ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Dynamic Alternative Routing

Okay, so imagine you are walking to school and the usual route you take is blocked by a big tree that fell down in the wind. You can't go that way anymore! What do you do now?

Dynamic alternative routing is a computer thing that helps figure out the best way for information to travel from one place to another when the usual route is not available. Just like how you might need to find a different way to school if the tree is blocking your usual route.

Let's say you are trying to send an email from your computer to your friend's computer on the other side of the world. Normally, the email would go through a certain route or path to get there, like going through a specific internet service provider (ISP). But if something happens to that route, like a technical problem, there needs to be another way for the email to get to your friend's computer, right?

That's where dynamic alternative routing comes in. It's like having a backup plan. When the usual route is not working, the computer can use a different path to get the email to your friend's computer. The computer can figure out the best path based on things like how fast the path is and how much data it can handle.

So instead of being stuck with no way to send the email, the computer can find a new way to get it to your friend's computer. Just like how you can find a new way to get to school when your usual route is blocked.

Overall, dynamic alternative routing is a helpful computer thing that makes sure information can still travel from one place to another even if the usual path is blocked for some reason.