setting initial text in uicontrol popupmenu

I want to make a popupmenu in GUI where possible selections are e.g. {'1', '2', '3', '4', '5'} but the initial string in this field is 'signID' and this string is not a selectable option on the dropdown

Essentially I want the user to have a "hint" as to what this selection is about, but I dont want him to be able to select that hint as a viable option

How can I do this? so far I tried seting properties 'edit' and 'Text' to my desired string but both dont seem applicable for the popupmenu. I realise I could just add a text field over the popupmenu, but I would prefer to go with the hint inside the popupmenu to save some space

Thanks in advance

*I am using matlab 2013a

Answer 1

[Adam]

Use the

TooltipString

property of the listbox to provide the hint.

If selections are as obscure as just 1-5 though I would favour a more visible title (e.g. putting the popup in a panel with a title). Tooltips are good, but only if you hover over the component.