system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
How do the communicators on Star Trek work?

This has bugged me for a while, but let's say Picard needs to contact Riker, he taps his communicator says "Bridge to Number One" or "Picard to Riker" or whatever, and he's now on a one way call with Riker. But how does the communicator know to go to Riker before Picard says "to Riker"? 

I may be answering my own question with this, but my hypothesis is that the communicators are hooked up to the computer system. The voice command "to Riker" prompts the computer to send a recording of the last thing said to Riker, which then opens a live two way communication with Picard.

Am I close, way off, or what? How does that work?
gpt
> the communicators are hooked up to the computer system.

That's pretty much it.  The computer is smart enough that when you're on the ship, you don't even have to tap your comm—It can just tell by your tone.