Understanding packets

Those of you with at least a basic knowledge of network transmission know that the information exists as the result of data being broken down into very small measurable chunks, called packets, for easier transmission over the internet. That way, if there is a hiccup of some sort on the internet, only that tiny portion of the total data stream needs to be re-sent, and only if it’s sent with the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), which is a protocol that requires the recipient to attempt to reassemble the data in order.

The User Datagram Protocol (UDP) – the default protocol for live streaming – does not require the data to be reassembled in order so that the data can reach its destination in as close to real time from the sender as possible. That’s why sometimes, you’ll see a brief glitch when watching a video. That glitch is from the UDP simply dropping and forgetting the packets with the idea that it’s too late,...