Programming and Data Types

Historical Note - Evaluating Function Names

Evaluating a function by means of a function handle replaces the former MATLAB mechanism of evaluating a function through a string containing the function name. For example, of the following two lines of code that evaluate the humps function, the second supersedes the first and is considered to be the preferable mechanism to use.

• feval('humps', 0.5674);      % uses a function name string
  feval(@humps, 0.5674);       % uses a function handle
  

To support backward compatibility, feval still accepts a function name string as a first argument and evaluates the function named in the string. However, function handles offer you the additional performance, reliability, and source file control benefits listed in Benefits of Using Function Handles.

Handling Error Conditions

MATLAB Classes and Objects