MATLAB: Copy figure (short, probably some unset variable)

Question

I am using R2019b Update 3 on a linux box. My figures have everything under edit from "undo" to "delete" grayed out. I can't use them in gui. Key strokes don't work either.

So I found:

h=plot(index,data)

This produces the following from matlab:

h = 
  2×1 Line array:
  Line
  Line

Then

  hgexport(h,'-clipboard')

produces:

Error using hgexport
First argument must be a handle to a figure. 

Do I have something setup wrong in the install? Ho come I cannot copy a figure? I can export setup as a jpg file of the figure.

Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

h is the variable name, not the handle. To get the handle of the current figure you can do:

h_handle = gcf; % get current figure
hgexport(h_handle, '-clipboard');

For more general cases, see the accepted answer to this question: How do I get the handles of all open figures in MATLAB