If you work in a small office/home office environment (often referred to as a "SOHO" environment) then you can appreciate "convergence" products that allow one device to do the work of many other devices. The PC has become one of the most important inventions of the 20th century, and indeed the PC has done more for revolutionizing the way we do business than any other single innovation in the past one hundred years. Not since the printing press has one single innovation made such an impact on the business world. One of the features that makes PCs so useful and indispensable is the ability for the device to "wear many hats" and serve as a multifunction device that different employees and technicians can use for different purposes. For the all around office machine, fax software should be included on the list of applications that all office PCs should have to make them as useful as possible and to lessen the amount of hardware that needs to be purchased in order to have an office working at peak efficiency. When equipped with faxing software or utilizing the services of an online internet faxing site, you not only add functionality to you initial PC investment but you also save money by not having to outfit the office with cumbersome hardware that is difficult to use. Additionally, when you use your PC to accomplish faxing tasks, you have the same ability to have a digital "paper trail" (like the type enabled by email and other internet based textual communication). Records can be kept by the software or service and allow for lightning-quick search and verify actions to be done when necessary. No more wondering if your secretary sent the fax you asked to have sent by lunch. Individuals with an interest in the faxed communiqu can be notified via email upon reception of the fax and can follow up on messages as they are received. |
