Fax concepts
The concept of a fax machine has been around for ages. Sending and receiving documents through a phone line seems strange, but it was one of the first technologies before technology blew up. Though it was a form of communication in years past, it wasn’t until the 1970s that Japan started to make these devices a regular occurrence in daily tasks and work groups. Once they became worldwide, the 80s had taken over. In that time, fax machines became very popular, as documented in the article from Wikipedia.
Fax machines look like a standard printer usually except they have a wired telephone attached to the top panel. When it does come time to send a fax out, it is actually quite simple. You put the document you want to send on the input tray behind a cover sheet. The cover sheet is almost like an introduction or to the task at hand. Type in the phone number of the fax machine you are trying to reach and the 2+ papers will come straight through the machine and print out into the output tray. However, while it goes through the interior of the printer, it is scanned and the information is transferred through the phone line to the other persons faxing unit. Once that info is transmitted, it prints out on the sheets of paper the recipients have in their device.
Stand-alone fax machines are on their way out the door and most fax capabilities can be found in multi-functioning machines. The truth is, there are so many other forms of communication that faxes have sort of lost the appeal. Why take the time to get fax numbers and send faxes when you can just scan a document and send it off in an email? Fax machines still come in handy, but have definitely grown less appealing.