Optimize Desktop Layout for Limited Screen Space

Desktop Layout

You can close, minimize, and undock desktop tools to optimize the desktop layout. Once you design a layout you like, you can save it for reuse.

This table shows how you can optimize the MATLAB^® desktop layout on your screen.

Action Procedure

Minimize or restore the MATLAB Toolstrip

At the upper right corner of the Toolstrip, click or .

Open or hide a tool

On the Home tab, in the Environment section, click Layout. Then, under Show, select, or clear desktop tools you want to show or hide.

You also can use a function to open desktop tools. For example, to open the Editor, use edit. To open the Profiler, use profile with the viewer option.

Maximize a tool

Do one of the following:

Double-click the title bar in that tool.
On the title bar of a docked tool, click , and then select Maximize.

Minimize a tool

On the title bar of a docked tool, click , and then select Minimize .

The button for the tool appears along the edge of the MATLAB desktop indicated by the arrow in the Minimize icon. Move the button to a different edge of the desktop by dragging it.

Use a minimized tool

Click the button for the tool to open the tool temporarily on the desktop. When you finish using the tool, click another tool.

Restore a tool as it appeared before maximizing or minimizing

Do one of the following:

Double-click the title bar of the maximized tool, or the button of the minimized tool.
On the title bar of the tool, click , and then select Restore.
Click the Restore button on the title bar in that tool.

Move a tool

Drag a tool by its title bar to a new location. The status bar indicates where the tool moves if you release the mouse.

Close a tool

On the title bar of a docked tool, click , and then select Close.

Show or hide title bars

On the Home tab, in the Environment section, click Layout. Then, under Show, select, or clear Panel Titles.

Show or hide a toolbar in a figure window

From the View menu, select the toolbar of interest.

Undock tools to move them outside the desktop

Do one of the following:

Drag a tool by its title bar to a new location outside of the MATLAB desktop.
On the title bar of the tool, click , and then select Undock.

Move undocked tools back to the desktop

At the upper right of the tool panel, click , and then select Dock.

Manage a desktop arrangement

Save an arrangement
Use an arrangement
Rename or delete a saved arrangement

On the Home tab, in the Environment section, click Layout, and then select an option.

Note: MATLAB stores the arrangements you save as XML files in the preferences folder for MATLAB. The layout last used in a session is MATLABDesktop.xml. The MATLABDesktop.xml file loads when you start MATLAB and is overwritten when you close MATLAB.

When you end a session, MATLAB saves the current desktop arrangement. The next time you start MATLAB, the desktop appears as you left it. However, tools such as the Help browser, web browser, and Variables editor do not reopen automatically, even if they were open when you ended the last session. You can use startup options to specify tools that you want to open on startup. For more information, see Specify Startup Options.

Document Layout

When you open MATLAB documents, they open in the associated tool, such as the Editor or Variables editor. The Editor and Variables editor appear in the position they occupied when last used. Entries for undocked documents appear on the Windows^® task bar, or the equivalent for your platform. Click the task bar entry for a document to make that document active.

This table shows how to optimize the layout of documents within a tool.

Action	Procedure
Move or hide document tabs	On the View tab, in the Document Tabs section, click Tabs Position , and then select an option.
Reorder documents	Drag a document tab to a different position. To alphabetize names of documents, in the Document Tabs section of the View tab, select Alphabetize.
Arrange or tile documents	In the Editor and Variables editor, select the View tab. In the Tiles section, click a tile option. In a Figure panel, Help browser, or web browser, select a tile option, , , , or , on the right side of the toolbar.
Move a tiled document	Drag the document tab to another tile. If you drag it to a tile that already contains a document, the document you are dragging covers up the other document.
Undock a document	Right-click the document tab and then select Undock.
Close and save the document currently displaying	Click .
Close a document in the Editor without saving	Click Ctrl + .

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