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Law Technology News (Volume 6, Issue 5, p. 41, col. 1)
May 1999
Choosing the Best Fax Software for Your Firm
by Wayne Spivak
WITH THE overwhelming adoption of e-mail in the business milieu, the use of fax machines has been waning in many commercial offices.
However, this isn't exactly true in the legal environment. Many firms remain weary about using e-mail for the transference of legal documents. Lawyers who counsel small businesses and individuals often encounter clients without easy access to (or comfort with) e-mail, assuring the continuing role of the fax machine as an indispensable business machine.
Many firms rely on the classic, plain-paper fax machines that require manual insertion of documents. In some cases, those machines are the easiest to use when faxing hard copy, paper-based documents or books.
However, paper is no longer necessary for faxing. Using the latest software, your computer can function as a fax machine, allowing you to send and receive faxes as easily as you send e-mail. (Scanners can make easy work of faxing bulky or hard copy items, too).
And network systems can be set up easily, allowing users to send and receive documents via desktop workstations. (Once received, the documents can be printed out if hard copy is required).
In essence, law firms have two choices for computer-based faxing: A networked, centralized fax center where all incoming and outgoing faxes funnel through a main portal; or personal, standalone faxing where each individual user can send and receive faxes at his or her workstation.
Each option has benefits, but also some significant costs. Which you choose will probably be based on cost, ease of use, security concerns, and your network operating system.
A personal standalone system requires each workstation to have its own modem (no longer a significant cost, but if you buy unnecessary modems, the cost can add up) and either a dedicated or shared phone line. Shared phone lines once meant having the computer tied up waiting for the phone line to free-up, but with today's software this is a problem of the past.
This is fine if each staff member in your office handles his or her own incoming and outgoing faxes.
The question of phone lines is no small concern. If each workstation has its own phone line, the costs can become hefty, quickly. Multiple dedicated phone lines for faxing also can add to the overall telecommunications cost of the office. Nor are dedicated lines necessarily an asset - if your fax traffic is intense, they may not be enough.
Many firms resort to installing two traditional fax machines, one for incoming documents; the other for outgoing, and linking the two machines in a "hunt or jump" scenario. This way, if the incoming machine is busy, and the outgoing machine is dormant, it will become, temporarily, the incoming machine. If you face this problem, you may want to consider a network fax system.
Security
A key issue in determining the best fax system is to evaluate your security needs. Do you want or need a centralized security system that can screen fax (and Internet) use? Placing modems on individual machines gives users unchecked dial-in capability. This means that your staff can access their machine and, unless you have firewalls, your network, from anywhere, bypassing any security screenings.
What's worse, this scenario gives unwanted and uninvited "guests" another entry point into your network. Security experts point to individual modems as one of the largest security threats a company network can have -- not the Internet! Weigh these issues when deciding whether to use the standalone approach or not. Remember, the security threat is not from self-answering fax software, it's from self-answering modem software (such as PCAnywhere, Carbon Copy, etc).
Network Fax Systems
A key advantage of networked fax systems is enhanced security - allowing faxes to communicate only with the dedicated modem. Network fax systems usually permit multiple modems to be connected, thus allowing multiple faxes to be sent and/or received at the same time. But multi-line capability comes with a stiff price tag, so you might want to consider the traffic you anticipate. Whether you need multi-line capability or not, make sure your network fax software permits you to purchase this ability.
Network fax systems also come with dedicated hardware products. These are either special fax boards or separate self-contained units whose only function is to service your faxing needs.
Another important advantage of a networked fax system is that it can integrate with other technology tools in your office. For example, consider where you would benefit from the ability to integrate with contact management, "knowledge management" and other key database programs at your firm. This can be an invaluable tool for even small firms, allowing staff to share address information, client data, etc., speeding the processing of documents.
