MATLAB Project: Getting Started with MATLAB Name________________________________

Purpose: To learn to create matrices and use various MATLAB commands. Examples here can be
useful for reference later.
MATLAB functions used: [ ] : ; + - * ^
size, help, format, eye, zeros, ones, diag, rand, round, cos, sin, plot,
axis, grid, hold, path; and randomint and startdat from Laydata Toolbox
Introduction. This can be used as a brief tutorial and as a reference for basic operations. Use MATLAB's help
command or see a User’s Guide for more information. Some of the commands discussed here are about linear algebra
topics which will not be formally introduced in your course for several weeks, so even if you go through this project
early, you may want to refer back to it at various times. Write notes and questions to yourself as you work through it.
Instructions. Start MATLAB by clicking on its icon (or if you have MATLAB 3.5, type matlab at the DOS
prompt). The MATLAB prompt is a double arrow, >>. In this project each line that begins with >> is a command
line, and the bold face words following >> are MATLAB commands. Try each of these for yourself: that is, type the
bold face words and then press the key that is labeled "Return" or "Enter," to cause those commands to be executed.
(In the first few sections we will write [Enter] to mean press that key, but we will omit this "carriage return" prompt
later.) After you execute each line, study the result to be sure it is what you expect, and take notes. After trying the
examples in each section, do the exercises.
If you do not complete this tutorial in one session, the variables you created will be erased when you exit
MATLAB. See the remark before Section 6 to find out how to get them back quickly the next time you continue work
on this project.
Sections: 1. Creating matrices, page 1
2. The arrow keys, page 2
3. The size command, page 3
4. The help command, page 3
5. Accessing particular matrix entries, page 3
6. Pasting blocks together, page 4
7. Some special MATLAB functions for creating matrices: eye, zeros, ones, diag, page 4
8. Using the colon to create vectors with evenly spaced entries, page 5
9. Using the semicolon to suppress printing, page 5
10. The format command, page 5
11. Matrix arithmetic, page 6
12. Creating matrices with random entries, page 7
13. Plotting, page 8
14. Creating your own M-files, page 10
15. Ways to get Laydata Toolbox and ATLAST M-files, page 10
16. Installing M-files into the MATLAB path, page 10
1. Creating matrices. A matrix is a rectangular array, and in linear algebra the entries will usually be numbers.
The most direct way to create a matrix is to type the numbers between square brackets, using a space or comma to
separate different entries and a semicolon or [Enter] to create row breaks. Examples:
>> A = [1 2;3 4;5 -6] [Enter]
A=
1 2
3 4
5 -6

>> B = [1 -2 3 [Enter]
4 5 -6] [Enter]
B=
1 -2 3
4 5 -6

>> x = [4;3;2] [Enter]

x=
4
3
2
Page 2 of 11 MATLAB Project: Getting Started with MATLAB

>> X = [1,2,3] [Enter]

X=
123

To see a matrix you have created, type its name followed by [Enter] . Try each of the following and make notes how
the results were displayed. Notice MATLAB is case sensitive -- for example, x and X are names for different objects:
>> A [Enter]

>> A,B [Enter]

>> X,x [Enter]

MATLAB will not try to execute an assignment until it is complete. For example, if you forget and press [Enter]
before typing the right bracket, it will just wait for the bracket. Try this:
A = [1 2;3 4;5 -6 [Enter]
] [Enter]

Exercise: If you have not done it already, create the matrices A, B, x, and X above. Then create C, D, E, and vec as
shown below. (We write them with square braces as a textbook would, but MATLAB does not display braces.) For
each matrix, record what you typed and be sure the MATLAB display is what you expected.
 -4 8 -1  2 -1  2 -1  3
C =  5 0 3 D =  1 3 E =  0.1 3 vec =  -5
 6 2 10  -2 1  -2 1  1

Notice that since one entry in E is a decimal, MATLAB displays every entry as a decimal.

2. The arrow keys. MATLAB keeps about 30 of your most recent command lines in memory and you can
"arrow up" to retrieve a copy of any one of those. This can be useful when you want to correct a typing error, or
execute a certain command repeatedly. Type the following line and record the error message:

>> Z = [1 2 3 4;5 0] [Enter]

Error message:________________________________________________________________________________

To correct such an error, you could retype the entire line. This is easier: press the up arrow key on your keyboard one
time to retrieve that last line typed, use the left arrow key to move the cursor so it is between 2 and 3, type a semicolon
and then press [Enter] to cause the new line to execute.

