About File Exchange

File Exchange lets you find and share custom applications, classes, code examples, drivers, functions, Simulink models, scripts, and videos. With File Exchange, you can:

Submit files
Find files using categories, content types, the search box, and search directives
Annotate submissions by adding tags for future lookups, ratings based on your use, and comments that support your ratings
Gain community recognition by submitting files that members use, tag, and rate

Submitting Files

You can submit files of up to 20 MB. To submit a file, log in to your MathWorks account or create one.

Finding Files

File Exchange offers an extensive online library of files. You can find files by:

Browsing a predefined category or an assigned content type
Searching
Fine-tuning searches using directives

When you find a file, you can open it to view details; add tags, a rating, and comments; or download the file.

Searching for files submitted by McGarrity. Note the areas (left) for refining the search by content type, category, or time frame.

Making Files Easy to Find and Use

Make sure your titles and descriptions are clear and concise yet descriptive.
Proofread your submissions for readability and correct spelling.
Use tags that help target searches; see creating tags.
When adding images, make sure the image uses the same filename and resides in the same directory as your code.
Acknowledge files that inspired your submission. Acknowledgements appear on your file page and the page of the acknowledged file.

Browsing Categories

File Exchange organizes files into predefined categories that are based on a common theme, such as industry, application, or purpose. Categories are collections of tags that are managed by File Exchange administrators. You can add tags to a file and help define the categories in which a file appears. Any community member can add tags, ratings, and comments to existing submissions. You can help make categories more useful to other members by adding meaningful and consistent tags to files that you submit or use.

Browsing Content Types

File Exchange assigns content types to files based on information associated with your submission.

Content Is Assigned This Type…	When Files Have This Extension…	And the Submission Contains these Criteria…
App	.m	`uicontrol` call or matching *.fig file
Class	.m	`classdef` call
Driver	.mdd	-
Example	.m	/html subdirectory .html file with the same name as the MATLAB .m file
Function	.m	`function` call
Script	.m	Any other files with the .m extension that are not in Example, Class, App, or Function
Simulink Model	.mdl	-
Video	.avi, .mp4, .wmv, .mpg, .mov, .swf, .mpeg	-

Finding Files Using Directives

Search directives help you find files on File Exchange. You can specify search directives in the search box. Values you enter on the Advanced Search page or edits you make to the URL are other ways to fine-tune searches.

Search Result	Directive	Examples
Author with this name	author:	author:stuart author:"Stuart McGarrity"
Author with an average file rating of 1 to 5	authoraverage:	authoraverage:5
Community member with this company/organization name listed in their public profile	organization:	organization:mathworks
Community member with this string in their email address	email:	email:mathworks.com
Comments by a community member with this name	commentby:	commentby:gulley
Content type	type:	type:function
Category with this name	category:	category:aerospace
File identification number, which appears at the top of the File Details page	fileid:	fileid:21832
License that includes this string	license:	license:bsd
Average community rating with this number	rating:	rating:5
Published .m file status	publishedmfile:	publishedmfile:yes publishedmfile:no
Tags with this string applied to published submissions	tag:	tag:statistics tag:"image processing"
User with this ID and a given tag	tagpair:userid#/tag	tagpair:2962/video
User with this ID and this rating or higher	ratepair:userid#/rating	ratepair:4987/5

Using Directives

To search for a multi-word phrase, enclose the phrase in quotation marks; for example, author:"Helen Chen".
To narrow search results, use combinations of directives in the same search. Be sure to include a space between each directive. File Exchange finds all files matching all specified directives.
To search for more than one value for the same directive, specify one directive for each value. For example, the syntax tag:graphics tag:vector finds all files tagged with both graphics and vector.
To exclude files from your search results, insert a minus sign (-) before the directive syntax. For example, the syntax tag:game excludes all files with the tag game.

Tagging Files

Tags provide bookmark information to help find or recall files of interest. With tags, you can browse submitted files using assigned keywords. Community members with profiles can tag any file. All tags are public; anyone can view them.

From your profile, you can see tags you've applied to files. Within a file, you can see tags applied by everyone in the community. By tagging, you give community members insight into your interests, making it easier to collaborate and exchange ideas.

You can add tags when submitting new files or viewing existing ones. Use commas to separate multiple tags and quotation marks to indicate multiword tags.

Creating Tags

Make tags descriptive yet concise.
Use consistent terminology, including terms that members are most likely to use; for example, videos, images, and graphics.
Tag noteworthy elements, such as concepts, functions, and proper nouns.
Choose nouns over verbs.
Do not use abbreviations or acronyms unless they are well known.
Check your spelling.

Rating Files and Adding Comments

You can rate files using one to five stars (lowest to highest). When rating files, add comments to support your rating and share usage notes with the author and other community members.

Adding ratings and comments to submitted files (top); seeing ratings and comments during a search (bottom).

Adding Comments to Files

Be honest and considerate of the file's author and other community members.
Provide specific information on what you like and dislike about the submission.
Use examples to illustrate your point.
Share your experiences with similar submissions.
Be aware that comments containing profanity, vulgarity, or an offensive tone will be removed from the site.

Gaining Recognition

File Exchange determines the most popular files based on the highest number of downloads in the last 30 days. The more popular your files are, the more recognition you gain from the community.

Counting Downloads

To accurately reflect downloads submitted by individuals, File Exchange counts multiple downloads from the same IP address as a single download.