SimpleScalar accuracy

Hello there,

I am currently preparing a presentation about the SimpleScalar computer simulation tool set. To give an overview about the simulation accuracy I am looking for information about how detailed and accurate the simulatiors provided with SimpleScalar (especially sim-outorder) are.

Can anyone point me to references/papers/benchmarks where somebody has verified SimpleScalar simulation results against an actual target system (be it Alpha, ARM, PPC, x86 or any other supported target)? The intended audience at the presentation is almost certain to be asking about how accurate SimpleScalar simulation is, and I am unable to find any information on the web.

Which brings me to another thing: In the SimpleScalar hacker's guide

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Prof. Austin mentions "constraint-based instruction scheduling" as a technique to simulate the microarchitecture of a processor, as opposed to "cycle timers". I know about the latter, but I am unable to find any information about instruction scheduling as a simulation technique, AFAIK it describes mechanisms used by modern processors or compilers to optimize the utilization of processor resources. How is it used in simulators?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Regards Enno Lübbers