The design of communication systems has grown too complicated for the traditional design tools—mathematical analysis and laboratory breadboards. Enter the computer simulation, a powerful and versatile tool that is becoming essential for anyone who designs signal transmission or storage systems.

This volume explains in detail how to use simulation programs as a software breadboard to analyze and evaluate the performance of data communications links. It describes the engineering principles of signal transmission and its simulation, explores programming issues, and provides a comprehensive reference for models of signal processes.

The book clearly demonstrates how simulation techniques can be used to:
* Create valid models of signal processes
* Provide exibility through the use of modules
* Simulate various elements of communications systems, from filters and modulators to test instruments
* Explore alternative models for a given system
* Circumvent the mathematical intractability of modern transmission links
* Plan and construct a computer model in a matter of hours or days, versus the weeks or months needed for laboratory breadboards
* Make parameter changes in minutes once a link has been modeled
* Provide engineers and students with complete training on the elements of simulation