Problem 649. Return the first and last characters of a character array

Created by @bmtran (Bryant Tran)

Solve Later

{"parts":[{"partUri":"/matlab/document.xml","contentType":"application/vnd.mathworks.matlab.code.document+xml","content":"<?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"UTF-8\"?><w:document xmlns:w=\"http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/wordprocessingml/2006/main\"><w:body><w:p><w:pPr><w:pStyle w:val=\"text\"/><w:jc w:val=\"left\"/></w:pPr><w:r><w:t>Return the first and last characters of a character array, concatenated together. If there is only one character in the character array, the function should give that character back twice since it is both the first and last character of the character array.</w:t></w:r></w:p><w:p><w:pPr><w:pStyle w:val=\"text\"/><w:jc w:val=\"left\"/></w:pPr><w:r><w:t>Example:</w:t></w:r></w:p><w:p><w:pPr><w:pStyle w:val=\"code\"/></w:pPr><w:r><w:t><![CDATA[   stringfirstandlast('boring example') = 'be']]></w:t></w:r></w:p></w:body></w:document>","relationship":null}],"relationships":[{"relationshipType":"http://schemas.mathworks.com/matlab/code/2013/relationships/document","target":"/matlab/document.xml","relationshipId":"rId1"}]}

<div style = "text-align: start; line-height: 20.4333px; min-height: 0px; white-space: normal; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Menlo, Monaco, Consolas, monospace; font-style: normal; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: rgb(0, 0, 0); white-space: normal; "><div style="block-size: 123.433px; display: block; min-width: 0px; padding-block-start: 0px; padding-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 407px 61.7167px; transform-origin: 407px 61.7167px; vertical-align: baseline; "><div style="block-size: 63px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 21px; margin-block-end: 9px; margin-block-start: 2px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-inline-end: 10px; margin-inline-start: 4px; margin-left: 4px; margin-right: 10px; margin-top: 2px; perspective-origin: 384px 31.5px; text-align: left; transform-origin: 384px 31.5px; white-space: pre-wrap; margin-left: 4px; margin-top: 2px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-right: 10px; "><span style="block-size: auto; display: inline; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 364px 8px; transform-origin: 364px 8px; unicode-bidi: normal; "><span style="">Return the first and last characters of a character array, concatenated together. If there is only one character in the character array, the function should give that character back twice since it is both the first and last character of the character array.</span></span></div><div style="block-size: 21px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 21px; margin-block-end: 9px; margin-block-start: 2px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-inline-end: 10px; margin-inline-start: 4px; margin-left: 4px; margin-right: 10px; margin-top: 2px; perspective-origin: 384px 10.5px; text-align: left; transform-origin: 384px 10.5px; white-space: pre-wrap; margin-left: 4px; margin-top: 2px; margin-bottom: 9px; margin-right: 10px; "><span style="block-size: auto; display: inline; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; perspective-origin: 28.5px 8px; transform-origin: 28.5px 8px; unicode-bidi: normal; "><span style="">Example:</span></span></div><div style="background-color: rgb(247, 247, 247); block-size: 20.4333px; border-bottom-left-radius: 4px; border-bottom-right-radius: 4px; border-end-end-radius: 4px; border-end-start-radius: 4px; border-start-end-radius: 4px; border-start-start-radius: 4px; border-top-left-radius: 4px; border-top-right-radius: 4px; margin-block-end: 10px; margin-block-start: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-inline-end: 3px; margin-inline-start: 3px; margin-left: 3px; margin-right: 3px; margin-top: 10px; perspective-origin: 404px 10.2167px; transform-origin: 404px 10.2167px; margin-left: 3px; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-right: 3px; "><div style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); border-bottom-left-radius: 0px; border-bottom-right-radius: 0px; border-end-end-radius: 0px; border-end-start-radius: 0px; border-inline-end-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-inline-end-style: solid; border-inline-end-width: 1px; border-inline-start-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-inline-start-style: solid; border-inline-start-width: 1px; border-left-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(233, 233, 233); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-start-end-radius: 0px; border-start-start-radius: 0px; border-top-left-radius: 0px; border-top-right-radius: 0px; margin-block-end: 0px; margin-block-start: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; min-block-size: 18px; min-height: 18px; padding-inline-start: 4px; padding-left: 4px; white-space: nowrap; "><span style="block-size: auto; border-inline-end-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-inline-end-style: none; border-inline-end-width: 0px; border-inline-start-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-inline-start-style: none; border-inline-start-width: 0px; border-left-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-left-style: none; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); border-right-style: none; border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; margin-inline-end: 45px; margin-right: 45px; min-block-size: 0px; min-height: 0px; padding-inline-start: 0px; padding-left: 0px; perspective-origin: 184px 8.5px; transform-origin: 184px 8.5px; unicode-bidi: normal; white-space: pre; margin-right: 45px; "><span style="margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-right: 0px; perspective-origin: 88px 8.5px; transform-origin: 88px 8.5px; ">   stringfirstandlast(</span><span style="border-block-end-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-block-start-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-bottom-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-inline-end-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-inline-start-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-left-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-right-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-top-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); caret-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); color: rgb(170, 4, 249); column-rule-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-right: 0px; outline-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); perspective-origin: 64px 8.5px; text-decoration: none; text-decoration-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); text-emphasis-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); transform-origin: 64px 8.5px; ">'boring example'</span><span style="margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-right: 0px; perspective-origin: 16px 8.5px; transform-origin: 16px 8.5px; ">) = </span><span style="border-block-end-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-block-start-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-bottom-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-inline-end-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-inline-start-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-left-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-right-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); border-top-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); caret-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); color: rgb(170, 4, 249); column-rule-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); margin-inline-end: 0px; margin-right: 0px; outline-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); perspective-origin: 16px 8.5px; text-decoration: none; text-decoration-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); text-emphasis-color: rgb(170, 4, 249); transform-origin: 16px 8.5px; ">'be'</span></span></div></div></div></div>

Solve

Solution Stats

14221 Solutions
7869 Solvers

Last Solution submitted on Jun 06, 2023

Last 200 Solutions

Problem Comments

4 Comments

4 Comments

Show 1 older comment

Rik on 19 Jan 2021

There is a difference between string and char array since R2016b. Before that they could be used interchangeably, but now that is no longer true (although I believe some doc pages are still not careful about this).

goc3 on 20 Jan 2021

The title and description have been updated, along with a few new test cases.

Bryce Lewis on 5 May 2021

Wow this actually is such a great question

ML on 28 Jan 2023

good problem

Solution Comments

Show comments

Problem Recent Solvers7869

Problem Tags

Community Treasure Hunt

Find the treasures in MATLAB Central and discover how the community can help you!

Start Hunting!

Problem 649. Return the first and last characters of a character array

Solution Stats

Last 200 Solutions

Problem Comments

Solution Comments

Problem Recent Solvers7869

Suggested Problems

More from this Author56

Problem Tags

Community Treasure Hunt

Problem 649. Return the first and last characters of a character array

Solution Stats

Last 200 Solutions

Problem Comments

Solution Comments

Problem Recent Solvers7869

Suggested Problems

More from this Author56

Problem Tags

Community Treasure Hunt

Players