Question

I want to speedup some matlab code involving a loop. A common solution is to code the loop in C and call it from matlab. However, I was wondering if I can get similar benefits from implementing the loop in Java instead – perhaps the just-in-time compilation makes it faster?

Answer 1

Before you start working with outside code: Have you pre-allocated your variables? Can you vectorize your loop? While the Matlab just-in-time compiler has become a lot better over the years, there are still cases where vectorization brings significant improvement. Also, note that quite a few Matlab functions (those for which you don’t see code when you open them in the editor) are implemented in C or Fortran, so you may not observe a dramatic speed gain.

If you can’t speed up your Matlab code by better writing it in Matlab, and if it does look likely that reimplementing might actually bring you any benefit, then C might be fastest, though Java might be not too far behind (again it depends on the code you want to speed up – it might be a good idea if you posted it here). If you’re much more familiar with Java than C, I suggest trying to go the Java route.