Matlab Resources: Tutorials and Beyond

Introductions to Matlab

These tutorials will discuss why we use Matlab for coursework (and not Java, C, C++, Fortran, Perl, Python, Maple, Mathematica, etc...), how to get started, and where to find resources for further exploration. They are aimed at students who have not previously used Matlab.

Times:

• Tuesday January 8, 2013, 6:00pm - 8:00pm, location DMP 101.

Material:

• Slides from the tutorial.
• Example m-files:
  • A script: sampleScript.m
  • A function: butterfly.m

From the Mathworks: These resources are from the company that develops and distributes Matlab.

• Getting Started with Matlab, a traditional introductory manual available either in Adobe Acrobat format (pdf), or online as hypertext (look at the top of the left hand frame for a link labelled "Getting Started").
• Click along Tutorials from the Mathworks Academia site.
• A collection of short demos. Some are text and graphics, and some are Flash animations with voice-over. Most relevant to beginners who need Matlab for coursework.
• A collection of lengthy pre-recorded webinars (seminars on the web). You will need to fill out a short form to view these flash animations, but they are available for free.

Other Free Sources: These sources were found using either Google or Matlab Central (see below). While the tutorials cover the basics of working with Matlab, many refer to much older versions of Matlab: The current version on the UBC CPSC machines is 7.14 (R2012a), and these tutorials often refer to earlier versions (as early as 5.3). The basic command methods have not changed, but the newer versions have lots of graphical interfaces to make learning easier.

• YAGTOM (Yet Another Guide TO Matlab), a relatively recent (2008) collection of tutorials spanning from basic to advanced topics (by Matthew Dunham and Kevin Murphy from UBC CS).
• Tutorials at Southern Illinois University. Tutorials 1 and 2 are generally useful. Tutorials 3 and 4 will be relevant to CPSC 302, while tutorial 5 will be relevant to CPSC 303.
• Basic tutorial from the University of Florida.
• Basic tutorial from Clarkson University.
• Very basic tutorial from the University of Utah.
• A tutorial on MEX with lots of comments on how to make the compiling and linking process work. MEX is the programming interface used when you want to connect compiled code (C/C++/Fortran) with Matlab. It is definitely an advanced topic.

Other Sources: These ones will cost you some money. I have not personally tried any of them, so I do not endorse or make any representation about their suitability to your needs.

• chapters.indigo.ca lists over 600 books on Matlab, many of them introductions.
• Amazon.ca lists over 2000 books on Matlab, many of them introductions.

Additional Matlab Resources

• Wikipedia entry on Matlab, including some criticism of the language.
• The complete Matlab documentation, either online in hypertext or in Adobe Acrobat (pdf) format.
• Matlab Central, an open exchange site hosted by the Mathworks for their user community. Contains links and code (and even blogs!) for doing almost anything under the sun using Matlab.
• The Mathworks web site, where you can access all the documentation and products related to Matlab and its sister product Simulink.
• A US federal antitrust case against The Mathworks Inc and Wind River Systems Inc (former maker of a competitor to Matlab called MATRIXx) alleging that Mathworks paid Wind River to eliminate the MATRIXx product. The apparent outcome.