Re: VOIP - What Works? What Doesn't?

["Bob La Londe" <none@xxxxxxxx>]

"Chris" <chriswheeldon@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:4547625.1839.1332552409577.JavaMail.geo-discussion-forums@xxxxxxxxx
> On Friday, March 23, 2012 6:13:43 PM UTC-7, Bob La Londe wrote:
>> I've been playing with voice over IP telephone service for the last
>> couple
>> days.  I've had a plain old Magic Jack plugged into a USB port on my desk
>> computer for a while now (2 years maybe).  I use it as a spare line, and
>> for
>> the tackle and mold making sideline business.  It works pretty decent.
>> Sometimes its a little tinny sounding, but as long as my Internet works
>> it
>> seems to work.  Since I upgraded my internet service a while back it has
>> worked much better.
>>
>> Well, I decided to check out 8x8.  They are a service claiming to provide
>> professional grade VOIP services.  I know of businesses much larger than
>> mine who are using them.  So far I am not impressed.  They setup my
>> account
>> wrong, and they couldn't fix it.  They had to send me another piece of
>> VOIP
>> equipment to get it to work the way they set it up.  Its so I can send
>> faxes
>> using an ordinary analog fax machine over their VOIP service.  It doesn't
>> work.  (I haven't had an actual fax machine hooked up in years for my
>> business, but I need to test everything.)
>>
>> They claimed to make some adjustments to their compression codecs, and it
>> supposedly tested in both directions, but I never received a test fax.
>> When
>> I tested further just to make sure hardware was good I plugged both the
>> fax
>> machine and the fax modem into a plain old telephone service (POTS) line.
>> Both pieces of equipment worked fine on POTS.  Then on a lark I decided
>> to
>> plug the fax modem into the Magic Jack.  I don't figure there was a
>> snowball's chance in heck of that working, but amazingly it did.  Then
>> back
>> to the VOIP port from 8x8.  No joy.  Call goes through, I can hear the
>> fax
>> tones, but it fails every time.
>>
>> Sadly I must conclude that 8x8 is not quite were they need to be just yet
>> for me to recommend them to my customers.  If they want a cheap phone
>> line
>> for occasional use I think a Magic Jack would be a better choice.
>>
>> I've got three 8x8 VOIP adaptors sitting in my communications room right
>> now.  All different models.
>
> Bob,
>
> On a bit of a side note, how has it been without a fax machine for so
> long?  Are you using something else like eFax instead, or just simply
> email and snail mail?
>
> I figure at least 99% of the faxes I get are junk mail, and I don't
> remember the last time I needed to fax something out (other than to start
> up accounts, but those are emailed now).
>
> And yet, it seems like it's some sort of necessity to have a fax machine
> to run a business.
>
> - Chris

I use MyFax.com.  I still have my old fax number, and I have one customer
who still faxes me purchase orders.  I just had the old fax number ANI
terminated to the MyFax number.  I suppose I should cancel the number and
just give them the toll free number instead.

Most common file formats will fax by email using my account.  I even have
some common documents stored on my cell phone so when some jerk insists I
have somebody fax something over before he will do his job, pay his bill,
etc I can just send it from my phone.  Things like tax exempt forms,
business license copies, W-9s, insurance forms, etc.