I have a function but I cannot deal with the variable named data when I call the function. If I run the code alone (without calling the function, it works).
Please find the actual code below:
function data = returns_ext(input);
clear all
clc
ticker = 'BA';
filename = ['C:\Users\FP\Documents\MatlabCode\P\prices\' ticker 'daily.csv'];
newData1 = importdata(filename);
% Create new variables in the base workspace from those fields.
vars = fieldnames(newData1);
for i = 1:length(vars)
assignin('base', vars{i}, newData1.(vars{i}));
end
prices_data = data;
ERROR: At compilation, "data" was determined to be a variable and this
variable is uninitialized. "data" is also a function name and previous versions of MATLAB would have
called the function.
However, MATLAB 7 forbids the use of the same name in the same
context as both a function and a variable.
Error in ==> returns_ext at 17
prices_data = data;
You should replace assignin by eval, since assignin assigns either in the caller function calling returns_ext or the base workspace. See the simple example below:
function test
newData1.prices = 1;
newData1.dates = 2;
variables = {'prices','dates'};
for i = 1:length(variables)
temp = newData1.(variables{i});
eval([variables{i} ' = temp;']);
end
disp(prices)
disp(dates)
If the data is available in 'base' workspace then you need to update your code as this:
data = eval('base','data;');
prices_data = data;
Related
I wanted to ask how values in MATLAB are returned? Are they copied or passed by reference?
take a look at this example with matrix A:
function main
A = foo(10);
return;
end
function [resultMatrix] = foo(count)
resultMatrix = zeros(count, count);
return;
end
Does the copy operation take place when function returns matrix and assigns it to variable A ?
MATLAB uses a system known as copy-on-write in which a copy of the data is only made when it is necessary (i.e. when the data is modified). When returning a variable from a function, it is not modified between when it was created inside of the function and when it was stored in a different variable by the calling function. So in your case, you can think of the variable as being passed by reference. Once the data is modified, however, a copy will be made
You can check this behavior using format debug which will actually tell us the memory location of the data (detailed more in this post)
So if we modify your code slightly so that we print the memory location of each variable we can track when a copy is made
function main()
A = foo(10);
% Print the address of the variable A
fprintf('Address of A in calling function: %s\n', address(A));
% Modify A
B = A + 1;
% Print the address of the variable B
fprintf('Address of B in calling function: %s\n', address(B));
end
function result = foo(count)
result = zeros(count);
% Print the address of the variable inside of the function
fprintf('Address of result in foo: %s\n', address(result));
end
function loc = address(x)
% Store the current display format
fmt = get(0, 'format');
% Turn on debugging display and parse it
format debug
loc = regexp(evalc('disp(x)'), '(?<=pr\s*=\s*)[a-z0-9]*', 'match', 'once');
% Revert the display format to what it was
format(fmt);
end
And this yields the following (or similar) output
Address of result in foo: 7f96d9d591c0
Address of A in calling function: 7f96d9d591c0
Address of B in calling function: 7f96d9c74400
As a side-note, you don't need to explicitly use return in your case since the function will naturally return when it encounters the end. return is only necessary when you need to use it to alter the flow of your program and exit a function pre-maturely.
I want to run jobs in Matlab using batch, with parcluster. each job should use an existing class, and run one of it's methods. I can make It work without parcluster, but with parcluster I get an error.
without parpool, this works:
define a class with a simple method:
classdef myclass
properties
prop;
end
methods
% constructor
function obj = myclass()
obj.prop = 0;
end
% add function
function obj = add(obj,a)
obj.prop = obj.prop + a;
end
end
end
create an object and use it's function:
obj = myclass();
obj = add(obj,1);
this works. but when I try to run the same thing in batch I get an error. here is what I'm doing:
c = parcluster();
j = batch(c,#myclass,1,{});
wait(j);
r = fetchOutputs(j);
obj = r{1};
j = batch(c,#add,1,{obj,1});
the last line gives an error:
warning unable to calculate the dependencies of the files:
add
because: file, function or class "add" may not exist.
how can I run class methods in batch?
The most robust way of specifying a method of a class in an anonymous function is to use the dot notation
B = batch(c, #obj.add, 1, {1});
wait(B)
%// Re-assign results to obj (see note below)
obj = fetchOutputs(B);
This helps MATLAB to resolve myclass.add better as it is more explicit. The way that you had written it previously, MATLAB is looking for a regular function named add and is unable to find it. It does not consider the types of the input (which in your case would be required to know that it is a method).
Note: batch will make a copy of your object when you pass it as an input. Because of that, you will need to explicitly grab the output and re-assign to obj because the original obj will not be modified in-place.
I am trying to allow a function to have access to the base workspace using the evalin function, but I am having trouble. Here is a simple example:
My main code:
A = 1;
B = 2
evalin('base','[ C ] = FUN(B)');
C
My Function:
function [C ] = FUN( B )
C = A + B;
end
My error:
Undefined function or variable 'A'.
Error in FUN (line 4)
C = A + B;
Error in Test (line 4)
evalin('base','[ C ] = FUN(B)');
So, the function is not being evaluated in the base workspace because it does not know what the value of A is.
Can anyone suggest something? I have a lot of variables that I need to access in several functions and I don't want to pass them and I don't want to use global variables.
Thanks!
From the evalin documentation,
evalin(ws, expression) executes expression, a string containing any valid MATLAB® expression, in the context of the workspace ws. ws can have a value of 'base' or 'caller' to denote the MATLAB base workspace or the workspace of the caller function.
