A UK company secretary once berated her facilities manager after an urgent fax. Failed to send, only to discover the. Device she had been using was actually a photocopier with a numeric keypad. According to a story published in The. Register's On Call column on Friday 28 August 2026. The reader, identified only as "Orson," said the mix-up happened years ago. When he served as a facilities manager at a major UK food company. And the workplace still relied on paper-based urgency. This guide covers Exec couldn’t identify a photocopier. Which made for a fax-inating tech support call in detail. This guide covers Exec couldn’t identify a photocopier. Which made for a fax-inating tech support call in detail.
Exec couldn’t identify a photocopier, which made for a fax-inating tech support call:. How Did a Photocopier Get Mistaken for a Fax Machine?
Orson told The Register that the company secretary had summoned him one morning, frustrated. That an urgent fax the previous night had not been transmitted. When he asked her to walk through her actions, she placed a document. On the in-tray, used the keypad to dial a number. And hit Enter on what she believed was a fax machine. Orson informed her that she was actually trying to send a fax from. A photocopier, The Register reported.
The confusion was not entirely unreasonable given the era. Multifunction printers (MFPs) had combined scanning, printing, copying, and faxing into a single appliance. And many models shared similar control panels, often dominated by a 0-9 numeric. Keypad used to dial phone numbers. The Register's Simon Sharwood noted that fax machines originally packed a low-resolution scanner, a thermal-style printer. And a slow modem into one box, and. That manufacturers kept fax functions in MFPs long after email replaced fax in. Most Western offices during the late 1990s.
Why Does This Tech Support Story Still Matter?
The anecdote is part of a long-running On Call series at The Register in. Which IT professionals share real war stories, often highlighting how user error, organisational culture. And ambiguous hardware design collide. Similar tales, such as a previously covered On Call episode in. Which a lawyer did not understand the difference between italicised and underlined text. Show how interfaces and workflows assumed by. Technical staff can baffle senior decision-makers.
For modern IT teams, the lesson is practical: device labelling, distinct workflows. And access controls can prevent well-meaning executives from accidentally dialling a phone line from a device. That has no modem inside. According to Orson's account, a clearly labelled function or a separate physical fax. Unit would have avoided the confrontation, the lost document. And the morning spent calming a frustrated director.
What This Means for Today's IT and Facilities Teams
The story is a reminder that "multifunction" is not the same as "intuitive," especially. When the user population spans generations of office equipment. Multifunction printers from vendors such as HP, Brother, Canon. And Epson still ship with fax-capable models in 2026. And IT departments configuring them need to decide whether to enable, disable, or. Hide the fax function based on whether. A real PSTN or VoIP fax line is connected. Disabling the fax dial pad in the admin console, applying a clear device profile. And adding a printed label. Such as "Photocopier — For faxing, use the device in Room 204" are simple mitigations. That cost nothing.
For readers supporting non-technical executives, the broader principle is. That hardware standardisation can save more time than any software rollout. Where a workplace still has both a standalone photocopier and a multifunction device, separating the devices physically, or assigning the Whether you are new to Exec couldn’t identify a photocopier, which made for a fax-inating tech support call or already experienced, the sections below have you covered.m to distinct staff groups, reduces the chance of a panicked 9 a.m. call about a fax that was never going to send.
What's Next for Office Hardware and On Call Stories
Fax use continues to decline in most Western enterprises, though industries such as healthcare, legal services. And government in countries like Japan and Germany still transmit documents via fax in significant volumes. Analysts at IDC and Quocirca have tracked this gradual phase-out in their annual. Print and MFP market reports, predicting. That cloud fax services such as eFax and HelloFax will continue absorbing residual. Demand even as standalone fax machines disappear from offices.
Meanwhile, The Register continues to invite readers to submit their own On Call stories. And the publication noted. That it no longer operates a fax machine to receive them. For anyone with a similar tale of an executive who could not tell. A photocopier from a fax, the On Call inbox remains open.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happened in the On Call story about the executive and the fax machine?
A UK company secretary tried to send an urgent fax. But was actually using a photocopier with a numeric keypad, according to a. Story published in The Register's On Call. Column on 28 August 2026.
Who wrote the On Call column about the photocopier fax mix-up?
Simon Sharwood, APAC Editor at The Register, wrote the column, and the story was contributed anonymously by a reader who identified himself only as "Orson."
Are fax machines still used in offices in 2026?
Standalone fax machines have largely been replaced by multifunction printers and cloud fax. Services, though some industries and countries. Including Japan, still use fax for certain documents.
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