How long does it take to get good at matlab?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the time and effort required to become proficient in MATLAB, particularly in comparison to other programming languages like C++ and HTML. Participants explore factors influencing the learning curve, including prior programming experience and the nature of MATLAB as a tool for numerical computation.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant questions whether learning MATLAB is similar to learning C++, suggesting that daily practice may be necessary for proficiency.
  • Another participant asserts that prior programming knowledge significantly affects the speed of learning MATLAB, indicating that those familiar with programming basics can become proficient quickly.
  • It is noted that MATLAB's interactive nature allows for immediate feedback, potentially lowering the threshold for performing useful tasks compared to C++.
  • Some participants emphasize that knowledge of HTML does not translate to MATLAB proficiency, as HTML is a markup language lacking programming constructs.
  • One participant mentions their background in C++ and expresses uncertainty about their proficiency, suggesting that learning MATLAB may also involve challenges similar to those faced in C++.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree that prior programming experience influences the learning curve for MATLAB, but there is no consensus on the exact time frame required to achieve proficiency. Multiple views on the relevance of different programming languages to learning MATLAB are presented.

Contextual Notes

Participants express varying assumptions about the definitions of proficiency and the specific programming constructs relevant to learning MATLAB. The discussion does not resolve the exact time commitment needed for proficiency.

Who May Find This Useful

Individuals interested in learning MATLAB, particularly those with backgrounds in programming or related fields, may find this discussion relevant.

lonely_nucleus
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is learning MATLAB like learning c++ where it takes like a year of programming everyday to get good at or is it a smaller programming language? I just finished learning html at codeacademy.com and it was very easy to learn and I learned it fast, is MATLAB larger than html? If you used MATLAB every single day for 40 minutes how long would it take to get proficient at it?

what I mean by good is proficient, not a master but able to solve common MATLAB problems.
 
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It depends on how much programming you already know. If you already know the basics (conditional expressions, loops, functions, etc.), then you can be proficient in MATLAB very quickly. If you using MATLAB to learn programming, then it will take longer as you need to get a good grasp of those basics first.

The advantage of MATLAB is that it is interactive. The first things you learn to do give you immediate feedback: you type a command, and get an answer, then type another command, and so on. The threshold before you can do something useful is much lower than C++. Then again, MATLAB is for numerical computation, and not much else.
 
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DrClaude said:
It depends on how much programming you already know. If you already know the basics (conditional expressions, loops, functions, etc.), then you can be proficient in MATLAB very quickly. If you using MATLAB to learn programming, then it will take longer as you need to get a good grasp of those basics first.

The advantage of MATLAB is that it is interactive. The first things you learn to do give you immediate feedback: you type a command, and get an answer, then type another command, and so on. The threshold before you can do something useful is much lower than C++. Then again, MATLAB is for numerical computation, and not much else.
thank you for the reply.
 
Little or none of your knowledge of HTML will be helpful for learning Matlab. HTML is not a programming language, but rather a markup language for structuring web pages. It does not have programming constructs such as selection (if-statements), iteration (loops), functions or subroutines.

Javascript and PHP, on the other hand, are indeed programming languages. If you studied either of them along with HTML, that would help a bit with learning Matlab.
 
jtbell said:
Little or none of your knowledge of HTML will be helpful for learning Matlab. HTML is not a programming language, but rather a markup language for structuring web pages. It does not have programming constructs such as selection (if-statements), iteration (loops), functions or subroutines.

Javascript and PHP, on the other hand, are indeed programming languages. If you studied either of them along with HTML, that would help a bit with learning Matlab.
I took a HS class in c++, I got to some gui programs and ifstream/ofstream and for loops and objects. I would not say I am good at it because it took me many trails get the homework done.
 

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