What happens when using the merge operation to combine two data streams?

The merge operation in the context of data streams (e.g., RxJava or Kotlin Flow) combines multiple streams into one, with elements from all source streams being passed to the resulting stream as they appear.

Features:

• Elements from all streams are mixed in a single stream without time ordering.
• If one of the streams completes, merge continues working with the remaining streams.
• The resulting stream completes when all source streams are finished.

Example in Kotlin Flow:

val flow1 = flowOf(1, 2, 3).onEach { delay(100) }
val flow2 = flowOf(4, 5, 6).onEach { delay(150) }

val mergedFlow = merge(flow1, flow2)

mergedFlow.collect { value ->
    println(value)
}

In this example, values from the two streams will be output as they appear, without strict order.