• There are still some uses for 56k modems.dial up modem image by timur1970 from Fotolia.com
  
  Over the years, broadband Internet connections have increased greatly in availability and decreased in price, inspiring many to give up their dial-up Internet connections and upgrade. If you have finally taken the plunge and had a high-speed Internet connection installed, you might be wondering if there is any reason to keep your 56k modem. In fact, depending on what you do with your computer, there may be several reasons not to throw your modem away for the time being.
  
  

Backup Internet connection

• For the average person, the primary reason to own a 56k modem is to use it as a backup Internet connection in case the primary Internet Service Provider experiences an outage. This is particularly true of anyone who uses the Internet for work or business. All Internet Service Providers are subject to occasional outages, and if your livelihood depends on reliable access to the Internet--day traders are a prominent example of this--having a 56k modem available can help you avoid taking a financial hit when the inevitable occurs.
  
  

Fax capability

• Although email has replaced fax technology for many applications, many companies continue to use fax machines to send and receive documents quickly. In a pinch, you can connect a 56k modem to a phone line and use your computer's built-in fax software to send a copy of a document to a company such as your bank or insurance provider. Some operating systems such as Windows XP even have the ability to receive faxes.
  
  

Remote access

• Some business use dial-up remote access servers to allow employees to access the network and their email remotely. Although the technology exists to provide remote access to a network over any Internet connection, businesses may choose to use a dial-up server for remote access because of security concerns or because server upgrade costs are too high. With dial-up remote access, you call the server at your business directly rather than establishing an Internet connection first. This can potentially increase the security of the connection.
  
  

Bulletin Board Systems (BBS)

• Before the World Wide Web became available to the public, computer users who wanted to communicate with others online, play games and download files largely used bulletin board systems to do so. Some dial-up bulletin board systems still exist in the United States and around the world, and using a dial-up modem to connect to one is the only way to truly experience what "getting online" meant to computer users of the '80s and early '90s.