Not everyone has a dedicated fax machine in their home or office. Windows XP includes a Fax service that provides you with complete faxing capabilities. If a dedicated fax machine is not in your budget, you can use your Windows XP computer to send, receive, track, and monitor faxes.

The Fax service is not installed with Windows XP by default. Therefore, if you want to utilize this feature, you must first install it. The process is very simple.

To install the fax component:

1. Click Start and click Control Panel.

2. Double click the Add or Remove Programs applet.
3. Click Add/Remove Windows Components.
4. From the list of Windows Components, click Fax Services. Click Next. If prompted, insert the Windows XP CD.
5. Click Finish.
6. Click Close.

Once you have the Fax service installed, you must configure it before you can start using it. To configure the Fax service:

1. Click Start, point to All Programs, Accessories, Communications, Fax, and click the Fax Console. This launches the Fax Configuration Wizard. Click Next.

2. Type in the information that you want to appear on the fax cover page. Click Next.
3. Select the modem that you want to use for faxing. Click Next.
4. Enable Send is selected by default. Select Enable Receive if you want to receive faxes as well. Click Next.
5. In the TSID box, type in the Transmitting Subscriber Identification. Click Next.
6. In the CSID box, type in the Called Subscriber Identification. Click Next.
7. Select the Print it on option if you want received faxes to be automatically printed. Select the printer where the faxes will be printed. Click Next.
8. Review the summary and click Finish.

In the next installment of this article I will show you how to send faxes using Windows XP.

[tags]windows,xp,diana huggins,fax service,control panel[/tags]