You can also use the right arrow key to move to the right through a line, and if you "arrow up" too far, use the down
arrow key to back up. To erase characters, use the BackSpace or Delete keys. It does not matter where the cursor is
when you press [Enter] to execute the line.

Exercise. Press the up arrow key several times to find the command line where you defined E. Change the 0.1 entry to
0.01 and press [Enter] to execute. Record the new version of E:
MATLAB Project: Getting Started with MATLAB Page 3 of 11

3. The size command. When M is a matrix, the command size(M) returns a vector with two entries which are the
number of rows and the number of columns in M. Example:
>> size(A) [Enter]
ans =
3 2

Notice that ans is a temporary name for the last thing you calculated if you did not assign a name for that result.

Exercise. Calculate the size of each of the other matrices you have created, B, X, x, C, D, E, vec, Z.

4. The help command. The command help can provide immediate assistance for any command whose name you
know. For example, type help size. Also try help help.

5. Accessing particular matrix entries. If you want to see a matrix which you have stored, type its name. To
correct entries in a stored matrix, you must reassign them with a command. That is, MATLAB does not work like a
spreadsheet or text editor – you cannot edit things visible on the screen by darkening them and typing over.

But you can see or change a particular entry, or an entire row, or an entire column, or even a block of entries. Try the
following commands to view and change various things in the matrix C you created above. In each part type the first
command line to see what the matrix and certain entries look like before you change them; then type the second
command line to cause a change. Record the result of each command and compare the new version of C with the
previous version to be sure you understand what happened each time:

a) >> C, C(3,1) b) >> C, C(:, 2)

>> C(3,1) = -9 >> C(:, 2) = [1;1;0]

c) >> C, C([1 3], [2 3]) d) >> C, C([1 3], :)

>> C([1 3], [2 3]) = [-2 4;6 7] >> C([1 3], :) = C([3 1], :)

e) >> C, C(3, :)

>> C(3, :) = [0 1 2]

Notice the effect of the colon in C(:, 3) is to say "take all rows", and its effect in C(3, :) and C([1 3], :) is to say "take
all columns."
Page 4 of 11 MATLAB Project: Getting Started with MATLAB

We will assume in all the following that you have created the matrices and vectors A,B,C,D,E,X,x,vec above so they
exist in your current MATLAB workspace. If you do not complete this tutorial in one session, all variables will be
erased when you exit MATLAB. If you continue this tutorial at a new MATLAB session later, you will need to type
in whatever variables you need. However, if the M-files in the Laydata Toolbox have been set up for your computer,
you can simply type startdat to get A,B,C,D,E,X,x,vec. Ask your instructor about these capabilities, or see Sections 15
and 16 in this project for more details.

6. Pasting blocks together. When the sizes allow it, you can create new matrices from ones that already exist in
your MATLAB workspace. Using the matrices B,C,D created above, try typing each of the following commands and
record the result of each command in the space below it. If any error messages appear, think why.

[C D] [D C] [C;B] [B;C] [B C]

7. Some special MATLAB functions for creating matrices: eye, zeros, ones, diag . Examples:
>> eye(3) >> zeros(3) >> ones(size(D))
ans = ans = ans =
1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1
0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1
0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1

Exercises. Type each of the following commands and record the result:

eye(4) zeros(3,5) zeros(3) ones(2,3) ones(2)

diag([4 5 6 7]) diag([4 5 6 7], -1) C, diag(C), diag(diag(C))

Type commands to create the following matrices. For each, record the command you used:

 1 1  7 0 0 0
 1 0  0 0
 1 1  0 0.1 0 0
 0 1  0 0
 1 1  0 0 6 0
 0 0 0 -2
MATLAB Project: Getting Started with MATLAB Page 5 of 11

8. Using the colon to create vectors with evenly spaced entries. In linear algebra, a vector is an
ordered n-tuple; thus one-row and one-column matrices like those we called x, X and vec above would be called
vectors. Frequently it is useful to be able to create a vector with evenly spaced entries (for example, in loops, or to
create data for plotting). This is easy to do with the colon. Examples:

>> v1 = 1:5 v2 = 1:0.5:3 v3 = 5:-1:-2

v1 = v2 = v3 =
1 2 3 4 5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 5 4 3 2 1 0 -1 -2

