Matlab command question: length max([x+y-1,x,y])

[PainterGuy]

Hi,

I'm not sure if I should be asking this but I couldn't make sense of the following Matlab command: length max([2+3-1,2,3]). The result is "16". I couldn't the operation of this command and why it produces the result of "16". Could you please help me with?

 

[Wrichik Basu]

The length command, when used in the way you have shown, returns the number of characters in the string after it. So, for example, length ans returns 3 because the number of characters in ans is 3. Similarly, the number of characters in max([2+3-1,2,3]) is 16, so the command length max([2+3-1,2,3]) returns 16.

Perhaps you are trying to use length(max([2+3-1,2,3]))?

https://in.mathworks.com/help/matlab/ref/length.html

 

[PainterGuy]

Similarly, the number of characters in max([2+3-1,2,3]) is 16, so the command length max([2+3-1,2,3]) returns 16.

I'm sorry but how the number of characters is 16. The command max([2+3-1,2,3]) produces the result 4.

 

[Wrichik Basu]

I'm sorry but how the number of characters is 16. The command max([2+3-1,2,3]) produces the result 4.

The command max([2+3-1,2,3]) is not executed. It is considered a string, and MATLAB gives you the number of characters in that string.

 

[Image Analyst]

When you use length without parentheses, it assumes that everything after it is a string, so
length max([2+3-1,2,3])
is really the same as
length 'max([2+3-1,2,3])'
and the string 'max([2+3-1,2,3])' is 16 characters long.

If you would have used parentheses, it would not make the assumption that the argument is a string. It would evaluate the string. And max([2+3-1,2,3]) evaluates to max([4, 2, 3]) which evaluates to a double precision number 4. And length(4) is, of course, 1. So if you do
length(max([2+3-1,2,3]))
you'll get 1

Not really sure what you want, but those are two ways to proceed. Adapt it to get what you need or want.