So the line of code
evalin('base','[ C ] = FUN(B)');
evaluates only the line of code
[ C ] = FUN(B)
in the context of the base workspace. It does not evaluate the body of the function within the context of the base workspace. So the error that you are observing makes sense.
Is there a particular reason why you don't want to pass the variables in to the function? Why do you have several variables in the base (?) workspace, or do you just have several variables within a main function?
If the latter, you could use nested functions to have access to the variables declared in the caller (function) workspace. For example, suppose you have a main function like
function main()
A = 1;
B = 2;
C = FUN();
function [C] = FUN()
C = A + B;
end
end
The function FUN has access to both A and B and so you don't have to pass in any arguments.
An alternative to passing in several different inputs, is to just pass in a structure that has different fields that your function can access at will. Using the above example, we could do the following
function main()
A = 1;
B = 2;
data.A = A;
data.B = B;
C = FUN(data);
end
function [C] = FUN(data)
C = data.A + data.B;
end
In this case, the function FUN can be a function within its own file or declared after main. Again, we only pass in one argument that has all the data that the function needed.
Actually Evalin function is used to take data from base workspace:
Syntax is :
evalin('base','variable')
Evalin function is used in the function .
For example see the below function
function [out1 out2 out3]=main_fun(in1,in2)
out1=in1+in2;
out2=in1-in2;
in3=evalin('base','in3');
in4=evalin('base','in4');
out3=in3+in4;
end
Here out3 value will have the sum of in3 and in4 from workspace.
out1 and out2 will have the sum and difference of in1 and in2 from current function workspace.
I'm having some trouble with local functions within my code so I've pasted a simple example below:
function [avg,testvar] = test(x) %Warning
n = length(x);
avg = mymean(x,n);
end
function [a,testvar] = mymean(v,n)
a = sum(v)/n;
testvar=123;
end
One can probably see what I'm attempting; to pass testvar out of the local functions. However Matlab returns the warning:
"The function return value 'testvar' might be unset"
with respect to the line I've commented "%Warning".
What's the best way of getting around this?
You need to specify the value of the second output of test(). Otherwise how can MATLAB know what its value is supposed to be? It doesn't know the second output of mymean() should be routed to the second output of test(). Perhaps this will solve your problem.
function [avg,testvar] = test(x) %Warning
n = length(x);
[avg, testvar] = mymean(x,n);
end
function [a,testvar] = mymean(v,n)
a = sum(v)/n;
testvar=123;
end
The variables between brackets after function are the output variables.
In your first function, you did not assign any value to testvar hence the warning. If you add testvar = 123; in the first function, the warning goes away. Or you can remove testvar from the output variables, leaving:
function avg = test(x)
I have function f1 which must contain subfunctions, so I can't use another script:
function vars = f1()
a = 1;
b = 'hello';
c = {[1 2 3]};
currvars = whos; %all variable info
for k = 1:size(currvars, 1)
eval(['vars.(currvars(k).name) = ' currvars(k).name ';']);
end
end
I call the function in a script, and then I create the variables in the script using genvarname() and eval():
vars = f1();
varnames = genvarname(fieldnames(vars));
for k = 1:size(varnames(:),1) %Creates vars with the struct's fieldnames.
eval([varnames{k} ' = vars.' varnames{k} ';']);
end
clearvars vars varnames
I'd like to fit the variable creation process into a function somehow while reading out all the variables only to the script calling it, but I don't want to assign a hundred different variable names to the output. Does anyone have any advice on how to do this?
DON'T CREATE zillions of automatically named variables. This is foolish and terribly poor programming style. Instead, learn to use arrays. Multidimensional arrays, cell arrays, struct arrays.
Or, do what you have done, and then be forced to find a kludge like you are looking for.
Take your pick. Eval is evil.
You could return a structure with "corrected" fieldnames:
function output = someFunc
vars = f1();
protected = { %# some list of varnames you don't want
};
names = fieldnames(vars);
newnames = genvarname(names, protected);
for k = 1:numel(newnames)
output.(newnames{k}) = vars.(names{k});
end
end
If you then use
output = someFunc;
varnames = fieldnames(output);
for k = 1:numel(fieldnames)
eval([varnames{k} ' = output.' varnames{k} ';']);
end
in the script/function where you want the variable names, you have a relatively clean way of locking everything up in the function someFunc without having to pre-define all output variable names.
You can also do this in one step:
function someFunc2
vars = f1();
protected = { %# some list of varnames you don't want
};
names = fieldnames(vars);
newnames = genvarname(names, protected);
for k = 1:numel(newnames)
assignin('caller', newnames{k}, vars.(names{k}));
end
end
Which means you just call the function
someFunc2;
in your script, and the function then defines and assigns all the variables in the script's workspace.
A tiny step forward, but forward nonetheless :)
CREDIT TO RODY...
#Old semi-"global" variables:
function vars = f1()
a = 1;
b = 'hello';
c = {[1 2 3]};
currvars = whos; %all variable info
for k = 1:size(currvars, 1)
eval(['vars.(currvars(k).name) = ' currvars(k).name ';']);
end
end
#Function to assign variables to the calling script's/function's workspace. Variable names are determined by the single structure's fieldnames:
function setvars(func)
vars = func;
protected = {'If needed, put variable names you do not want here'};
names = fieldnames(vars);
newnames = genvarname(names, protected);
for k = 1:numel(newnames)
assignin('caller', newnames{k}, vars.(names{k}));
end
end
#Script call:
setvars(f1);