rpena@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu (Robert Pena) (06/13/91)
but would like to know more about the brands that are out at the moment. Also I would like to know at what speed they work at plus anything that might affect my opinion or my decision of which I should buy. I thank you and the people that work with me thank you. Robert
gillooly@vixvax.mgi.com (06/14/91)
We purchased a Cypress FAXPro modem a few months ago. In general we are pretty happy with the unit. FAX quality is extremely high Installation is pretty easy Chooser for FAXing is real nice PhoneBase database for FAX numbers is real useful The only places that we had problems came from the network installation. FAX server Mac must have a well optimized hard disk, and it must be re-optimized regularly. The Mac that has the modem plugged into it (if it is not the server Mac will go away from its owner for 1 to 5 seconds as it checks the server Mac (disk optimization helps here too) My recommendations: Great FAX modem! Works well in a network situation, but you MUST have a dedicated server Mac ------------------------------------------------------------- William B. Gillooly Jr. Applications Specialist Management Graphics, Inc. 612-854-1220 1401 East 79th Street 612-854-6913 FAX Minneapolis, MN 55425 gillooly@mgi.com
bhanafee@deimos.ads.com (Brian Hanafee) (06/14/91)
> but would like to know more about the brands that are out at the moment. > Also I would like to know at what speed they work at plus anything that > might affect my opinion or my decision of which I should buy. > > I thank you and the people that work with me thank you. > > Robert > MacWorld recently reviewed fax-modems, you might want to look at that issue (April 1991?) The important decision you have to make first is whether or not you want the capability to receive faxes. If you don't really need it, there are lots of modems which can send faxes in the $100-$200 range. For send/receive fax modems, almost all will handle faxes at 9600 baud, and the modems will work at either 2400 or 9600 baud, depending on how much you want to pay. The 2400/9600 tend to start at around $300 mail-order, and the 9600/9600 are about twice that. Right now, I think the top two contenders in the 2400/9600 market are the DoveFax and the Abaton Interfax. I do not know what the compatability of the DoveFax is with System 7, but I do know that the Interfax software is *not*. I have one. I bought it about a week after System 7 was released. They originally said the new software would be ready "in June", then "mid-to-late June". As of yesterday, they are saying "late June or the first week of July". The person I spoke to said that the new version will run under System 7, but "won't use all the System 7 features" until August. She was unable to say when TrueType would work (the current software does not work with the TrueType init under System 6). She also said that the new software would cost "$25-$30", even for those of us who purchased the modem recently. My recommendation is that you not buy an Interfax until Everex (the manufacturer) gets their sh*t together. Brian Hanafee Disclaimer: I speak only for myself.
bryanvv@mttam.uucp (Bryan Van Vliet) (06/16/91)
In article <BHANAFEE.91Jun13164359@deimos.ads.com> bhanafee@deimos.ads.com (Brian Hanafee) writes: > I do not know what the compatability of the DoveFax is with System 7, but > I do know that the Interfax software is *not*. I was able to install the current version of the InterFax software (1.2.3) under System 7.0 and am able to at least receive a fax (I haven't had the opportunity to send a fax since I installed 7.0.) I had to put the Interfax cdev into the System Folder and an alias in the Control Panel Folder and am not running in 32 bit mode or with virtual memory. I understand there are incompatabilities between the InterFax software and System 7 but at least I don't have to switch to System 6 to receive faxes. > She also said that the new software would cost "$25-$30", even for > those of us who purchased the modem recently. Abaton was offering updates to their InterFax software via their bbs system. I asked whether this new version was going to be available via the bbs and the Abaton tech support person said no. I then asked, "Oh so you're going to have to pay for the next version?" and the support person said "Yes, you had to pay for System 7 didn't you?" I hope this isn't Abaton's justification for charging for a System 7-compatible upgrade (for one thing System 7 is available via ftp or on CompuServe.) I'm willing to pay for upgrades as long as there is new functionality offered. > My recommendation is that you not buy an Interfax until Everex (the > manufacturer) gets their sh*t together. I agree. I've been disappointed by Abaton's technical support. Sometimes you call and get people from their PC-compatible group who know very little about Macintoshes. I haven't looked at other fax modem software but I've had more problems with the InterFax software than any other application on my machine, maybe because I use the InterFax with the HP DeskWriter and Adobe Type Manager. With a regular fax machine I print off the document from my Mac and send it through the fax machine's scanner and I'm done. With the Interfax I have to select "FaxMaker" from the chooser, "print" the document to disk and then print the fax to a regular printer to make sure that the conversion from a document to a group 3 fax didn't make any abnormal changes to my fax (which it sometimes does.) It can be a painful procedure. -- Bryan Van Vliet bryanvv@mttam.uucp or uunet!mttam!bryanvv