Development Environment

Using the Import Wizard with Binary Data Files

To import text data using the Import Wizard, perform these steps:

1. Start the Import Wizard, by selecting the Import Data option on the MATLAB File menu. MATLAB displays a file selection dialog box. You can also use the uiimport function to start the Import Wizard.

To use the Import Wizard to import data from the clipboard, select the Paste Special option on the MATLAB Edit menu. You can also right-click in the MATLAB command window and choose Paste Special from the context menu. Skip to step 3 to continue importing from the clipboard.

2. Specify the file you want to import in the file selection dialog box and click Open. The Import Wizard opens the file and attempts to process its contents. See Viewing the variables for more information.
3. Select the variables that you want to import. By default, the Import Wizard creates variables depending on the type of data in the file.
4. Click Finish to import the data into the workspace.

Viewing the Variables

When the Import Wizard opens a binary data file, it attempts to process the data in the file, creating variables from the data it finds in the file.

For example, if you use the Import Wizard to import this sample MAT-file, my_data.mat,

A =
    1 2 3 4 5
    6 7 8 9 10

B = 
    a test string

it creates two variables, listed in the Preview pane. You can select the variables you want to import by clicking in the check box next to its name. All variables are preselected by default.

For other binary data types, such as images and sound files, the Import Wizard displays information about the data in the left pane and provides a Preview button in the right pane of the dialog box. Click the preview button to view (or listen to) the data.

For example, when used to import a movie in Audio Video Interleaved (AVI) format, the Import Wizard displays this dialog box.

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Importing Binary Data

Using Import Functions with Binary Data