This article provides a brief overview of FreePPP, MacPPP, and OT/PPP.

This information was provided by Claris Corporation on 16 March 1998, and incorporated into Apple Computer's Tech Info Library.

If you use a dial-up connection to the Internet, you'll also need to install an implementation of PPP. As SLIP (Serial Line Protocol) has more or less gone the way of the dinosaur, PPP has taken over. You can use FreePPP or MacPPP with MacTCP or FreePPP or OT/PPP with Open Transport (OT/PPP can only be used with Open Transport).

There is no hard and fast rule about which protocol you should use with which Macintosh or even which networking architecture. If your Macintosh uses a PowerPC processor (four-digit model numbers), OT/PPP may provide a faster connection because it's native, which means it takes advantage of the faster processor. If your Macintosh is a 68K processor, FreePPP and MacPPP might have the edge because they're already running in 68k mode, whereas the native OT/PPP has to run in emulation (which means it's pretending to be written for a 68k Mac) on non-Power Macs.

Setting aside performance benefits, FreePPP does have the edge on user interface, allowing you to monitor connection activity and connect or disconnect by using a menu that's always on the menu bar. FreePPP also makes it easy to write your own modem scripts and adjust your port speed- the speed at which your modem connects. However, if you don't usually tinker with these variables, OT/PPP should suit you just fine.

You can always install both FreePPP and OT/PPP to test which you like better, using the TCP/IP control panel to switch between the two. Of course, remember that you can't switch protocols during an open connection.