ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Berkeley sockets

Okay kiddo, so let's talk about something called Berkeley Sockets.

You know how you can talk to your friends on the phone or send them messages on your tablet? Well, computers also need a way to communicate with each other so they can do things like share files and send messages.

Berkeley Sockets is actually just a way for computer programs to talk to each other over the internet. Think of it like a special type of phone that computers use to talk to each other.

When a computer program wants to use Berkeley Sockets, it's kind of like picking up the phone and dialing a number. The program has to ask the operating system on the computer to open up a special connection called a "socket".

Once the connection is made, the program can send and receive messages to other programs over the internet. It's like passing notes back and forth, but really really fast.

So, in short, Berkeley Sockets is a way for computer programs to talk to each other over the internet, much like how you talk to your friends on the phone or send them messages on your tablet.