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One of the conundrums for most new Mac users, be they emigres from the PC world, or new to computers entirely, is "How do I transfer files from one Mac to another?" No Macintosh models introduced since the first iMacs in 1998 have had floppy drives.

There are actually many ways to swap files between Macs: using an external media drive like the Zip , Jaz, Orb, SuperDrive, or yes, even a third party floppy drive; over a network; by e-mail; through an Internet transfer or storage Web site; or using SCSI Disk or Target Disk mode.

However, my favorite file transfer method is over a simple, 2-Mac network using an Ethernet crossover cable (also known as a "twisted Ethernet cable").. This is different from the standard Ethernet cable that probably came with your Mac, which is wired for a straight connection to a network hub. The crossover cable is wired to plug directly into the respective Ethernet ports of two Macs. Most computer stores or mail order resellers should be able to fix you up with one for $10 or less.

Networking two Macs is basically quite simple, so long as you avoid getting bogged down in security protocols, password protection, and the like. For the purpose of this tutorial, I'm going to keep it simple, and assume that there are no security issues involved in the sample file transfer we will be discussing.

Step 1 - Plug the crossover cable into the two Macs.

Step 2 - On the Mac that the files you want to transfer are located, start up AppleTalk if it's not already enabled. You can do this in the Chooser, by opening the AppleTalk Control Panel, or from the Control Strip. However, you might as well use the AppleTalk Control Panel (Apple Menu > Control Panels > AppleTalk), because you will need to check its little pull down menu to ensure that Ethernet is selected as the networking mode anyway.

Step 3 - Open the File Sharing Control Panel (Apple Menu > Control Panels > File Sharing) and first give the Mac a name in the Network Identity field that will appear in the Chooser of the other Mac (see Step 7). For simple, 2-Mac connections, I strongly recommend leaving the Owner Password field blank, and if you own both machines and make sure that the Owner Name is the same and has identical syntax in both setups. If a password has already been entered by the Mac OS Setup Assistant when you first configured your Mac, delete it.

Step 4 - Start File Sharing by clicking the Start button in the File Sharing Control Panel. This can take a minute or two to ramp up. It is up and running when the message says "File Sharing On."

Step 5 - On the Mac to which the files are to be transferred:

Open the AppleTalk Control Panel to make sure that Ethernet is selected, and that AppleTalk is turned on.

Step 6 - Open the File Sharing Control Panel on the second Mac and type in the same Owner Name that was used on the first Mac, if they are not already the same. Close the window (you do not have to start up File Sharing on this Mac).

Step 7 - Open the Chooser (in the Apple Menu) and select AppleShare from the left field of the window. The name of the first Mac should appear in the right field. Click on the name to highlight it and click OK. A dialog box should appear showing the volume or volumes of the other Mac. Select one(s) that you want to access, click the OK button, and the volumes should now appear on your desktop. (Note, normally, just highlight the desired volumes, but don't check the little check boxes, or your Mac will waste time looking for them at startup when the network is not connected.)

Step 8 - You will now be able to drag files back and forth between volumes on the remote Mac and host Mac.

Step 9 - When you are finished swapping files, I recommend that you turn off AppleTalk and File Sharing, as they slow down Finder performance when they are not needed. When you turn off AppleTalk, a dialog will appear asking you to confirm that AppleTalk network has been disconnected. Actually, there is no need to do anything about this and other than to click the OK button. I leave my two Macs physically connected via the Ethernet crossover cable all the time, and just turn AppleTalk off.

That's really all there is to setting up a simple, 2-Mac, Ethernet network. However, networking can be a lot more complicated once security issues enter the picture. But that's beyond the scope of this tutorial.