Probability, Random Signals, and Statistics

Rating:
Summary: Not recommended for beginners
Review: I am afraid I can't wholly recommend this text for people taking a first look at probabilities, especially if they are studying independently. The major problem is Li's lack of clarity and explanation. He just seems unnecessarily confusing and abstract. He does state essential points right up front, but not enough attempt is made to provide intuitive or common-sense explanations. Examples are mostly derivations of special cases. More useful examples are provided at the end of chapters, but they would be better if integrated with the text. Readers experienced with the subject might appreciate Dr. Li's terseness, but for beginners I would more highly recommend "The Probability Tutoring Book" by Ash.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent text for probability theory
Review: I picked up this book as a reference book to complement the probability intro book and digital communications, dsp books I have. This book provides readers a good grasp of the basic concept of random variables, linear systems (incl. matched filter, wiener filter ..)The main advantage of this book is the presentation method(textgraph -like well-typed lecture notes which is a privilege for me). Excellent explanation (concise and well organized). Historical/interesting anedotes too.

Rating:
Summary: A pleasant surprise
Review: While the literature on probability and random signals is enormous, college classrooms have long been dominated by a few classics. New books attempting to compete in this area haven't seen much success in recent years.

As a college instructor, I find this new addition a really pleasant surprise. The style certainly is a notch above many other texts, yet the more important feature to me is the way theories are presented. While mathematical rigor is not compromised, a clear emphasis on fundamental principles and intuitive thinking has its great appeal, especially to students who have not had much experience with random variables etc. As claimed by the author, it is ``extremely instructor-friendly'' because of its Textgraph format. Indeed, the clever mixture of `viewgraph' with the in depth discussion in the book makes it very appealing for classroom use.

Another feature is the carefully compiled problems including self-test problems that should be well received by motivated students. Reading chapter 5 has also been a quite enjoyable experience as it summarizes succinctly major applications of probability theory before it gets to the more advanced topics on random processes. The accompanied user-friendly software is also a plus --- being able to play with various probability concepts will certainly enhance greatly the students' understanding of the subject matter.