Function "fix" with numbers/characters

I used a function, fix, in a way which was not supposed to be used as below. fix 5.4 instead of fix(5.4)

fix 5.4 gives "53 46 52" which is in ASC II. If I use other functions like round, etc. these acted the same way. I just wonder why it happened and what it is doing.

Thank you.

Answer 1

[James Tursa]

When you invoke a function without using the parentheses, MATLAB regards all of the inputs as strings. This is true for any function, not just fix. Note that when you entered the function without parentheses, the arguments are shown in purple font ... your clue that these are regarded as strings.

fix 5.4     <-- The 5.4 appears in purple font

is the same as

fix('5.4')   <-- The '5.4' appears in purple font

Answer 2

[Stephen23]

Command syntax (all words are strings, each space separates input arguments):

 fix 5.4

is equivalent to writing this:

 fix('5.4')

Function syntax (inputs are interpreted as their native type):

 fix(5.4)

These are two totally different things, as is explained here:

https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/answers/315939-difference-between-command-and-function

https://www.mathworks.com/help/matlab/matlab_prog/command-vs-function-syntax.html