With STREAMS, you can manipulate modules from the user application level, interchange modules with common service interfaces, and change the service interface to a STREAMS user process. These capabilities yield further benefits when working with networking services and protocols:
User-level programs can be independent of underlying protocols and physical communication media.
Network architectures and higher-level protocols can be independent of underlying protocols, drivers, and physical communication media.
Higher-level services can be created by selecting and connecting lower-level services and protocols.
The following examples show the benefits of STREAMS capabilities for creating service interfaces and manipulating modules. These examples are only illustrations and do not necessarily reflect real situations.