ARCHIVED: In MacTCP, what's the difference between the Ethernet and EtherTalk options, and which should I choose?

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At Indiana University, unless told otherwise, when configuring MacTCP for your networked Macintosh, always click Ethernet instead of EtherTalk.

MacTCP allows an older Macintosh computer to establish a TCP/IP connection to the network, which is required to use programs like Netscape Navigator, telnet, Fetch, and Eudora. EtherTalk is Apple's implementation of AppleTalk over Ethernet. What this means is that when you select the EtherTalk option in MacTCP, calls to and from your TCP/IP dependent applications are first encapsulated within AppleTalk before being sent onto the network. When you have Ethernet selected in MacTCP, calls from your applications are not so encapsulated, but are instead sent as TCP/IP packets. TCP/IP is standard across Internet applications and is faster than AppleTalk. For this reason, Ethernet is a better and faster means of connecting than EtherTalk.

Note: AppleTalk and IPX routing are no longer available on the Indiana University network.