Making the internet messaging accessible — Facimile over IP
Monday, November 26th, 2007Atomic MPC forum user, freakonaleash, asked an interesting question regarding sending faxes over IP. This got me thinking.
We’ve got solutions for an internal LAN such as Hylafax for an intranet-based fax-over-IP solution. But nothing exists that could be considered similar to Voice-over-IP. I can’t use the internet for instance, to send a fax overseas — and sometimes just like the telephone, one needs to fax a document.
There’s also the situation of inexperienced people. People like my grandparents, wouldn’t have a clue how to use a computer to send an email, or maintain a PC. Linux distributions have gotten to the point where I’d be quite comfortable setting up a minimalist Gentoo or Ubuntu installation on an old PIII box — to allow basic email and web browsing, but I still need to be around to keep it updated and maintained. Even if I were to go throw Windows XP on the same machine — I’d still have to maintain it.
Email offers some very useful options for such people — e.g. the ability to send letters and other correspondence and have it arrive at the other end within a day or so. (and that’s if the mail servers are having a bad day!) These days, one can buy a hardware device that provides VoIP capability, one can purchase devices that offer limited web-browsing capability without the need of a full-blown desktop computer, why not an internet appliance for sending and receiving email?
Well, I don’t see the need for a whole new protocol. SMTP and POP3/IMAP will do just fine for the actual FoIP capability. The issue is the interface to these protocols. I’m thinking an internet facimile would offer the following:
- Ethernet interface for connection to the internet via a router.
- Internal ADSL and/or PSTN modem for stand-alone internet access without other hardware, and standard fax capability
- LCD Display and keyboard for reading/composing mail and user interface (touchscreen)
- Onboard scanner and printer
- Handset/headset jack for voice communications (either VoIP or standard land-line)
The idea, is that someone who doesn’t have a proper understanding of computers, could send a message over the internet using this device. They would simply hit the “Compose” button, fill in the recipient’s fax number (standard fax) or email address (FoIP), a subject for the message and cover letter, then scan in whatever attached pages they wish to add (these would appear as PDF, JPEG or PNG attachments). Some models may include USB ports and card readers, to allow attaching arbitrary files from USB drives and flash cards. Once they’re happy, they get the option of either sending it right then and there, or storing it to send in a batch run.
For privacy, perhaps something like PGP could be incorporated, thus allowing messages to be encrypted. There’s scope for this device to act as an internet router, networked printer/scanner, and VoIP ATA box too, which could be add-on features.
In essence though, the box could just sit in the corner… and say, overnight, connect to the internet, download any new messages, send any unsent messages out.
I might look into something like this, as it seems in the open source world, we have pretty much all the necessary pieces — just a matter of piling the right software on a standard PC and we’ll have a proof-of-concept prototype.