AHG - Profitable Strategy for Struggling Traders

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Quote from majikman1:

I have been reading here for quite some time and have been using a trial account. I would like some opinions on Real time Charting info. I am going to start trading the emini and would like any and all info on charting software and brokerage companies and there fees. Or is Tradestation the way to go and use any brokerage or is there one that is good as other and there rt fees are reasonable. As I will be scalping the emini costs might be an issue. I have a few years of experience with the Large S&P from the past, but now I am retired and thought I would trade the emini. Any and all info and reccomendations are welcome.
Thanks,
MM
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There are so many different opinions. First, get a good broker. I use IB, but there are others. IB provides a sort of real-time feed. It may be good enough for you depending on time frame.

I've tried all of Quote.com services, all of DTN services, most of esignal services and many others. My opinion is that DTN iqfeed provides the most bang for the buck. You can also connect multiple charting applications to iqfeed at the same time without penalty. Some data providers allow this and some don't.

I've spent thousands, over 10, perhaps many times more on software. For the price and capabilities, Amibroker can't be beat. One time fee. Ensign is good. Linnsoft looks like it may be better. Tradestation? I'll never go back. I bought every version through 2000i Prosuite.

In conclusion, stick with the basics, i.e. good broker, good RT data, and one solid charting software. Avoid the 2,000 to 3,000 USD software packages for now. There will be plenty of time to buy them later.

If you would like to whet your appetite on what you may get into later, FibonacciTrader, and Wave59 offer a way of looking at the market that is so far beyond what basic technical analysis can give you that you can't put any of the software I mentioned previously in the same room with them.
 
I make 2-3 ES trades per day, 1-3 ES option trades per week, 3-4 stock option trades per week and I get everything I need from Interactive Brokers and Sierra Charts. The quotes are free and real-time and the charts are $10 per month.

TradeStation and eSignal are definitely stronger charting packages than Sierra but they contain far more 'stuff' than any trader needs. Also, eSignal has somehow corrupted their package to the point that it isn't worth the very high costs.
 
Quote from SWhiting:

I make 2-3 ES trades per day, 1-3 ES option trades per week, 3-4 stock option trades per week and I get everything I need from Interactive Brokers and Sierra Charts. The quotes are free and real-time and the charts are $10 per month.

TradeStation and eSignal are definitely stronger charting packages than Sierra but they contain far more 'stuff' than any trader needs. Also, eSignal has somehow corrupted their package to the point that it isn't worth the very high costs.
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I'm trading roughly the same numbers as you, maybe a little less. I used to trade significantly more. IB is really not real-time. It is close enough to say it is real-time, but a brief review of their method shows that it isn't. In addition, I perform various calculations on all data feeds that I receive data from, and then I display a chart with price and those calculations. I've had the resulting chart displayed with multiple data providers, side by side. The chart using IB didn't come close to showing the same data as the fee based providers. The fee based providers all showed the same or very similar charts. IB did not.

Once again, IB is close enough for the type of trading I'm doing now, but if you are really looking closely at the data and performing rather complex calculations it isn't even close to a fee based provider.
 
Just to nip any intense back and forth discussions in the bud, I'm not disagreeing with you. I am simply seeking to clarify the semantics of "real-time". If you are into data mining, mathematics etc, there is a difference in the end result depending on how "real-time" a real-time feed is.
 
Quote from johnpinochet:

The chart using IB didn't come close to showing the same data as the fee based providers. The fee based providers all showed the same or very similar charts. IB did not.
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How big is the IB's data delay according to your research? I was told that lag is only 1 second.
Thanks
 
Quote from Hombre:

How big is the IB's data delay according to your research? I was told that lag is only 1 second.
Thanks
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In terms of the actual price quote itself, I don't really think there was any lag at all, but I really wasn't writing about a lag.

Real-time quotes involve more than simply price. My calculations are dependent on every element of data being present and timestamped. I believe the short answer is that IB provides the user with a snapshot of data whereas the fee based providers provide you with tick by tick data.

If all you are doing is looking at the quote screen then IB is excellent. If you are performing calculations and if you think that what IB is reporting happened at "X" time, is what happened, then you are wrong.

Once again, for the type of trading mentioned, it doesn't mater, i.e. a trade once in awhile, throughout the week.
 
I've reading for hours and it is my intention to read everything in this (an related) thread(s). Can anyone kindly steer me to a summary or highlights post that I can read and thus have better context for the info here? By the way, I believe this is one of the finest, most comprehensive, well-intentioned, big-hearted forums/threads on the Web and some ambitious grad student looking for a thesis (or is it a dissertation? - you can tell from my spelling and lack of knowledge about graduate work that I am a high-school drop out) might undertake to examine this thread and write about its microcosmic dynamics. Anyway, after all that, don't forget I am hoping to be steered to a summary post. Regards,
- Benj
 
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