Replacement for FaxTalk 6.0

Does anyone know of a reliable company that makes a voice/fax phone
answering system for a small company? Thought Communications, the maker of
FaxTalk, just informed us that Windows Service & Release Patch 2 has
rendered their software useless. They say our only option is to upgrade to
their newest version. (I hope that Shell or Exxon doesn't change the gas
formula that these people use to power their Mercedes).

Then why not just keep a machine running an older OS running if you are
unwilling to upgrade?

FWIW, the cost of buying and learning a new program will probably cost a lot
more than upgrading - as will rolling back to an old os on one or more
computers.

--
Diane Poremsky [MVP - Outlook]
Author, Teach Yourself Outlook 2003 in 24 Hours
Coauthor, OneNote 2003 for Windows (Visual QuickStart Guide)
Author, Google and Other Search Engines (Visual QuickStart Guide)

Outlook Tips: http://www.outlook-tips.net/
Outlook & Exchange Solutions Center: http://www.slipstick.com
Join OneNote Tips mailing list: http://www.onenote-tips.net/


"mary" anon wrote in message ...
Does anyone know of a reliable company that makes a voice/fax phone
answering system for a small company? Thought Communications, the maker of
FaxTalk, just informed us that Windows Service & Release Patch 2 has
rendered their software useless. They say our only option is to upgrade to
their newest version. (I hope that Shell or Exxon doesn't change the gas
formula that these people use to power their Mercedes).

Well that's a thought. We just downloaded SP 2 to 8 machines here. Maybe I'm
wrong but I thought most software companies issued patches when MS did if
the MS patch caused problems.
"Diane Poremsky [MVP]" wrote in message
...
Then why not just keep a machine running an older OS running if you are
unwilling to upgrade?

FWIW, the cost of buying and learning a new program will probably cost a
lot more than upgrading - as will rolling back to an old os on one or more
computers.

--
Diane Poremsky [MVP - Outlook]
Author, Teach Yourself Outlook 2003 in 24 Hours
Coauthor, OneNote 2003 for Windows (Visual QuickStart Guide)
Author, Google and Other Search Engines (Visual QuickStart Guide)

Outlook Tips: http://www.outlook-tips.net/
Outlook & Exchange Solutions Center: http://www.slipstick.com
Join OneNote Tips mailing list: http://www.onenote-tips.net/


"mary" anon wrote in message
...
Does anyone know of a reliable company that makes a voice/fax phone
answering system for a small company? Thought Communications, the maker
of FaxTalk, just informed us that Windows Service & Release Patch 2 has
rendered their software useless. They say our only option is to upgrade
to their newest version. (I hope that Shell or Exxon doesn't change the
gas formula that these people use to power their Mercedes).

It depends on the age of the software - small companies often can't afford
to provide patches older versions of their software. They need to make major
changes to the code then test and retest it and the cost in man hours is
often high. If there are problems with the newest version, then yes, they
will release fixes... but it could take them 6 months or more after they
learned of problems with SP2 to release a patch to fix the older version.

From their support page:
Support for FaxTalk products is provided for 6 months after the release of
the next major version

It looks like v7 was released in July 2004 and the 6 month period is
approaching.

--
Diane Poremsky [MVP - Outlook]
Author, Teach Yourself Outlook 2003 in 24 Hours
Coauthor, OneNote 2003 for Windows (Visual QuickStart Guide)
Author, Google and Other Search Engines (Visual QuickStart Guide)

Outlook Tips: http://www.outlook-tips.net/
Outlook & Exchange Solutions Center: http://www.slipstick.com
Join OneNote Tips mailing list: http://www.onenote-tips.net/


"mary" anon wrote in message
...
Well that's a thought. We just downloaded SP 2 to 8 machines here. Maybe
I'm wrong but I thought most software companies issued patches when MS did
if the MS patch caused problems.

After our experience, my boss won't buy from them agaim. Maybe that is
unfair but he was left with a very bad taste in his mouth.

"Diane Poremsky [MVP]" wrote in message
...
It depends on the age of the software - small companies often can't afford
to provide patches older versions of their software. They need to make
major changes to the code then test and retest it and the cost in man
hours is often high. If there are problems with the newest version, then
yes, they will release fixes... but it could take them 6 months or more
after they learned of problems with SP2 to release a patch to fix the
older version.

From their support page:
Support for FaxTalk products is provided for 6 months after the release of
the next major version

It looks like v7 was released in July 2004 and the 6 month period is
approaching.

--
Diane Poremsky [MVP - Outlook]
Author, Teach Yourself Outlook 2003 in 24 Hours
Coauthor, OneNote 2003 for Windows (Visual QuickStart Guide)
Author, Google and Other Search Engines (Visual QuickStart Guide)

Outlook Tips: http://www.outlook-tips.net/
Outlook & Exchange Solutions Center: http://www.slipstick.com
Join OneNote Tips mailing list: http://www.onenote-tips.net/


"mary" anon wrote in message
...
Well that's a thought. We just downloaded SP 2 to 8 machines here. Maybe
I'm wrong but I thought most software companies issued patches when MS
did if the MS patch caused problems.