I'm greatly indebted to a number of persons, without whose support this thesis would not have come into existence.
First of all I want to thank my supervisor and advisor, Nahid Shahmehri. Thanks go to her on many accounts, for talking me into post-graduate studies in the first place, and for coaching, guiding, encouraging, and (occasionally) coercing me into producing this thesis. Thank you!
Thanks go also to all, past and present, members of IISLAB who have helped in creating the friendly atmosphere that makes work so much easier.
I'm very grateful for the valuable comments given by Viiveke Fåk and Patrick Lambrix after having read drafts of the thesis. Thank you!
Of course, incalculable gratitude goes to Camilla, for being there.
The financial support from NUTEK (the Swedish National Board for Industrial and Technical Development), Strategiska Forskningsstiftelsen (the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research), and ECSEL (Excellence Center in Computer Science and Systems Engineering in Linköping) is gratefully acknowledged.