What happens to the buffer when the network connection is interrupted during streaming?

What happens to the buffer when the network connection is interrupted during streaming?

• A. The buffer continues to play without interruption
• B. The buffer fills up and continues without pausing
• C. The buffer doubles in size
• D. The buffer empties and begins buffering to catch up

Answer: (D)

Buffering smooths playback by storing ahead of what’s being watched or listened to. When the network connection is interrupted, no new data arrives while playback continues from the data already in the buffer. That means the buffer is slowly drained and eventually empties because there’s nothing new coming in to replenish it. When the connection returns, the player can’t jump straight to live — it has to refill the buffer first, so it pauses briefly to catch up by buffering again. So the situation described is that the buffer empties and begins buffering to catch up. The other ideas assume data keeps flowing or that the buffer grows automatically, which isn’t the case during an interruption.

Buffering smooths playback by storing ahead of what’s being watched or listened to. When the network connection is interrupted, no new data arrives while playback continues from the data already in the buffer. That means the buffer is slowly drained and eventually empties because there’s nothing new coming in to replenish it. When the connection returns, the player can’t jump straight to live — it has to refill the buffer first, so it pauses briefly to catch up by buffering again. So the situation described is that the buffer empties and begins buffering to catch up. The other ideas assume data keeps flowing or that the buffer grows automatically, which isn’t the case during an interruption.