  Maximum distance profile codes are characterized by the property that two
trajectories which start at the same state and proceed to a different state
will have the maximum possible distance from each other relative to any other
convolutional code of the same rate and degree.
  In this paper we use methods from systems theory to characterize maximum
distance profile codes algebraically. Tha main result shows that maximum
distance profile codes form a generic set inside the variety which parametrizes
the set of convolutional codes of a fixed rate and a fixed degree.
