.IR "packet buffer" .
Given unpredictably-sized chunks of data, the packet buffer extracts
completed packets of data, with sizes ascertained by a handler
-function.
+function.
.PP
The state of a packet buffer is stored in an object of type
.BR pkbuf .
and
.IR pkbuf_flush .
.PP
-The
+The
.B pkbuf_free
function returns the address and size of a free portion of the packet
buffer's memory into which data may be written. The function is passed
-the address
+the address
.I pk
of the packet buffer. Its result is the size of the free area, and it
writes the base address of this free space to the location pointed to by
itself from its data source.
.PP
Rather than invent some complex interface for this, the packet buffer
-exports one of its structure members,
-.BR flags .
+exports one of its structure members, a flags words called
+.BR f .
A higher-level object wishing to disable the packet buffer simply clears
the bit
.B PKBUF_ENABLE
-in the flags word.
+in this flags word.
.PP
Disabling a buffer causes an immediate return from
.BR pkbuf_flush .