial ‘1
415 555 1212’.
Similar automatic transformations occur with overseas numbers.
The automatic addition (or removal) of dialling prefixes and
area codes is referred to as intelligent dialling.
The obvious benefit is that dialling directories can be shared
between different locations without requiring editing to add or
remove prefixes and area codes. A less obvious benefit is that
the use of fully qualified numbers permits Faximum to recognize
the exact location of each destination so that it can perform
least-cost routing and intelligent delayed transmission (see below).
Faximum is the only fax software package we are aware of that
supports intelligent dialling.
Least-cost routing is the ability to select the telephone line
that is the least expensive for a given destination. For example,
a multi-line installation might have a normal long-distance (DDD)
line, a foreign exchange line into another city, and several WATS
(wide-area telephone service) lines into different regions of
the country. With least-cost routing, Faximum can automatically
determine the line that is cheapest for each call.
In addition, Faximum supports priority promotion. This means
that if the least-cost route remains busy for a specified period,
a high-priority fax will be sent by a slightly more expensive
route rather than be delayed waiting for the least-cost route
to become idle.
Faximum PLUS is the only fax software package we know of that
supports least-cost routing and priority promotion.
Intelligent delayed transmission is the ability to determine
when to send a fax based on the discount period specified and
the destination. Many fax machines and most fax software permit
the user to delay a fax but by having to specify the exact time
for the fax to be sent. This is usually done to take advantage
of the lower phone rates available in the evening and overnight.
With Faximum, the user does not need to know when the phone rates
drop or to try to calculate when to send. The user merely indicates
the cost he is willing to pay (i.e. "Highest, No Delay",
"Low Cost", or "Lowest Cost") and Faximum
automatically determines the appropriate time to send the fax.
For example, from Vancouver the cheapest phone rate to Edmonton
starts at 11 p.m.; to New York starts at midnight; to London,
England starts at 6 p.m. Faximum remembers all of this so that
users can benefit from telephone discount periods without having
to remember the details.
Intelligent project accounting is the ability to interface with
telephone systems that require accounting information to be dialled
before or after the long distance number.
When Faximum is configured to provide the additional accounting
information, it will automatically dial the account associated
with the user and project assigned to the fax. The account number
can be dialled at any point during the dialling sequence and the
system can dial different account numbers depending on the project
the fax is to be charged to, the long distance service used, and
the area called.
Can I use the same modem and phone line for both fax and
data?
Faximum makes it possible for a single modem and phone line to
handle fax, data, and uucp traffic. This feature is, however,
only available with certain modems and systems. Contact Faximum
Software for details.
While Faximum ought to work with any terminal server that provides
a reliable (and transparent) reverse telnet service, we specifically
recommend the Easy Server 2 terminal server made by Stallion Technologies.
Faximum’s engineers have worked closely with Stallion’s
to make the combination of Faximum’s fax software and Stallion’s
terminal server work better than any other fax server/terminal
server pairing. Contact Faximum Software for the latest information
on this project.
If you have a modem that does not appear on the above list you
can determine if it is Class 2/2.0 and whether it is Rockwell-based
by connecting a terminal to the modem (or using the cu
or tip commands) and issuing the following commands at
19,200 baud:
- AT+FCLASS=?
- If the modem is Class 2 or 2.0 then the response from the
modem to this command ought to include the number 2 or 2.0.
- If the modem is a Class 2 modem, then issue the first of the
two AT commands shown on each line below (i.e. AT+FMFR?, not
AT+FMR?).
- If the modem is a Class 2.0 modem, then issue the second of
the two AT commands shown on each line below (i.e. AT+FMR?,
not AT+FMFR?).
- AT+FMFR? (AT+FMR?)
- This will usually provide the name of the manufacturer of
the chip set used in the modem. (You may need to type AT+FCLASS=2
or AT+FCLASS=2.0 before the FMFR or FMR command will be accepted
by the modem.)
- AT+FMDL? (AT+FML?)
- This will usually provide the model number of the chip set
used in the modem.
- AT+FREV? (AT+FRV?)
- This will usually provide the firmware revision level for
the modem.
- AT+FBUF? (AT+FBF?)
- This will usually provide the size of the internal buffer
within the modem.
- For reliable operation with UNIX we recommend modems with
at least 1K of buffer.
If you have any doubts or questions about using a particular
fax modem, please contact Faximum Technical Support (support@faximum.com),
providing the response to these five commands.
While most workstations have sufficient power to handle a fax
modem connected to the serial ports built into the machine, an
intelligent communications board or terminal server is recommended
for heavy use or for systems that must support more than one fax
modem.
