If you're setting up the ultimate home office but you don't want to shell out the cash for a klunky, outdated fax machine, you probably don't need to. When I started working from home, I used free fax-from-your-computer options like FaxZero, but there are limitations to free faxes and in general they're somewhat of a pain. Over time, I started returning fax requests as scanned PDFs attached to emails with a note along the lines of "I attached the document as a PDF. If you still need it faxed, please let me know." So far most have actually been happier with PDFs. You do need a scanner, of course, but they're a lot more multi-purpose than the fax machine. I am curious, though: Is the PDF attachment a successful replacement for the fax (even when faxes are requested), and is the fax finally dead (and if not, why not)? Let's hear your thoughts in the comments.

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