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I open MATLAB:

$ matlab &
[1] 3099

I right-click its new icon on the dock and click 'Lock to Launcher'.

The next time I try to use MATLAB, I click the new dock icon. MATLAB acts like it's succesfully opening (shows the startup graphic briefly, taskbar icon flashes like it's in-progress), but then it stops, apparently automatically terminating.

What's wrong? How do I add MATLAB to dock (so I can merely click an icon instead of opening it from Terminal)?

I suspect what's wrong is that unlike other software with a 'permanent' something (process ID?), MATLAB's something changes each time, and so 'Lock to Launcher' doesn't work to open it each time ...

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  • Have you tried creating a .desktop for MATLAB? – M. Becerra Jan 23 '18 at 8:27
  • No. I don't know what a .desktop is nor how to create one, and I suspect the 'matlab' command is a symbolic link (whatever that is) rather than an executable. (How did you format that text, by the way?) – DBinJP Jan 23 '18 at 10:33
  • You can figure that out with type -a matlab – M. Becerra Jan 23 '18 at 10:35
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    Btw, to format code or similar, surround it with ` – M. Becerra Jan 23 '18 at 10:42
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    No, you should type type -a matlab. The command is called "type" – gustavwiz Jan 24 '18 at 9:01
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Create a matlab.desktop file in ~/.local/share/applications

[Desktop Entry]
Name=Matlab
Type=Application
Exec=*location to matlab*
Icon=*location to icon (optional)*
Terminal=true

You can use whereis matlab to find the location to matlab.

The last line is optional, either you have to find a suitable icon for matlab on your computer, or download one and store it where appropriate.

Finally, make it executable with sudo chmod +x matlab.desktop, or by right clicking on the file in the file manager, and make it executable under permissions.

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  • In that folder there already is a file matlab_r2017b_-_student_use.desktop, however Right-Click -> Open returns the error message that it's untrusted due to installation from an unknown source. (Apparently doing something with it can execute the command /usr/local/MATLAB/R2017b/bin/glnxa64/MATLAB...) I see the Execute checkbox to mark in Properties > Permissions, and that turned the default Aa icon into the MATLAB logo icon! Then I was able to drag and drop it onto the dock! ... However, the behavior is the same as the OP: It appears to self-terminate. What should I do with this .desktop? – DBinJP Jan 24 '18 at 8:01
  • It turns out you have to add Terminal=true to the desktop file to make sure it doesn't self terminate. – gustavwiz Apr 13 at 15:00

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