MATLAB Programming Fundamentals - MathWorks

Create Hyperlinks that Run Functions

The special keyword matlab: lets you embed commands in other functions. Most

commonly, the functions that contain it display hyperlinks, which execute the commands

when you click the hyperlink text. Functions that support matlab: syntax include disp,

error, fprintf, help, and warning.

Use matlab: syntax to create a hyperlink in the Command Window that runs one or more

functions. For example, you can use disp to display the word Hypotenuse as an

executable hyperlink as follows:

disp('<a href="matlab:a=3; b=4;c=hypot(a,b)">Hypotenuse</a>')

Clicking the hyperlink executes the three commands following matlab:, resulting in

c =

5

Executing the link creates or redefines the variables a, b, and c in the base workspace.

The argument to disp is an <a href> HTML hyperlink. Include the full hypertext text,

from '<a href= to </a>' within a single line, that is, do not continue long text on a new

line. No spaces are allowed after the opening < and before the closing >. A single space is

required between a and href.

You cannot directly execute matlab: syntax. That is, if you type

matlab:a=3; b=4;c=hypot(a,b)

you receive an error, because MATLAB interprets the colon as an array operator in an

illegal context:

??? matlab:a=3; b=4;c=hypot(a,b)

|

Error: The expression to the left of the equals sign

is not a valid target for an assignment.

You do not need to use matlab: to display a live hyperlink to the Web. For example, if

you want to link to an external Web page, you can use disp, as follows:

disp('<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypotenuse">Hypotenuse</a>')

The result in the Command Window looks the same as the previous example, but instead

opens a page at en.wikipedia.org:

25 Programming Utilities