A Pragmatic^* Introduction to Signal Processing

Interactive Signal Processing Tools for Matlab

Spreadsheets for Measurement Calibration

Python: a free and fast alternative

Areas of application where these programs are being applied  (PDF file)

Citations in published papers  (PDF file) 

Afterword

---

Software used in this essay

Matlab, a high-performance commercial numerical computing environment and programming language that is widely used in research and education. For Windows, Macintosh, and Linux.  Lower-cost Home and Student versions available.

---

Octave, a freely downloadable alternative to Matlab, mostly compatible. For Windows, Macintosh, and Linux.

Python, a fast and free general purpose language for Windows, Unix, and Macintosh.

   

Microsoft Excel 2013                    OpenOffice Calc 4.1.1

---

Acknowledgements
Thanks to M. Farooq Wahab for his many contributions and for many fruitful discussions, to Baldassarre Cesarano for his close reading and typographical correction of this text, to Dr. Raphael Attie of NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center for corrections, to Diederick of The University of Hong Kong for code contributions, to Yuri Kalambet of Ampersand, Ltd., and to the many email correspondents who have made suggestions, asked questions, caught errors, and have shown me new types of data and new applications that have broadened the scope of this work.

Unsolicited Comments from Users (verbatim excerpts from emails):

"... It's by far the best document I've found about signal processing online."

" It is the best source in the entire internet ... on peak related techniques and analysis. "

"...the most understandable documentation I've ever encountered!"

"It is as good as, if not better than, any similar books available in the market".

"...a clear, organized, accessible, and intuitive resource...."

"I ... have never seen before (I have years of experience in this field) such a complete approach towards tackling almost all the analysis problems from scratch...."

"...the most extensive set of tools I've ever found for curve fitting and signal processing!"

"I'm amazed by the thoroughness of not just the explanations, but also the codes and documentation within."

"It's simply phenomenal! "

"I appreciate the fact that your approach is 'applied' and does not resort to complex mathematics where not needed"

"...your website resource was able to teach me everything I needed to know in a really practical and easy to understand way within a few days and apply it to my ... work (which is incredible!!). "

"I found your tutorials and explanations among the easiest to understand in this complex field"

"...a goldmine."

"...wonderful and user-friendly...."

"...your work was a godsend."

"... surely the way into heaven is to post excellent software online for others to use to do science."

"I am a great admirer of your excellent work. Your unparalleled contribution to signal processing helped me to understand the nuances of signal processing."

"Without your help ...we'd still be slogging through the data...."

"...many thanks for sharing your brilliant book on the web. I have found it of tremendous value...."

"it inspires me to make my own contribution to science and education."

"I wanted to extend my gratitude for the quality of the guidance and education you provide. I am a professional analytical chemist, and your site has kept me well versed and knowledgeable...."

"I ... am very impressed with the clarity of the presentation."

"I like your writing style because it's clear and concise, and your prose flows so smoothly."

"The signal processing topics you cover are so wonderfully practical...truly impressive."

"... truly one of best practical description I have ever seen."

"...thank you for this valuable treasure."

"Thank you very much for making such an extensive collection of most valuable material available to the public !!! Your service to the public (that part that recognizes its value) is highly appreciated."

"...brilliant work...."

" ...thank you for your amazing online book...."

"I liked the way everything is setup and explained."

"...I think it's the best explanation I've ever seen."

"...thank you for the immense role your book has played in my perusal of research...."

"...really incredible work!"

"... a really excellent website...."

"It is a great overview"

"...a very valuable service to our profession!"

"...an extraordinary labor of love and a gift to many, many people!"

"...I'm astonished by your work."

"I have learned a LOT"

"This is...a teaching paradise...really priceless."

"What you do makes the world better!"

"...way, way more than I could have hoped for..."

"...fabulous work ... clear explanations....I will definitely recommend your website!"

"Your website has been immensely helpful in allowing us to analyze [our] results."

