My fax no longer completes connection - FIXED!!!!
LTN1:
Quote from: Agent88 on November 08, 2015, 03:54:53 pm
You know... you guys don't get it. A lot of us do not frequent the OBiTalk interface often. This is a good testimony to the reliable operation of OBihai devices. However, when we do have a problem, the instructions are not clear.
I think the majority of us gets it. I would agree that Obihai could make things easier in many ways. However, the reality is that when they sell a $70 piece of hardware to a very small tech niche, they probably don't have the amount of quality of support as they should due to costs. People like you are really getting a lot more support through this forum than if you had e-mailed Obihai support. Most of the time, they respond with an unclear one or two lines...without even signing their names. If they were to provide the support and ease of guidance that I would like...and undoubtedly for the minority of the people who have difficulties scrolling a web page, the $70 piece of hardware would likely be quite a bit higher.
It's up to Obihai to determine their business model and how much they want to invest in being "user friendly." I'm just glad that the costs of these devices are still quite reasonable and with some tech abilities, coupled with helpful and skilled forum volunteers, it really is a bargain. Just hope that the free ride on Google's side doesn't end too soon.
Agent88:
Quote from: drgeoff on November 08, 2015, 03:15:33 pm
Quote from: Agent88 on November 08, 2015, 02:48:02 pm
3)If the device web interface will not allow configuration changes, then OBihai needs to make that clear. I cannot see the reason to have a web page interface if it can't be used.
The web interface does allow configuration changes but they will be overwritten by whatever is current on the portal unless you disable Obitalk provisioning or do exactly what SteveInWA has told you. Please read the sticky post http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=61.0
Now there's the information.... from back in 2011. How does this kind of thinking persist? Who is going to wade through 5 years of forum posts to look for answers? The statement is very clear: Either use the web page interface OR the OBiTalk Expert Configurator, but not both. BUT! no mention that whatever you do in the web page configuration settings will be immediately overwritten by the Expert Configurator, whether you use it or not. There should be a button to deselect the Expert Configurator's over-ride so that the web page interface changes will be effective and make it prominent on the user page. Disabling auto-provisioning is not intuitive.
Agent88:
Quote from: LTN1 on November 08, 2015, 04:10:40 pm
Quote from: Agent88 on November 08, 2015, 03:54:53 pm
You know... you guys don't get it. A lot of us do not frequent the OBiTalk interface often. This is a good testimony to the reliable operation of OBihai devices. However, when we do have a problem, the instructions are not clear.
I think the majority of us gets it. I would agree that Obihai could make things easier in many ways. However, the reality is that when they sell a $70 piece of hardware to a very small tech niche, they probably don't have the amount of quality of support as they should due to costs. People like you are really getting a lot more support through this forum than if you had e-mailed Obihai support. Most of the time, they respond with an unclear one or two lines...without even signing their names. If they were to provide the support and ease of guidance that I would like...and undoubtedly for the minority of the people who have difficulties scrolling a web page, the $70 piece of hardware would likely be quite a bit higher.
It's up to Obihai to determine their business model and how much they want to invest in being "user friendly." I'm just glad that the costs of these devices are still quite reasonable and with some tech abilities, coupled with helpful and skilled forum volunteers, it really is a bargain. Just hope that the free ride on Google's side doesn't end too soon.
You make a good point. And thank you for your help today.
Agent88:
Quote from: SteveInWA on November 08, 2015, 02:46:12 pm
With regard to faxing, I realize you keep pointing out that it used to work and now it doesn't. Nobody here knows why that is the case. Faxing over VoIP is never going to be as reliable as using a traditional POTS line. Sometimes, VoIP providers change the "transit" carriers they use to route calls, and the quality of the connection no longer is sufficient to support faxing. That's just one example.
Drgeoff pointed you to some tips. He specifically emphasized that you need to turn off ECM (error correction mode). This seems counter-intuitive, since error correction sounds like a "good thing". The problem is, it's only a good thing for traditional circuit-switched (POTS) telephony. It identifies failures by the receiving end to receive error-free transmissions. If it detects an error, it tells the sending end to re-transmit. This can create a mess with VoIP, which results in endlessly re-transmitting the same packets over and over until it gives up. Also, as he pointed out, try reducing the data rate on the fax machine. 9600bps is the maximum that is likely to work over VoIP, and 4800bps is more reliable. Both the data rate and ECM mode are settings on your fax machine, not on the OBi.
The one thing you can try to change on the OBi device, using its Expert configuration mode, is to change your CODEC profile to only use the G.711 CODECs, and no others. G.711 is a lossless CODEC that works best with faxing, however, it does require a high-quality internet connection (from your own internet service provider).
What if this doesn't help? Here are two other options:
Get a Google Voice phone number. Google has significantly improved its VoIP network over the years, and it is often more reliable for fax than other providers.
or...
Join the 21st century. Don't use your fax machine. Instead, scan your documents and email them as PDFs, or use a fax service provider that can fax the PDFs for you. Get a fax mailbox from the service provider of your choice, to receive inbound faxes, which are then converted to PDFs that can be downloaded or emailed. I don't know if Anveo offers them, but Callcentric does.
You don't know the industry that I am in. Insurance is subject to HIPAA regs and with the growing hacking of emails, is an increasing demand for encryption. The evolving technology did not plan ahead well. I have a laptop with SSD. Unfortunately, SSD does not play well with encryption... try to get a big insurance carrier to recognize that! They have deep pockets and can order new laptops by the hundreds/thousands if need be, but a little agent like me has a tight budget. I can't afford to chuck my $1500 laptop and buy a new one just to meet their demand for legal recourse in the event of a hack. I just guard my laptop with my life.
As far as chucking my fax machines, same-o, same-o. I don't have the budget to upgrade, and besides... as soon as I buy a new model with all the bells and whistles to comply with the newest security threats, it becomes obsolete before I can spit. I dropped my copper landline to reduce my communications expense for a fax line that I don't use often. I was assured (I asked) that my fax machines would work on Voip, and that I didn't need a copper line. That old copper line at my house was installed in 1963. I have had problems with it for decades, and thought going fiber-optic was a good thing. That's why I take advice like yours with a grain of salt... you mean well, but you aren't aware of the unintended consequences the new technology brings. I CAN send a fax via email, just CAN'T and still be compliant with regulations.
drgeoff:
Quote from: Agent88 on November 08, 2015, 04:17:08 pm
Now there's the information.... from back in 2011. How does this kind of thinking persist? Who is going to wade through 5 years of forum posts to look for answers?
Doh! I made the mistake of not underlining sticky post.
You can lead a horse to water ....
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