Exercises. Use the colon notation to create each of the following vectors. Record the command you used for each:

[-1 0 1 2 3 4 ] [9 8 7 6 5 4 3] [4 3.5 3 2.5 2 1.5 1]

The numbers from 0 to 2, spaced 0.1 apart (record the first few and the last few, and the command you used):

9. Using the semicolon to suppress printing. When you place a semicolon at the end of a command, the
command will be executed but whatever it creates will not be displayed on the screen. Examples:

>> x = 1:0.2:3;

>> x
x=
1.0 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8 2.0 2.2 2.4 2.6 2.8 3.0

Exercises. Try these commands and describe the results (“pi” is a constant in MATLAB which approximates π):

a) >> A; b) >> w = 0:0.1:pi;

>> A >> w

10. The format command. This command controls how things look on the screen. Type each of the following
commands and record the result carefully. Notice that "e" means exponent -- in fact, it means multiply by some power
of 10 -- for example, 1.2345e002 is the number 1.2345(102).

>> R = 123.125

>> format long, R

>> format short e, R

>> format short, R

The default mode for display of numbers is format short. To restore the default mode at any time, type format.
Page 6 of 11 MATLAB Project: Getting Started with MATLAB

The command format compact is very useful. It reduces the number of blank lines on the screen, allowing you to
see more of what you have done recently. Try the following and describe the effect of each:

>> A,B

>> format compact, A,B

>> format, A,B

11. Matrix arithmetic. You will soon see the definitions of how to multiply a scalar times a matrix, and how to
add matrices of the same shape. MATLAB uses * and + for these operations. Try the following examples, using
matrices defined above. You should be able to figure out what the operations are doing. Type each line and record
the result; if you get an error message, read it carefully and notice why the command did not work:

>> A, A+A, 2*A >> A, D, A+D, A-D

>> 2*A - 3*D >> x, vec, x+vec

>> A, B, A+B >> x, X, x+X

MATLAB also uses * for multiplication of matrices, which is a somewhat more complicated operation. You will see
the definition in Section 2.1 of Lay's text. The definition requires that the "inner dimensions" of the two matrices
agree. Without knowing that definition, you can still investigate some of the properties of matrix multiplication (and
you may even be able to figure out what the definition is). Type the following lines and record the result of each:

>> A, B

>>A*B

>> B*A

>> B, C, B*C, C*B

>> C, x, C*x >> X, C, X*C

MATLAB Project: Getting Started with MATLAB Page 7 of 11

The symbol ^ means exponent in MATLAB; for example, Y^2 is a way to calculate Y2 (which can also be calculated
as Y*Y of course). Try these:

>> C, C*C, C^2 >> Y = 2*eye(3), Y^2, Y^3

12. Creating matrices with random entries. MATLAB's function rand creates numbers between 0 and 1
which look very random. They are not truly random because there is a formula which generates them, but they are
very close to being truly random.; such numbers are often called “pseudorandom.” Similarly, the function
randomint in the Laydata Toolbox creates matrices with pseudorandom integer entries.
Type the commands below and describe the result of each. Arrow up to execute the first two lines several times,
to see that the numbers change each time rand or randomint is called.

>> P = rand(2), Q = rand (2,3)

>> format long, P, Q

>> format, P, Q

>> randomint(3) >> randomint(3,4)

Remarks. You can scale and shift to get random entries from some interval other than (0,1). For example, 6*rand(2)
yields a 2x2 matrix with entries between 0 and 6; and -3 + 6*rand(2) yields a 2x2 matrix with entries between -3 and
3. It is also easy to create random integer matrices without randomint. For example, the command round(-4.5 +
9*rand(2)) produces a 2x2 matrix with every entry chosen fairly randomly from the set of integers
{-5, -4, .. 4, 5}.
Page 8 of 11 MATLAB Project: Getting Started with MATLAB

13. Plotting. The plot command does 2-D plotting, and when you use it, a graph will appear in a Figure window.
If the Figure window obscures most of the Command window and you want to see both windows at once, use the
mouse to resize and move them. If you cannot see a particular window at all, pull down the menu Windows and select
the one you want. It is not possible to see both windows at once in MATLAB 3.5.

