MATLAB®

Saving Your Work

Saving a Graph in MAT-File Format

Note   To save a figure in a format that is compatible with MATLAB versions prior to 7, refer to Plot Objects and Backward Compatibility for more information.

The MATLAB FIG-file is a binary format to which you can save figures so that they can be opened in subsequent MATLAB sessions. These files have a .fig filename extension.

To save a graph in a figure file,

1. Select Save from the figure window File menu or click the Save button on the toolbar. If this is the first time you are saving the file, the Save As dialog box appears.

2. Make sure that the Save as type is MATLAB Figure (*.fig).

3. Specify the name you want assigned to the figure file.

4. Click OK.

The graph is saved as a figure file (.fig), which is a binary file format used to store figures.

You can also use the saveas command.

Use the hgsave command to create backward compatible FIG-files.

If you want to save the figure in a format that can be used by another application, see Saving to a Different Format — Exporting Figures.

Opening a Figure File

To open a figure file, perform these steps:

1. Select Open from the File menu or click the Open button on the toolbar.

2. Select the figure file you want to open and click OK.

   The figure file appears in a new figure window.

You can also use the open command.

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Saving to a Different Format — Exporting Figures

To save a figure in a format that can be used by another application, such as the standard graphics file formats TIFF or EPS, perform these steps:

1. Select Export Setup from the File menu. This dialog provides options you can specify for the output file, such as the figure size, fonts, line size and style, and output format.

2. Select Export from the Export Setup dialog. A standard Save As dialog appears.

3. Select the format from the list of formats in the Save as type drop-down menu. This selects the format of the exported file and adds the standard filename extension given to files of that type.

4. Enter the name you want to give the file, less the extension.

5. Click Save.

Copying a Figure to the Clipboard

On Microsoft^® systems, you can also copy a figure to the clipboard and then paste it into another application:

1. Select Copy Options from the Edit menu. The Copying Options page of the Preferences dialog box appears.

2. Complete the fields on the Copying Options page and click OK.

3. Select Copy Figure from the Edit menu.

   The figure is copied to the Windows^® clipboard. You can then paste the figure from the Windows clipboard into a file in another application.

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Printing Figures

Before printing a figure,

1. Select Print Preview from the File menu to set printing options, including plot size and position, and paper size and orientation.

   The Print Preview dialog box opens.

2. Make changes in the dialog box. Changes you can make are arranged by tabs on the left-hand pane. If you want the printed output to match the annotated plot you see on the screen exactly,

   1. On the Layout tab, click Auto (Actual Size, Centered).

   2. On the Advanced tab, click Keep screen limits and ticks.

   For information about other options for print preview, click the Help button in the dialog box.

To print a figure, select Print from the figure window File menu and complete the Print dialog box that appears.

You can also use the print command.

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Generating an M-File to Recreate a Graph

You can generate an M-file from a graph, which you can then use to regenerate the graph. This approach is a useful way to generate M-code for work you have performed with the plotting tools. To use this option,

1. Select Generate M-file from the File menu.

   The generated code displays in the MATLAB Editor.

2. Save the M-file using Save As from the Editor File menu.

Running the Saved M-File

Most of the generated M-files require you to pass in data as arguments. The M-file assumes you are using the same data originally used to create the graph.

Comments at the beginning of the M-file state the type of data expected. For example, the following statements illustrate a case where three input vectors are required.

function createplot(X1, Y1, Y2)
%CREATEPLOT(X1,Y1,Y2)
%  X1:  vector of x data
%  Y1:  vector of y data
%  Y2:  vector of y data

See Example — Generating M-Code to Reproduce a Graph for another example.

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Working in Plot Edit Mode

Data Exploration Tools