How to read a file from a specific directory?

I'll explain my question with an example.

Lets say I have 26 folders in my working directory named A to Z, and each of these folders have 10 sub-folders with names 1 to 10.

Now, in a function I am preparing, I want to access files in a particular folder, which is defined by the input arguments when i call the function.

If I wanted to point to a file named xyz in folder 5 in folder A, doing it manually on command window would be /A/5/xyz

In my function, A and 5 are defined by the input argument. I tried converting the input argument A and 5 to strings str_fol1 and str_fol2 and point to /str_fol1/str_fol2/xyz and /'str_fol1'/'str_fol2'/xyz but it dint work.

Can anyone guide me, as to how to point to a file when the path to it is being defined by input arguments in a function?

Thanks

Answer 1

[Chirag Gupta]

Use

    full_filename = fullfile(str_fol1,str_fol2,filename);

http://www.mathworks.com/help/releases/R2011a/techdoc/ref/fullfile.html

[Ashish]

Hi Chirag,

Thanks that was useful.

Now I am able to create a string with the path to the required file. But I am not able to use it to access the required file.

I can read it by

A=dlmread('C:\Users\Ashish\Documents\Programming\MATLAB\test_files\110808\data1105',' ')

but after I use fullfile and have the path in lets say 'f', the statement

A=dlmread('f',' ') doesn't work.

where f is a string C:\Users\Ashish\Documents\Programming\MATLAB\test_files\110808\data1105

[Chirag Gupta]

use dlmread(f,''); f is already a string you don't need single quotes around it

[Ashish]

Thanks! It worked.

[Pamela]

Thank you Ashish for asking and Chirag for answering! This was the one missing key that will make my life much easier :)

[Jan]

@Pamela: If this question and answer help you, you can vote for it.

[sandy]

hi guys...i have a prob here...if i have a folder called 'MAIN',inside this sub folders from A TO Z,which contains many zip files...i need to access those zip files from each folder(A TO Z),and to unzip them..it is possible

Answer 2

[Paulo Silva]

%assuming:
%folder is a string with just the folder name, ex A
%file is a string with just the file name
file=[folder filesep subfolder filesep file]
%code to read the file, it depends on the file type and format

[Tulips]

hi Silva, can you help me how to display let's say 'the output recognized as bump sign'. the bump sign is red as 1.jpg in a folder. in that folder consist of 10 images with .jpg extension. How cn I rename 1.jpg of the output as bump sign?