Ignore output arguments (R2006a)

Some versions of MATLAB allow to ignore selected output arguments by using '~'. How can I do that in R2006a (v7.2)?

For example: [Y,I]=sort(X) --> [~,I]=sort(X); I just want the second output

Thanks in advance

Answer 1

[Oleg Komarov]

You cannot.

This feature was introduced in R2009b: Ignore Selected Arguments on Function Calls

What you can do is:

1. [I,I] = sort(X)
2. [trash,I] = sort(X)

In the first case, you'll keep only one variable in the workspace, but it's not very elegant (in my opinion). In the second case, it's immediate that you need only the second output.

[Jan]

The [I,I] method forces me to think twice when I read the code, while the [trash, I] is trivial. An option is to add "clear('trash')" to release the occupied memory.

[Sandra]

Thanks Oleg and Jan for your answers.