As the examples below show, you can specify a color and a symbol or line type when you use plot. To learn more,
use help plot and the MATLAB boxes in Lay's Study Guide. Try the following examples and make a sketch or write
notes to describe what happened each time. Notice we use semicolons when creating the vectors here because each
vector is quite long, and there is no reason to look at them:

>> x = 0:0.1:2*pi; si = sin(x); co = cos(x);

>> plot(x, si)

>> plot(x, si,'r')

>> plot(x, si,'-.')

>> plot(x, si,'*')

>> plot(x, si,'b*')

Here is one way to get more than one graph on the same axis system. Describe the result of each command:

>> plot(x, si, 'r*', x, co, 'b+')

>> P = [si; co]; plot(x, P)

MATLAB Project: Getting Started with MATLAB Page 9 of 11

Another way to get different graphs on the same axes is to use the hold on command. This causes the current
graphics screen to be frozen, so the next plot command draws on the same axis system. The command stays in effect
until you release it by typing hold off . Try the following commands, and describe the result of each:

>> plot(x, co, 'g--'), hold on

plot(x, si, 'ro')

hold off

It can be helpful to have grid lines displayed, and to set your own limits for the axes. Try the following. (If using
MATLAB 3.5, type the plot commands last instead of first in each of the following lines -- e.g., grid, plot(x, si) .)

>> plot(x, si), grid

>> plot(x, si), axis([ -8 8 -2 2 ])

We defined the vector x on the top of page 8. Change the vector x and use the last MATLAB command above to get
the entire graph from –8 to 8.

14. Creating your own M-files.

General information:

An M-file allows you to place MATLAB commands in a text file so that you do not need to reenter the same
information at the MATLAB prompt again and again. It is a good idea to have MATLAB running while you edit an
M-file. This will allow you to quickly switch back and forth between the Edit screen and the MATLAB screen so you
can try running your file, editing it again, running it again, etc., until it works the way you want.

An M-file must be saved with the extension .m, not .txt or .doc. This extension will be added automatically if you use
the File Menu in MATLAB to open a new or existing M-file. Also, you must save an M-file in some directory which
is in the MATLAB path, or else MATLAB will not be able to find the file and execute it. For example, on many
computers the directory C:\matlab is always in the path. See Section 16 below for some details about these matters.
Page 10 of 11 MATLAB Project: Getting Started with MATLAB

Using the editor inside MATLAB:

1. Click File on the upper left corner of the MATLAB screen. Choose New if you want to create a new M-File,
or if you want to edit one that exists already, choose Open and then browse to find the file you want. Double click on
the file name to open it in an Edit window. If this doesn’t work inside MATLAB, use a text editor like Notepad as
described below.
You can search for an existing file by using Explore or Find. On the ribbon below your Windows screen, right
click on Start. Then choose Explore and look in various folders for the file you want, or choose Find, type the name of
the file you want (or part of the name), and click Find Now. Once you locate the file, double click on its name to open
it for editing.

2. Type the commands you want in the Edit window – any valid MATLAB commands are ok. Then pull down
the File menu to "Save As." Henceforth we will write File|Save As for this kind of menu/mouse use. In the box
labeled "Save In," type the name of the folder where you want to store this file. If unsure, type C:\matlab. In the box
labeled "File Name," type a name for your file. For example suppose you type play for the file name. Then click
"Save." The editor will add the extension .m .
Don't close the Edit window yet; instead click on the MATLAB Command window and type play to execute the
file. If you want to edit the file more, click on the Notebook window, make changes and save it again. Repeat this
procedure until your file works satisfactorily, then close the file by clicking on the box in the upper right corner of the
Edit window or by using File|Exit.

Using Notepad outside MATLAB:

Notepad is a simple editor that comes with Windows that you will find in C:\Windows. Click on the Notepad
icon to open an edit screen. You can type the commands for a new M-file here, or if you want to edit a file that
already exists, choose File|Open, type the address of the file you want, and press [Enter]. To save a new M-file, pull
down the File menu to Save As and type the name you want for the file. For example, you could, and type play.m
as the name. Notice you must type the extension .m yourself (because Notepad doesn’t know to add it).

15. Ways to get Laydata Toolbox and ATLAST M-files

The M-files in Laydata Toolbox can be downloaded from the Lay web site http://www.laylinalgebra.com. Follow the
on-screen directions to obtain the version of Lay’s files you want.