"I found your explanation....very simple and clear. "

"...high quality information, explanations and codes!"

"...excellent documentation and coding...."

"I was really surprised by the efficiency of your explanations ..."highly realistic and pragmatic."

"The sequence of the topics and the explanations are very clear."

"I found your curve fitting website and it is awesome...."

"...such an enormous amount of knowledge and applied code! It is an enormous help for analysing my data."

"...an excellent source of information for a subject that I have only encountered scattered books."

"Love your web pages.... MANY thanks for all the effort, hard work and time -- not to mention the clarity."

"This site is tremendous...."

"...[an] indispensable tool...."

"...your fantastic article...has helped me a lot"

"...it is an absolutely fantastic teaching resource."

"...your website...represents a wonderful job...."

"...thank you profusely .... your website has been extremely helpful."

"...after days of trying and failing...your site was able to solve my problem in half an hour."

"I have no words to describe how helpful this is to me ... explaining what they do and how they can be used; on top the examples make it even better."

"...great website!"

"...thank you for taking the time to create these incredible tools."

"I am grateful and overwhelmed by your kindness in sharing your hard work with us"

"I am really impressed with the extensive package you have put together - I am finding it very helpful.

"This is a great website..."

"...really an excellent source of information..."

"...you saved my time a lot."

"Your effort to produce and maintain this site is GREATLY appreciated."

"Your online resource for "signal processing" is fantastic!"

"I stumbled upon the wonderful world you've created in the area of Signal Processing..."

" I found your essay to be extremely helpful."

"...such useful tools and educational materials!"

"...your webpage about signal processing ... was very helpful to me."

"...great material on the subject."

"...very much helping and informative."

"Wonderful site. I have already added it to my favorites."

"Your web pages are a fantastic resource."

"...your signal processing website, book, and Matlab codes ... embodied the solution I was searching for."

" I cannot wait to start class and utilize the marvelous tool that you have provided for us."

"Without your website, I wouldn't know what to do."

" ... a splendid program."

"I find your work on Signal Processing extremely helpful...."

"...easy to use and understand..."

"...thank you for this amazing work."

"...saved me many hours of work...."

"...your ... book and software ... [are] ... helpful and thorough."

"I am so thankful for your website...It has helped me significantly...."

"Thank you so much for this wonderful teaching tool! "

"it really helped me."

"...the tutorials on your website have been of tremendous help to me."

"I find your Introduction an excellent starting point."

"Thanks for your amazing contribution."

"Thank you for sharing your excellent work...."

"...wonderful tutorial on peak fitting."

"I recently found your website and I'm really impressed, great work! "

"Thank you for your time and the wonderful material (software and text) you have put up on your website."

"Your lessons on signal processing are really useful and intriguing...."

"I have no words to describe how excited I am and how thankful I am about your work."

"I found your ... website extremely helpful."

"I found your signal processing pages ... very helpful!"

"I loved your article on smoothing."

"...really clear and concise."

" ... very useful for teaching in an Instrumentation course for M.Sc postgraduates in analytical chemistry.

"[Y]our web site has such excellent content...."

"I tried the demo version of SPECTRUM and I think is a very useful tool for the introduction of signal processing to analytical chemistry students."

"Your work is very helpful to my research."

"Your contributions about sig. proc. are very impressive."

"...your site...has some very valuable information relevant to the projects I'm currently working on."

"...really nice tutorial and Matlab functions that are extremely useful in many fields of research."

"Very generous of you to make so much useful material freely available."

"I found your website very informative."

"Thank you, Tom, for being a great citizen of MATLAB Central and the File Exchange! You are what makes this community thrive." (http://blogs.mathworks.com/pick/2016/09/09/most-activeinteractive-file-exchange-entry/)

"Thanks again for your generous contributions to the scientific and engineering community....your work is greatly appreciated and will continue to benefit us for years to come."  MathWorks, Inc.