Final answer:
In RIP, the metric, which is the hop count, is incremented by one as a route is received by a router, and this updated metric is then used when the route is advertised to other routers.
Step-by-step explanation:
In the Routing Information Protocol (RIP), the metric is incremented by one when a router receives a route. This updated metric is then used when the route information is advertised to other routers. RIP uses hop count as its metric, which is the number of routers that packets must pass through to reach a destination network. The metric is increased before it is advertised to reflect the distance to the destination network from the perspective of the router that has just received the routing information. This increase in the metric is essential for preventing routing loops and for ensuring that the path cost is accurately represented in the network topology.