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I use IB, and that is one of the approaches I considered. But at the time, I was trading fully automated, and I also considering having multiple copies of the IB software and my app. I could add computers as needed, perhaps a whole room full. There is an exemption for [something like] max...

ES futures and ES options have the same notional value, same risk and margin requirement. Futures options margin are determined by SPAN rules and margin requirements change continuously with changes in the price of the underlying. Some people find that disconcerting. ES futures trade about...

I was noodling this idea a while back. With changes in technology, I believe it would be technically possible to manage individual accounts at $50k and possibly smaller. It's the regulatory hurdles and overhead expense that make it impractical. And small investors are often more trouble than...

The SPX options are European style (no early exercise) and cash-settled. They're technically securities, but are taxed like futures. I seem to recall the SPX options are still pit-traded, whereas ES options are traded on Globex only.

It took 24 pages, but finally we have a sensible comment. At the start of the thread, there was a mad scramble to be first to declare the story bogus. That's an interesting phenomenon in itself and perhaps a topic for another thread. I find the story of Karen's trading style unremarkable...

Years ago I thought I might want to manage money, so I registered as a CTA. I had a track record and a trading style, but wasn't really clear on how I would build an investor base. What I discovered was that I was the world's most inept salesman, so I withdrew my registration. Lately I have...

From the viewpoint of offering "retail" size investments, there are a couple problems that I think account for shortage of offerings. I am surprised that these well-known CTAs are even offering small minimums. The first problem is that investors looking for low minimums usually don't have...

I was under the impression that not much retail investing in CTAs takes place. Can you tell us more about it. Are they running pools? What are the regulatory issues? I recently read an interview with Jack Schwager (of Wizards fame) in which he says that allowing mutual funds that invest in...

The FiOS line comes into the optical network terminator (ONT), which as you said is usually in the garage. I had FiOS with Verizon in Portland at a time when they were offering good deals, including free installation. The installer, who I presume was a contractor, was very accommodating. I...

If you're talking about capital productivity, alternative investments, and what is possible, I suppose the most important number would be return on invested capital (ROIC), possible risk-adjusted, over time. I agree that it helps to know what is reasonable, as the sports analogy shows. But it...

"Frequency" as it has been used here is confusing. There are two ways to increase the number of contracts traded: increase the number of setups traded, or increase the trade size. The former is mostly determined by market conditions, what the market gives us. The latter is a function of...

IB data subscriptions update about every 300 milliseconds, except for a couple stock index futures which update about every 100 msec. I hear a lot of complaints about sampled data, but what the complainers seem not to realize is that when trading via the Internet, you can have complete data...

Yes, I currently trade options on futures. I think futures are easier than stocks, and I like the leverage and favorable tax treatment. For the 12/21/2012 trade in ES, as I recall the market dropped after hours about 40 handles and recovered about 30 in a matter of seconds. That was expensive.

I just tried it with edemo/demouser, and it works for me. I ran this test program: C:\Jts\TestActiveXClient_VC\Release\client3.exe

Quite the contrary. I am selling volatility market neutral. I tried options on ES and quit that after getting whacked last December. I am more concerned about quick anomalies (i.e. flash crash) than big moves like in 2008.

There have always been discrepancies among the various statements I get from IB. If the amounts are small (e.g. a few dollars), I use the numbers from the Form 1099, and file it that way. If the numbers are bigger, I might discuss it with IB, but I have never had to do that. I don't think...

I spent a lot of time and effort trying to find a way to profitably day trade the ES, and always came up empty-handed. But unlike many ETers, I make no claim that it cannot be done. My policy is to gather the low-hanging fruit, and ES seems to be just out of my reach. My game these days is...

Try "ECBOT" for exchange. In general, what works in the TWS usually works in the API too.

I didn't do a formal study, but I concluded from experience that the ES is so efficiently priced that no stop placement is any better than any other. Disclaimer: I have quit trading the ES (for now). I love the liquidity in ES, but I think there is easier money to be had.

I don't open option trades on expiration day, because I believe I have better plays. But I agree with Twinsen that in general there are no risk-free option trades. I found Augen's book useful for getting me over my sqeemishness about holding options to expiration...