How to return files with a specific extension using 'dir'?

The command

dir *.bmp

will print to the command window the names of all files in the current directory ending with the extension .bmp. I know the following is not valid MATLAB syntax, but is there a command that would be the equivalent of

fileList = dir *.bmp;

I want to create a list of all files ending with a specific extension using minimal code. Currently I have the following:

files = dir;
L = length(files);
index = false(1, L);
for k = 1:L
    M = length(files(k).name);
    if M > 4 && strcmp(files(k).name(M-3:M), '.bmp')
        index(k) = true;
    end
end
images = files(index);

There must be a simpler way. Thank you in advance for any comments.

[Stephen23]

"There must be a simpler way."

Of course, just use function sytnax rather than command syntax:

https://www.mathworks.com/help/matlab/matlab_prog/command-vs-function-syntax.html

Answer 1

[Image Analyst]

Try

fileList = dir('*.bmp');

Also, see the FAQ: http://matlab.wikia.com/wiki/FAQ#How_can_I_process_a_sequence_of_files.3F, particulalry the second option.

[John]

Ahhh. Thank you.

[Sebastian Amann]

NOTE: will also return folders with name myfolder.bmp

[Image Analyst]

True. But I don't think it's wise to have a folder with the name that a single image typically has. Virtually always, files the end in .bmp are image files, not folders.

Answer 2

[Tron]

Old question, but I found another useful way of doing this. If you have a specific directory you want to search in, you can use a combination of dir and fullfile.

Try

folder = uigetdir();
fileList = dir(fullfile(folder, '*.bmp'));

[Abhilash Sukumari]

Excellent answer. Such an approach with UI implementation is what sets MATLAB apart from other freeware platforms. It's all inbuilt with one package.

[Sebastian Priebe]

Matlab is neither freeware, nor does this set it apart from them. For example in python you can just use the tkinter module and get the same.

[Sean Nomoto]

or pyqt5 too