Interesting facts about the fax machine

Although most traditional fax machines work using telephone line, the fax machine actually predates the telephone. Alexander Bain invented the fax machine three decades before the telephone was invented.

The term "fax" is short for "facsimile," which refers to an exact copy of an image.

At least 80 percent of U.S. citizens know what a fax machine is, and more than 60 percent have used one, according to the Telecom Corner.

Between 1973 and 1983, the number of fax machines in the United States increased from 30,000 to 300,000, but by 1989 the number had jumped to four million. By the late 1980s, compact fax machines had revolutionized everyday communications around the world.