Faximum has worked closely with the engineers at Stallion Technologies
to ensure that their Easy Server 2 terminal server works well
with Faximum’s products. Please contact Faximum for complete
details on the Easy Server 2 including pricing.
What software products does Faximum sell?
Faximum has five main products:
- Faximum PLUS
- a non-networked fax server with a full-screen character interface
designed for Intel (i.e. SCO) or AIX systems with a number of
dumb terminals connected using serial communications.
- Faximum ELS
- an entry-level version of Faximum PLUS for organisations who
do not need the advanced features of Faximum PLUS.
- Faximum Client/Server
- a true Client/Server product with a graphical user interface
(GUI) and support for clients on UNIX (DG/UX, HP-UX, SCO Open
Server, Sun Solaris, etc.)
and/or Microsoft Windows (3.x, 95, or NT).
- Faximum Lite
- a node-locked single-user version of the Faximum Client/Server
product without the command-line interface or Line Printer Intercept.
- SWIIFT
- a collection of tools for integrating fax servers with Internet/Intranet
Web and email servers (see What is SWIIFT?).
- ELS supports one dialling directory per user which cannot
be shared with other users while PLUS permits the user to have
an unlimited number of dialling directories (i.e. one containing
sales contacts, one containing suppliers, etc.), any of which
can be optionally shared with other users;
- ELS supports a single fax telephone line while PLUS can be
upgraded to support multiple fax telephone lines;
- ELS supports call accounting by user while, in addition, PLUS
supports project accounting;
- ELS places all incoming faxes in a single directory (to be
printed manually or distributed by the system administrator)
while PLUS will distribute incoming faxes and automatically
print and/or copy selected faxes as specified;
- ELS permits broadcasts to up to fifty destinations only while
PLUS supports broadcasts to an unlimited number of destinations.
In addition, PLUS supports the following advanced features:
- PLUS allows the integration of fax capabilities with existing
applications through the Faximum Applications Program Interface
(API);
- PLUS allows the system administrator to restrict access to
long distance calls by user, time, type of phone line (in multi-line
installations), and area code;
- PLUS supports intelligent dialling, least-cost routing, and
intelligent delayed transmission (see below); and
- PLUS supports PBX call-detail recording, and third-party DDD
accounts (i.e. MCI or Sprint, when the user’s account must
be dialled with the number).
- PLUS supports data/fax sharing which permits a single modem
and phone line to handle both data and fax calls.
Faximum PLUS is primarily designed for users with dumb terminals
and with no requirement to support faxing from other machines
on the network while Faximum Client/Server was designed for systems
with graphical displays (X/Motif or Windows) and/or a need for
supporting a Client/Server architecture (i.e. a central fax server
with multiple networked systems acting as clients of the fax server).
Faximum Lite provides the same basic fax server as Faximum Client/Server
but the client is locked and can only run on the console of the
server machine. Faximum Lite also does not support the command
line interface or Line Printer Intercept. Faximum Lite is intended
for personal faxing from single-user UNIX workstations.
Faximum ELS and PLUS are licensed for a single CPU with a single
fax modem and an unlimited number of users.
Faximum Lite is licensed for a single user on the same CPU as
the fax server.
Faximum Client/Server is licensed for a single server with a
single fax line, an unlimited number of client machines (including
any number of MS windows machines), and two floating-user licences.
Faxes submitted from the command line or the Line Printer Intercept
do not count as users and so are not limited.
A floating-user licence is the right for a user to run the Faximum
Graphical User Interface (either under UNIX or MS Windows). In
other words, the number of floating-user licences you have only
limits the number of simultaneous users of the GUI you have. It
does not limit the number of machines on which you may install
the client software nor does it limit the number of users (or
applications) that submit faxes using the command line interface
or the Line Printer Intercept.
Additional floating-user licences may be purchased singly or
in groups of five. Please consult the price list for details.
Faximum is a registered trademark in Canada and the United States
licensed exclusively to Faximum Software Inc. SWIIFT is a trademark
of Faximum Software, Inc. Other product names are trademarks or
registered trademarks of their respective owners and are used
for identification purposes only.The use of the PostScript trademark
is for identification purposes only and is not intended to imply
that the software which interprets the PostScript language is
developed by or licensed from Adobe Systems Inc. The use of the
PCL trademark is for identification purposes only and is not intended
to imply that the software which interprets the HP Printer Control
language is developed by or licensed from the Hewlett-Packard
Company. Specifications and prices are subject to change without
notice. Check with Faximum Software Inc. for current information.
Void where prohibited by law. Does anyone ever really read this
stuff anyway? Goodbye, over and out!
14 August 1998
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