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From: mikes@gammafax.gammalink.com (mike spann)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Unitel (Canada) Fax Service
Message-ID: <14831@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 19 Nov 90 22:19:41 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 834, Message 6 of 8


In article <14718@accuvax.nwu.edu> gauthier@ug.cs.dal.ca (Paul
Gauthier) writes:

>  A Canadian Company has recently begun to offer a special reduced
>rate to fax users. The user pays only a small monthly fee ($10, I
>think) and receives a little black box which attaches to their fax
>machine.  .... <much stuff deleted>

>  Does anyone know if such services actually detect and interpret fax
>protocol to decide whether to axe the call? 

I can not say for sure how the system you saw advertised works.  I do
know of several service providers who provide an identical service.
It works as follows:

You dial a phone number from your fax machine.  The box intercepts the
number and decides whether to dial it directly or whether to use the
'store and forward.'  If the number is not a local call, or a number
you have indicated you want to dial directly, it calls the providers
number.  On connection, it exchanges your account number and the
number you wish to call with the receiver.  Some providers do this
with an encrypted, 300 bps signal.  Others use less secure methods.
Once this is accepted, you are connected to a fax board (ours we hope)
to receive the fax.  The fax is then shipped to the most convenient
place to send the fax (using T.1 or X.25 or something like that).
Another fax board then sends the fax to the destination machine.

So, unless you particularly want to talk to a GammaFax CP card, there
is little purpose in trying to fool their box into accepting a funky
number.

Note: This may or may not be how the provider you have seen works.


Michael Spann                           mikes@gammalink.com
Voice:  +1-408-744-1430			Fax:    +1-408-744-1549
UUCP:   ...!uunet!gammafax!mikes   	CIS:    73747,441