1. A computer-implemented method for configuring an instrument to perform a measurement function, wherein the instrument includes a programmable hardware element, the method comprising: creating a block diagram, wherein the block diagram implements the measurement function; wherein the block diagram comprises a plurality of nodes, wherein at least a subset of the plurality of nodes are connected to indicate data flow among the at least a subset of the plurality of nodes, wherein a first node of the plurality of nodes specifies control flow of data among one or more of the plurality of nodes; generating a hardware description based on the block diagram, wherein the hardware description describes a hardware implementation of the block diagram; configuring the programmable hardware element in the instrument utilizing the hardware description, wherein after said configuring the programmable hardware element implements a hardware implementation of the block diagram; wherein the programmable hardware element in the instrument is operable to perform the measurement function on a received signal.