In this project we perform an empirical study of the performance of the Optimized Link State Routing Protocol with exhaustive scenario based simulations in Network Simulator 2. We propose the use of enforced jitter and piggybacking on the transmission of control messages. Furthermore we test a simple link hysteresis and adjust the message control intervals. We show that the use of jitter has a substantial effect on the performance of the protocol and that using piggybacking, link hysteresis, and adjusting the control message intervals does not have a significant effect. Finally, we perform a comprehensive comparison of OLSR with AODV that uncover the types of scenarios in which each of the protocol excel. The result of the comparison is that OLSR perform equal to AODV in many scenarios, but substantially better in networks with low mobility, high load, high density and/or sporadic traffic. To assist us in performing this evaluation we have developed a framework for performing the simulations. This framework includes a scenario generator that generates random scenarios within the constraints of predefined parameters that characterize the scenarios. The complete framework includes the simulator, the scenario generator, and a set of utilities to gather descriptive measures for the simulator output.