Most novice computer users already know Microsoft suffers from some form of corporate insanity. Shoving Vista down our throats before supporting hardware and software was readily available was just one example. We unsuspecting and mostly un-technical users brought the new machine home, read all of the documentation, connected everything-and found out most things didn't work! If your printer or your copy of your most-used software was more than a few months old, you had to shell out another small fortune to replace it with the "compatible" edition-IF one existed. And, just when you'd given up and decided to revert to the stone-age and install XP, you found out your particular version of whatever hardware, proudly labeled as created for Vista', really WAS created for Vista and ONLY Vista. . .you couldn't even downgrade because the machine wasn't configured to handle the old drivers needed. Then, there were all of those editions-and most of us got stuck with one of the home' versions, never realizing it had been neutered.
The thing I felt was most schizophrenic about Vista's new, many-faced editions was that fax capability had been removed from the home' versions. Sure, the faxmodem was still there with most hardware brands-but there was no faxing program to go with it. . .unless you upgraded to a business version. Since I use fax a lot, I was stymied. I went looking for a downloadable fax program only to find out that NONE of the common fax software was Vista compatible. And that there were no plans to make it compatible!
I tried everything, including Skype's Pam Fax to provide the needed capabilities-too many glitches, inconsistent signal strength and failed faxes convinced me really quickly that it wouldn't be a good long-term option. EFax is fine for receiving faxes via email, but sending them costs a monthly fee-and a pretty hefty one at that. I was finally forced to carry the old Vaio along just to be able to connect to a landline and fax! Every couple of weeks, I'd waste a few hours haunting the techie newsgroups looking for a Vista-compatible fax program. I found out you could fax from MS Office-but only if you had the full business versions. I don't, and didn't intend to upgrade to the tune of a couple hundred more dollars just to fax.
Then, a couple of months ago, I finally found a clue-in some obscure newsgroup for gamers, I believe-that a new fax program from the creators of Mighty Fax had come out with a fax program that worked with Vista. It's called RKS Fax and it actually does work-perfectly!
RKS Fax, http://www.rkssoftware.com , works as promised. It's a very complete program with a substantial help section, the ability to attach files (RKS calls them enclosures), clone faxes to facilitate multiple faxes, design your own cover pages, import address books, delay sending and configure for differing conditions. The Help section describes-with illustrations-how to set up a DSL filter to use fax with DSL and explains why you cant reliably use fax with a cable connection. Although RKS Fax isn't technically supported for cell phone modems or aircards, success likely depends on what kind of support your particular modem and service plan provide for fax. Since the major providers profess to support fax capabilities with their newer aircards and data plans, it may require some help from their tech support to get it set up properly but it should work.
This program works great! As I have a landline plan with long distance included, I can send AND receive faxes just by pluggin the phone line into the jack on the computer. Incoming faxes can be a bit of a problem if you dont know exactly when they are coming in and an inbound call at the same time can cancel the fax. For simplicity's sake, I use RKS Fax for outbound and give my eFax number for inbound faxes. However, RKS Fax takes inbound faxes just as easily as outbound.
You can download RKS Fax free for a thirty-day trial before you buy. The full cost is only $19.95 with free updates. Try it out. I think you'll be pleased with the program.