file list when "dir" to import data

I am using "dir" to import .txt filedata. Here is the simple code that I used.

liste = dir('*.txt');

My text files has number in the name. The problem is that dir read the file that has "10" ahead of "2". The file names in the "liste" are listed as follows.

How can I make the "liste" to have the sequentially increasing number in the name?

*1.txt, *2.txt,*3.txt,...

Thanks in advance.

[Mathieu NOE]

hello

the solution is here :

Natural-Order Filename Sort - File Exchange - MATLAB Central (mathworks.com)

Answer 1

[Stephen23]

"How can I make the "liste" to have the sequentially increasing number in the name?"

If you cannot change the filenames to use leading zeros then you will need to sort the filenames yourself. The easy way to do that is to download the function NATSORTFILES

https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/fileexchange/47434-natural-order-filename-sort

and use it like this:

liste = natsortfiles(liste);

[Sunghwan Kim]

Great Thanks.

[Image Analyst]

What about both our suggestions to change the way the filenames are created. Would that be a possibility? If so, then you don't need this third-party natsortfiles() function. (I'm guessing not otherwise you would have, and that you got the files already named that from some other person or place.)

Answer 2

[Image Analyst]

It's best if you can just add leading zeros when you create the files, like

baseFileName = sprintf('blah blah blah fubar-ROI%3.3d.TXT', yourNumber);

The %3.3d will make sure numbers appear as 001, 002, .... 010, 011, ......200, ..... 999 etc.

If your max number is bigger than 3 digits then use 4.4 or 5.5 or whatever.

Otherwise see

https://blogs.mathworks.com/pick/2014/12/05/natural-order-sorting/