What Is A Scalar String?

Can someone please tell me what is meant by "scalar string object"?

I am finding it difficult to understand how a string can be a scalar (to me, scalars represent a multiplier?).

I have searched the MathWorks Documentation (Define String Scalar Inputs [states how to define a string scalar but not what one is]) and still can not wrap my head around what is meant.

I have also searched MATLAB Answers (SWITCH expression must be a scalar or string constant. , Why do I receive an error about a SWITCH expression when using ODE15S within MATLAB? & String [converting a "tokenized" document]).

Does the "Scalar String" defintion mean single elements comprising of multiple strings, for example:

A (1,1) = "Todays Date Is June 24th, 2019" as a string
A (1,1) = "Todays" "Date" "Is" "June" "24th," "2019" as a scalar string object

or am I completely off the mark?

[dpb]

A scalar string is simply a string that is not an array of strings...see https://www.mathworks.com/help/fixedpoint/ug/code-generation-for-strings.html beginning discussion.

[Jay]

Thank you dpb, that is the information I required.

[David Goodmanson]

Hi Justin

a = "etaoinshrdlu"
class(a)
   ans = 'string'
size(a)
   ans = 1  1
a(5:6)  % produces an error

b = 'etaoinshrdlu'
class(b)
   ans = 'char'
size(b)
   ans = 1 12
b(5:6)
   ans = 'in'

so character arrays behave like you might expect, but strings are an entirely different animal. Strings are useful for some purposes, no doubt..

[Walter Roberson]

Scalar in computer programs usually means "exactly one item". In MATLAB scalar numbers are also array that are 1x1. In many programming languages, arrays and scalars are considered to be different data types. For example in C if you have

A = 42;

Then that is a scalar value, and you cannot use A[0] (array indexing starts at 0 in C)

In MATLAB, a scalar string object holds exactly one string, which is a complete vector of characters.

[Jay]

Thank you David and Walter for further explaining what a Scalar String means.