You will need to have Netscape 4.0 or higher or Internet Explorer 4.0 or higher installed on your computer to access
these files. There are versions for various platforms. Click on the version you want, and save the files in a folder on
your desktop. They will be in a compressed form. Refer to the README file for information on downloading and
decompressing the files.

The ATLAST website at http://www.umassd.edu/SpecialPrograms/Atlast contains resources to facilitate the use of

software in linear algebra courses. Some useful M-files can be found under the link “Library of ATLAST M-files for
MATLAB.”

16. Installing M-files into the MATLAB path

Whenever you want to use M-files that are not part of commercial MATLAB, such as those in the Laydata Toolbox,
you must tell MATLAB where to look for them. For example, suppose the Laydata M-files are stored on your C:
drive, in a folder called laydata. The following procedures will work for installing any M-files, except the names of
the folders may be different.

A. For Macintosh: Drag the icon for the laydata folder into the MATLAB folder on your hard drive. Start MATLAB.
From the File menu, select Open. Select one of the M-files in the laydata folder (to open the file as if for editing),
then close the file. You are done now – after this, MATLAB will always know to look in that laydata folder.
MATLAB Project: Getting Started with MATLAB Page 11 of 11

B. For Windows: Open your Explore window and drag the folder called laydata into your MATLAB folder. Its
address is now c:\matlab\laydata . The MATLAB command path outputs a long string that contains the addresses of
all the folders where MATLAB looks for M-files, and you need to adjoin the address of your new folder to that string.
(If you have started MATLAB, you can see the present contents of that string at any time by typing path.) Here are
some ways to do this, for various versions of MATLAB and various operating systems.

1. If you have Student MATLAB 5.3, start it and then use File|Set Path to open a small screen called “Path
Browser.” Click the Browse button, then locate and click on laydata. Use Path|Add to Path. Another small screen
will pop up and ask you to confirm this. Click OK. Next use File|Save Path. Finally, use File|Exit Path Browser.
The method is similar in MATLAB 6.

From now on, the new path will be in effect. That is, whenever you use MATLAB, it will look for M-files in
c:\matlab\laydata as well as in all the other folders which were in the path originally.

2. If instead you have Student MATLAB 5, start it and click on the Path Browser icon at the top of the screen.
(This icon looks like two folders.) This opens a small screen called "MATLAB Path." Click Add to Path. Click the
button Browse (which may be a button with ". . ." on it). Then locate and highlight the folder laydata. Click the
button "OK," which returns you to the MATLAB Path window. Use File|Save Path, then click the button Close to
close the MATLAB Path window.

3. If you have Student MATLAB 4, open Windows, then use Start|Find|Files or Folders and locate the file
matlabrc.m . Double click on its name to open it for editing. Scroll down about 75 lines until you see lines that look
like
';C:\MATLAB\toolbox\sigsys',...
]);
Insert a new line between these two, so the lines now look like
';C:\MATLAB\toolbox\sigsys',...
';C:\MATLAB\laydata',...
]);
Save the file and then close the Edit screen.

If MATLAB is currently running, type matlabrc at this time, to establish the new path for the current session.
From now on, whenever you start MATLAB, it will look for M-files in c:\matlab\laydata as well as in all the other
folders which were in the path originally.

C. For MATLAB on a network: Ask the system administrator to store your folders and adjoin their addresses to
MATLAB's path. The method for doing that will depend on what version of MATLAB the network is running.

D. For MS-DOS: Open for editing the file MATLAB.BAT, which is in the MATLAB\MATLAB subdirectory.
Locate the line that begins:
SET MATLABPATH = \MATLAB\MATLAB;\MATLAB\DEMO
Edit the end of this line, so it looks like:
SET MATLABPATH = \MATLAB\MATLAB;\MATLAB\DEMO;\MATLAB\LAYDATA
Save and close the file.

E. For any operating system: Strange things happen occasionally on computers. If for some reason the instructions
above do not work on your system, the following will always work, but this method has to be repeated each time you
start MATLAB. Start MATLAB and type the appropriate one of the following commands:

In MATLAB 6, type addpath(‘c:\matlab\laydata’)

In MATLAB 5, type addpath 'c:\matlab\laydata'
In MATLAB 4, type path(path, 'c:\matlab\laydata')
In MATLAB 3.5, type matlabpath( [matlabpath, 'c:\matlab\laydata'] )