The key to enabling multiple users to communicate over a network simultaneously is the use of information packets. Information sent over a packet-switched network is broken into tiny pieces and stamped with an origination and destination address. The packets are then sent over the network to the destination. Since each packet is addressed, it is not necessary to establish and maintain a constant open connection to the destination while the information is in transit. Instead, information from multiple sources can be allowed to stream simultaneously while network hardware reads the addresses on each packet and relays the packets to their intended destination.