The closer the holidays come, the more likely people are to engage in a little last-minute shopping. Of course, that makes the retailer and shops suddenly stock up on all their products, with a special emphasis on the more popular products. The Christmas rush often means a lot of stress is being placed on the ability of retailers to get supplies, but also a lot of pressure on the suppliers to be able to distribute and ship their products to the retailers that need them. In most cases, this involves a lot of groundwork and cargo transporting, which means that both manufacturers and suppliers are going to need a good way to keep track of everything that's been ordered, sent, received, and still in transit.

In some cases, these orders are for such huge quantities of any given item that tracking it all can become difficult. Not only does the size have to be accounted for, but also how many individual copies of said item are present. There are also the details of how many are supposed to be dropped off to a specific location and at what time perishable or time-sensitive items should be delivered before it becomes useless. This sort of information is typically included in the cargo manifests and delivery orders of trucks, cargo boats, and the like, but what if there are changes?

Another potential problem comes in keeping records straight. Too many mistakes can occur from just one slip-up on the cargo manifest being delivered. Wrongly delivered goods, incomplete shipments, and delayed transactions are just part of the potential havoc that a poor records system can cause for suppliers and manufacturers. In this regard, updated and accurate relaying of information is critical. Other things like potential problems with the delivery route and weather conditions would also be vital to deliveries and suppliers. In cases such as this, manufacturers and suppliers might decide to make use of something like Internet faxing.

With things like trucks and ships being easily outfitted with wireless Internet technology, it isn't that big of a stretch to imagine that they could receive Internet fax messages while in transit from one location to another. It could also be used as a means of up-to-date reporting on the progress of a delivery. For example, a FedEX truck is carrying several shipments of iPods to a variety of Circuit City and Best Buy locations. Through Internet faxing and wireless Internet capabilities in the truck, they can send updated reports to the head office of their progress, rather than the head office having to wait for confirmation to come in through the various local offices that FedEX has. This not only improves the reporting process, it also makes information for people checking on the status of their deliveries much more updated.

The only problem here would the issue of logistics. Installing wireless systems into every conceivable form of cargo carrying vehicle would be an immense undertaking at best, a foolhardy task worth billions at worst. Also, not all areas get wireless coverage, which can limit the prospects of using Internet fax as a means of field operatives communicating easily with the main office.