Why do I get an error when setting optimization options according to the online documentation?

When I set optimization options using online documentation, I get an error similar to one of the following:

 

Error using optimoptions (line 105)

'SpecifyObjectiveGradient' is not an option for FMINUNC.

A list of options can be found on the FMINUNC documentation page.

 

or

 

Error using optimset (line 213)

Unrecognized parameter name 'SpecifyObjectiveGradient'.  Please see the options table in

the documentation for a list of acceptable option parameters. Note that some parameters

are only supported by OPTIMOPTIONS. Link to options table

 

Answer 1

[MathWorks Support Team]

The online documentation is for the latest MATLAB version. Many option names changed in R2016a. So you get an error when you use an R2016a option name in earlier versions.

 

To obtain documentation relevant for your MATLAB version, use the installed documentation. To do so, enter at the command line

doc

 

You can also see online documentation for older versions in the archived documentation (login required):

https://www.mathworks.com/help/doc-archives.html

 

For information about changes in option names in R2016a, see

https://www.mathworks.com/help/optim/ug/optimization-options-reference.html