MATLAB Programming

4 M-File Programming
While the command syntax is simpler to write, it has the restriction that you
may not assign any return values the function might generate. Attempting
to do so generates an error.
Two examples of command syntax are
save mydata.mat x y z
clear length width depth
In the command syntax, MATLAB treats all arguments as string literals.
MATLAB Function Syntax
Function calls written in the function syntax look essentially the same as
those in many other programming languages. One difference is that, in
MATLAB, functions can return more than one output value.
A function call with a single return value looks like this:
out = functionname(in1, in2, ..., inN)
If the function returns more than one value, separate the output variables
with commas or spaces, and enclose them all in square brackets ([]):
[out1, out2, ..., outN] = functionname(in1, in2, ..., inN)
Here are two examples:
copyfile(srcfile, '..\mytests', 'writable')
[x1, x2, x3, x4] = deal(A{:})
In the function syntax, MATLAB passes arguments to the function by value.
See the examples under “Passing Arguments with Command and Function
Syntax” on page 4-58.
Passing Arguments with Command and Function Syntax
When you call a function using function syntax, MATLAB passes the values
assigned to each variable in the argument list. For example, this expression
passes the values assigned to A0, A1, andA2 to the polyeig function:
4-58