Modern Modeming (was Re: Geek-only net)

Modems and faxes can be pretty spotty over VoIP - it depends largely on the carrier you are using and the CODEC involved. Not to mention how the 'net is behaving on that day. VoIP introduces delay into the line (regardless of whether a human ear notices it), which really plays hell with cheaper faxes. I've not tried a modem, but I imagine it doesn't help. Naturally the crappier your connection, or should Level3 be blowing goats that day (Like it was yesterday, grumble), the delay introduced can get up to a 1/4 second. The big one is lossy compression CODECs which can alter the tone of the blurbles being spat down the line. And since you don't really have any control over what CODEC Vonage, or other VoIP providers, are using between them and their PSTN gateways... you never really know what's going on. Thankfully echo isn't something you're likely to come across, since that is generated most often by handsets - and then made noticeable by the delay inherant to VoIP... but I suppose if your modem sucks...? Fax is not usually considered a "supported" medium over VoIP - T38 is a digital fax protocol and is what you're 'supposed' to use when doing this sort of thing. Smarter people than I came up with this one.