{"id":1099,"date":"2011-03-13T14:21:36","date_gmt":"2011-03-13T14:21:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/insidejapanblog.com\/?p=1099"},"modified":"2020-01-29T14:34:10","modified_gmt":"2020-01-29T14:34:10","slug":"fax-to-the-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/2011\/03\/13\/fax-to-the-future\/","title":{"rendered":"Fax to the Future"},"content":{"rendered":"<h4>Like this post? Help us by sharing it!<\/h4><ul class=\"wpfai-list\"><li class=\"wpfai-list-item facebook\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F1099&amp;t=\" title=\"Facebook\" class=\"wpfai-facebook wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-facebook fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item twitter\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/share?text=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F1099\" title=\"Twitter\" class=\"wpfai-twitter wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-twitter fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item pinterest\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/pinterest.com\/pin\/create\/button\/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F1099&amp;description=&amp;media=\" title=\"Pinterest\" class=\"wpfai-pinterest wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-pinterest fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item linkedin\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/linkedin.com\/shareArticle?mini=true&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F1099&amp;title=\" title=\"Linked In\" class=\"wpfai-linkedin wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-linkedin fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item envelope\">\r\n      <a href=\"mailto:?subject=&amp;body=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F1099%20-%20\" title=\"E-Mail\" class=\"wpfai-envelope wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-envelope fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item stumbleupon\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.stumbleupon.com\/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F1099\" title=\"Stumble Upon\" class=\"wpfai-stumbleupon wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-stumbleupon fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item reddit\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.reddit.com\/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F1099\" title=\"Reddit\" class=\"wpfai-reddit wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-reddit fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><\/ul><p>There is no doubt that Japan can be a futuristic wonderland: networked toilets that can analyse your offerings and report anomalies to your doctor, electric charge generators used to instantly age wine and karaoke damage limitation devices that can automatically add harmonies to your crooning and, as is the case when I sing, are bold enough to take your part altogether when things get too off key.<\/p>\n<p>But at the same time Japan seems to be home to some of the\u00a0First World\u2019s most outmoded contrivances. The fax machine is still very much alive in Japan. Indeed, it has an almost venerable status: many a transaction is unconcluded, no matter what was agreed in person or through email, until the fax machine\u2019s issue is received.<\/p>\n<p>On the phone to a hotel recently I was told that I would have to fax my booking to them. \u201cBut I\u2019m speaking to you now, you have your bookings book open in front of you and can easily add me to it\u201d I said. \u201cSorry\u201d came the reply, \u201cNo fax, no booking\u201d. \u201cWhat about I send you an email?\u201d I countered \u201cSorry, fax only\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This left me in an awkward situation as I don\u2019t have any fax machine, much less one that I carry with me on the Tokyo metro. So I called a friend and asked him to send the fax for me. \u201cYou\u2019re in luck\u201d, he said. \u201cI\u2019ve just bought a fax machine as I was asked to do something similar the other day\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>His story was even more absurd. He was required to send his company\u2019s lawyer a fax with his new address and passport details. He called the lawyer and explained that he didn\u2019t have a fax machine and that she already had his details on computer. She informed him that a fax with his details was nonetheless essential. He bought a machine and sent his first ever fax.<\/p>\n<p>Minutes later he called her. \u201cSorry, I made a mistake. I faxed through the wrong side of the paper, I\u2019ll send you the correct side now\u201d. \u201cAh\u201d she replied \u201cthat\u2019s why it was blank. But don\u2019t bother sending another, I just need a fax from you [blank, or otherwise], which I\u2019ve now got, and I can just look-up your details on the computer\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Within the InsideJapan Tours offices the beeping and whining of the fax machines competes with the staccato tattoo of the dot matrix printer. Another antiquated device which was sourced from the 1970s and is the only machine capable of printing the Japan Railpass vouchers; which are needed in quadripartite copy.<\/p>\n<p>Other devices living a blithe existence in Japan, unaware that elsewhere in the world their time is up:<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1105\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1105\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/abacus.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1105\" title=\"Abacus\" src=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/abacus.png?w=300\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"212\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/abacus.png 1274w, https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/abacus-300x212.png 300w, https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/abacus-1024x724.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/abacus-1200x849.png 1200w, https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/abacus-720x509.png 720w, https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/abacus-390x276.png 390w, https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/abacus-780x552.png 780w, https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/abacus-900x636.png 900w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1105\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Abacus: with the price of electronic calculators still astronomically high why not conduct transactions using the convenient and reassuringly transparent bean machine?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1108\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1108\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/hanko.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1108\" title=\"Hanko\" src=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/hanko.jpg?w=300\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"199\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/hanko.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/hanko-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/hanko-390x260.jpg 390w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1108\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Name Stamp: with the Japanese literacy rate as low as 99% why wouldn\u2019t all Japanese carry stamps to enable them to mark their name?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1109\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1109\" style=\"width: 170px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/laserdisk.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1109\" title=\"LaserDisk\" src=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/laserdisk.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"191\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1109\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">LaserDisc: the format DVD could have been. Production in Japan only ceased end of 2001, still in use in Japan.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h4>Like this post? 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Help us by sharing it! There is no doubt that Japan can be a futuristic wonderland: networked toilets that can analyse your offerings and report anomalies to your doctor, electric charge generators used to instantly age wine and karaoke damage limitation devices that can automatically add harmonies to your crooning and, as [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2368],"tags":[2531],"class_list":["post-1099","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-only-in-japan","tag-liam-chawdhary"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1099","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1099"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1099\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9198,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1099\/revisions\/9198"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1099"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1099"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1099"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}