Some features to look for in a fax software kits are:
- Shared address books
- Ability to interface with your personal information manager (PIM)
- Gateways to e-mail systems
- Fax on demand
- Fax broadcasting
- Automated repetitive faxing
- Call accounting
- Application integration
- FAX archiving
- Fax annotation
| Company - City |
Product |
Client/Network |
Notes |
BISCOM - Chelmsford
circle no. 315 |
FAXCOM |
Win 3.x, 95, NT, UNIX, DOS, OS/2, and Mac
FAXCOM for Exchange software, FAXCOM/WorkGROUP for NT software and FAXCOM for Notes 2.0/NT |
FAXCOM for NT software, Automated routing or received faxes to the desktop, turnkey system for the enterprise |
CASTELLE - Santa Clara
circle no. 316 |
FaxPress and Ibex |
NT, Win 3.x and Win 95 |
Products include FaxPress 1500-N, FaxPress 3500 and OfficeConnect Fax Server, part of the 3Com OfficeConnect Family |
CHEYENNE DIVISION OF COMPUTER ASSOCIATES - Islandia
circle no. 326 |
Cheyenne FAXserve for NT |
NT 4 server (Intel now, Alpha in development) |
Supports any MAPI client, including Exchange, Outlook97, GroupWise5, cc:Mail8, SharkMail, with NT and Win95 clients HTML support. SMTP Inbound routing via channel routing, CSID, and DID |
EQUISYS INC - Duluth
circle no. 317 |
Zetafax |
NT 3.51 and 4.0 workstation and server (Intel, Power PC, and Alpha CPU) and Microsoft SBS. The server will also run on systems. Annotation of received faxes in client, DID. |
E-mail gateway for Exchange, MS:Mail, cc:Mail, Groupwise, Notes and MAPI compliant mail
Win 3.x/95/98/NT machines. Client support for Win 3.x/95/98/NT |
GFI LTD. - New York
circle no. 318 |
FaxMaker for Networks |
Win 3.x/95/98 and works with most popular |
Networks includes a multi-line fax server networks including Windows NT, Novell, Banyan and others |
OMTOOL LEGAL SYSTEMS - Beaverton
circle no. 321 |
LegalFax97 |
Win 3.x/95/98/NT 4.0 |
LAN fax and cost recovery software for the legal industry.) Real-time client matter validation with PC DOCS Open, ) native integration with cc:Mail, Lotus Notes, Microsoft Mail and Exchange, and GroupWise |
INTERNET BUSINESS SYSTEMS GROUP OF LUCENT TECHNOLOGIES Holmdel
circle no. 319 |
Lotus Fax/Domino Fax Server
Domino Fax Server 4.5 runs under NT 4. |
Lotus Fax Server 1.1 runs under NT 3.51, and their |
Strictly for faxing from Notes with a Notes, Mail or Domino server. |
OMTOOL - Salem
circle no. 320 |
Fax Sr. Enterprise Server |
NT, Win 3.x, WIN 95, Mac, DOS, or Motif (UNIX) |
Supports Internet faxing, SMTP, Exchange, MS Mail, cc:Mail, Notes, MHS mail, MAPI, VIM, SMTP, Outlook |
PACIFIC IMAGE COMMUNICATIONS - Alhambra
circle no. 322 |
SuperFax |
for NT 4.0, 95 and also a 16-Bit version for Win 3.x. |
Includes Fax-On Demand, fax broadcasting, remote message retrieval, pager notification |
PUREDATA-BANKSOFT CANADA LTD. - Richmond Hill, Ontario
circle no. 323 |
SatisFAXtion |
Hardware Solution |
Works with many of the most popular software systems. |
REDROCK TECHNOLOGIES LTD. - Capital Drive Milton Keynes
circle no. 324 |
FaxNow! |
Win 3.x/95/98/NT
Network and single user versions |
is E-mail integration with Exchange, Notes, GroupWise, cc:Mail, MSMail and MAPI |
SYMANTEC - Cupertino
circle no. 325 |
WinFax PRO 9.0 |
Windows 95 and NT supports NT 3.51 and 4.0 (Intel). |
Automatic pager notification, ISDN support, integration with popular PIM's, fax forwarding |
By the way: you may want to check out Microsoft certified systems.
Wayne Spivak is president of Bellmore, N.Y.'s SBA*Consulting.