MATLAB online documentation redirection is very time-consuming

When I query the syntax help for a function in the MATLAB environment (whether it is MATLAB Online or the desktop version of MATLAB), pressing F1 opens the system browser page. However, this loading process involves multiple URL redirects, which results in very slow access to the documentation. For example, the process can take up to 14 seconds to open a stable documentation page.

However, if I enter the function in the search box of the online help documentation, it is very fast, and there are no repeated redirects, so the loading is quick.

Microsoft Edge browser 131.0.2903.86 (versioin) (64 bit)

[Walter Roberson]

Data point:

I am in Canada, and my network connection is nominally 1 gigabit. From the time I press F1 until the time the help screen is fully drawn is at most 1.5 seconds. Any redirection is happening too quickly to observe; from the time the page first becomes visible until the time that it finishes rendering, the URL is always the same. The URL portion of my browser's toolbar first draws without two decorations on the left, and then fills in the two decorations; time is spent on that redrawing.

nslookup of www.mathworks.com shows that it resolves to e1597.x.akamaiedge.net for me. In turn, traceroute to there shows a couple of hops that are obviously my cable provider, then a hop that is less obviously my cable provider (but is still my cable provider), and then ae3.ctl-ord4.netarch.akamai.com -- so my cable provider appears to be peering directly with akamaiedge.net

[cui,xingxing]

@Walter Roberson Thank you for your sharing, I am located in mainland China, and my local broadband network speed is also 1 Gbps. The reason for the slow redirection speed might be due to geographic region redirection settings on the MATHWORKS website. I hope the documentation engineers can fix this issue as soon as possible!

Answer 1

[Shin]

Hello, there are two things you may try.

Option 1: Install the documentation locally on the computer

Follow the steps listed at https://www.mathworks.com/help/install/ug/install-documentation-on-offline-machines.html , afterwards change the preferences from within matlab to use the local documentation by checking Preferences > MATLAB > Help > Documentation Location > Installed locally

Option 2 (only for R2024b): Revert the old help browser instead of opening the documentation in the system browser by entering the following code into the MATLAB console

s = settings;
s.matlab.help.SystemBrowserForDoc.PersonalValue = {};

You can revert this setting by entering the following code into the MATLAB console

s = settings;
if(hasPersonalValue(s.matlab.help.SystemBrowserForDoc))
  clearPersonalValue(s.matlab.help.SystemBrowserForDoc);
end

Please be mindful that the latter option employs undocumented behavior which might change at any point after a product update.

The offline documentation may be downloaded directly from the following links:

https://www.mathworks.com/doc-iso-r2024b-win

https://www.mathworks.com/doc-iso-r2024b-linux

https://www.mathworks.com/doc-iso-r2024b-mac

https://www.mathworks.com/doc-iso-r2024b-maca

[cui,xingxing]

Thank you for your answer. These are two temporary workaround solutions that I had to resort to.

BTW, A few months ago(Before asking another question), the first-time access to online documents did not take a particularly long time.

[san]

In fact, it’s not just the access to online documents; there are significant redirect delays for the entire MathWorks website, including first-time access to the community. This issue does occur in mainland China.

[cui,xingxing]

I tested accessing the official website, and it took about 7 seconds to stabilize the page.The redirect URL and the screen changes are quite noticeable.

[Esther]

Hi @cui,xingxing and @san

Are you accessing the website or help doc using a VPN?

Have you tried clearing your browser cookies or switching to a different browser to see if that helps?

If the issue persists, please feel free to contact the local support team:联系支持人员 - MATLAB & Simulink

[cui,xingxing]

@Esther I am not using a VPN now, although I have used one before. Thank you for your suggestion. I will reach out to technical support when I have time.

Answer 2

[Axel]

This drives me crazy! And offline documentation is a mood workaround for a very disfunctional web. Also would just like to search the forums, without every f-ing page reloading all the time!