Definition

MATLAB is one of the high-performance languages that is generally used for the purpose of technical computing. By integrating the visualization, and programming, MATLAB creates an easy-to-use environment where understandable mathematical notations are used to express the problems and solutions. This language is generally used in the development of algorithms, and computation and maths.

MATLAB application is built on the basis of MATLAB scripting language. This common uses of this MATLAB application include the deployment of Command Window in the form of an interactive mathematical shell or the execution of files that consist of MATLAB code.

History of MATLAB

The development of MATLAB began at the end of 1970s. The work on MATLAB was initiated by Cleve Moler, who chaired the computer science department at the University of New Mexico during that time. Cleve Moler started developing MATLAB with the aim of providing his students with an access to EISPACK and LINPACK without having any need to go for learning Fortran.

The language, however, soon became popular among a large number of university, specifically in the field of applied mathematics, because of its high usability in the said area. At the time of the visit that was made by Moler to Stanford University in the 1983, Jack Little, who was an engineer, came in contact with the MATLAB programming language.

After realising the fact that MATLAB had an impressive commercial potential, Jack Little went on for joining hands with Steve Bangert and Moler. These three then started rewriting MATLAB in C Language. This was also accompanied with the formation of MathWorks in the year 1984 to further enhance the development of MATLAB.

JACKPAC is the name that was given to the rewritten libraries of MATLAB. LAPACK was created in the year 2000. This was a new set of libraries which were used by the newer and modified MATLAB so as to incorporate the feature of matrix manipulation.

The early uses of MATLAB were specifically made by the practitioners as well as researchers that were associated with the field of control engineering, which was a speciality of Jack Little. The language, because of the high profile features, was quick to become popular in a variety of other domains as well.

The common uses of this language are now made in the field of education, especially in the teaching of numerical analysis, and linear algebra. Apart from that it is also deployed by the scientists who work in the area of image processing.

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