Using a fax machine

Nowadays, when you want to send a file to someone who is physically away from you, you can simply attach it to your email and send it to them. But how was it done before computers became commonplace?

The fax machine was used to transmit scanned printed material from one place to another, over telephone lines. A fax machine could copy a document and send it to another phone contact. 

If someone sent a fax to you, your fax machine would start printing the scanned document that was sent to you.