SynapseDirect

Efax-gtk is a free fax application available on sourceforge.  It has a socket interface which means that to Synapse it can appear as a printer.

Synapse-linux R213B41.8 adds a "Local Efax" button on the fax applet.  This sends the current document to 127.0.0.1:9900 where efax-gtk should be listening when active.  This then results in a efax-gtk requester asking for the telephone number.  You can then ask for the document to be faxed immediately or added to the queue.

On Ubuntu, you can install efax-gtk simply by

sudo apt-get install efax-gtk

It can then be started from the Applications/Office/Efax-gtk menu.  It will also then appear in the system tray at the top right - as a fax/phone icon.

To use efax-gtk, you will of course need a fax modem attached, preferably on ttys0.

To configure it, use the File/Settings menu, and make sure that you enable the socket server on the "Socket" tab.

Graham:

Efax-gtk is a free fax application available on sourceforge.  It has a socket interface which means that to Synapse it can appear as a printer.

Synapse-linux R213B41.8 adds a "Local Efax" button on the fax applet.  This sends the current document to 127.0.0.1:9900 where efax-gtk should be listening when active.  This then results in a efax-gtk requester asking for the telephone number.  You can then ask for the document to be faxed immediately or added to the queue.

On Ubuntu, you can install efax-gtk simply by

sudo apt-get install efax-gtk

It can then be started from the Applications/Office/Efax-gtk menu.  It will also then appear in the system tray at the top right - as a fax/phone icon.

To use efax-gtk, you will of course need a fax modem attached, preferably on ttys0.

To configure it, use the File/Settings menu, and make sure that you enable the socket server on the "Socket" tab.

 

 

This is super way cool!! Ok, admittedly that's 2 superlatives....but, I have been using efax-gtk for a few years, and find it very stable and easy to use.  A user can send socket output to it (say, from a word processor) or ps/pdf files.  Graham has made it even better for synapse users by being able to send output to it directly from synapse without having to go through a secondary printing interface at all.

Some things to note:

--efax-gtk receives and stores files in tiffG3 format (same as on Windows), but accepts input in postscript or pdf.

--it has a good set of configuration tabs to explore

--efax-gtk has it's own address/phone book and allows the user to make extended comments about each file in it's internal file browser.

--you can configure which viewer to use as default... gv works well, but you could use ImageMagick, GIMP, or other editors so that you could make file annotations and save them for re-faxing.
 

Just a quick progress report on efax-gtk.  I'm using it with synapse-linux on Puppy Linux 3.0.1 at urgent care, and it's working great for me.  Very reliable, fast, and everyone is happy with it.  I have very few dropped or "we didn't get that" reports from the pharmacies around here.  Since efax-gtk saves all incoming and outgoing faxes in it's own folders, they don't have to be printed from or managed from the /www folder either, although one can do both if desirable.

Even my staunchest "that EMR stuff is just too slow" critics from urgent care are happy with synapse-linux and efax-gtk prescription faxing....now that's saying something! 

Jerry, that's good feedback, and the thin edge of the wedge

Shouldn't the efax fax log show whether it was transmitted correctly or not?? ie. the pharmacy has just misplaced the Rx. 

Which reminds me ... I have yet to create the server copies for faxes.

jparkdo:

Even my staunchest "that EMR stuff is just too slow" critics from urgent care are happy with synapse-linux and efax-gtk prescription faxing....now that's saying something! 

Graham:

Jerry, that's good feedback, and the thin edge of the wedge

Shouldn't the efax fax log show whether it was transmitted correctly or not?? ie. the pharmacy has just misplaced the Rx. 

Which reminds me ... I have yet to create the server copies for faxes.

 

The Synapse FaxLog doesn't show any Incomplete or Completed faxes at all when using efax-gtk on Puppy Linux 3.0.1...is this a bug?  efax-gtk is very chatty in it's console window, so it's very apparent what's happening with a fax at any particular stage.  It retains a postscript fax in que, even if synapse-linux is prematurely closed or crashes for some reason (the only freezing I have had was when moving new meds to old as discussed in other posts).

I did have some problems with a bit older version of efax in another EMR.  Pharmacies would complain occasionally that they received nothing, even if the EMR showed the fax was sent.
 

The Synapse faxlog is for our internet based fax service.