Patent US 6,963,634

A method for receiving data, utilizing an electronic-mail communication apparatus. The method includes receiving image data in a facsimile format via a telephone network and receiving electronic mail data, including one of image data and character code data, via a communication network. Whether the received electronic mail data is the image data or the character code is detected based upon data format information of the received data. The image data is converted into a printable image data by a converter, based upon a detection that the received data is the image data and the character code data is converted into the printable image data by a font section, based upon the detection that the received data is the character code data. The printable image data converted by one of the converter and the front section is output.