Edwards 'n' Magee = useless for daytrading?

Originally posted by nitro

I am not saying that _ALL_ indicators are worthless, just all the ones I have seen in books...
Hmm...I guess I must have missed the indicators chapter in E&M ;-)

--Derek
 
Originally posted by nitro


I am not saying that _ALL_ indicators are worthless, just all the ones I have seen in books, with the exception of TIKI, TICK and PREM.


To any newbs reading this, whenever you see someone make a statement like that it usually means that the trader making it hasn't found a way to use the said indicator.
 
Originally posted by nitro

Kymar, if this was anybody but you, I wouldn't go into this - but you have been very helpful to me, so...

IMHO, support and resistance levels are absolutely critical, specially in spoos trading. However, the S/R that I use are NOT anywhere to be seen in TAST or anywhere else that I am aware of for that matter. In the chatroom, I do take special notice of H/S, but I will almost always add [I get tired of repeating it] of how more often than not this H/S is gonna be worthless - and about 85% of the time, it is worthless.

Because I am primarily a listed stock trader, my most important "Indicators" are the spoos tick and 1 minute with:

1) Specialized dynamic S/R level
2) What you may have seen me call MONSTER, which is not an "Indicator" per se, more like an "inside day" is an indicator [There are currently only two times that I take a spoos trade - when I get a MONSTER, or there is a panic selloff...Sometimes I will use the SPY instead of the ES for the trade.]

Alongside the spoos,

3) The NQ's - I will watch the NQ's to see who is "boss" today - ES or NQ.

4) MSFT, IBM, INTC [mostly to use in conjunction with NQ] and WMT, and GE [They give me a feel for how the overall market "feels" today.

5) The TICK, TIKI, PREM and VIX as well as the DOW and the NASDAQ. I have TRIN up as well, but I do not "get it."

1 - 5 are ALWAYS visible no matter what else I may be looking at - Unfortunately, I have to duplicate this on every workspace in TS6, as there is no way that I know to ask TS to display a set of windows in all workspaces.

6) Tons of Stocks and Sectors of Stocks with their High and Low for the day, their corresponding Index, and specialized "Indicators" that help me gauge the [mis]pricing of a pair.


That is it - the rest is trash, I wouldn't be caught dead with MACD or any of that other crap on one of my spoos chart or stock charts [with the exception of the mentioned custom S/R's and "MONSTER"]

The spoos are a STORY constantly being told - they are in a constant dance with with the NQ's, as well as "news." I don't want "lines" on my screen polluting or "forcing my eye" into some prejudice.

I am not saying that _ALL_ indicators are worthless, just all the ones I have seen in books, with the exception of TIKI, TICK and PREM.

nitro

I hadn't intended to reply to this post. It stands on it's own. But I see you're taking a few shots here from Daniel, who has directed his post to newbies. So I thought I would just say that I thought your post was excellent. You use many of the same "indicators" as I do, and have for years.

Likewise, as I have posted elsewhere, I don't like having the "other" package type indicators "polluting" my chart as you say....because as you so correctly point out they have the ability to influence your actions at just the wrong time.

Good post. Newbies would be well served to read your post, and see how they might be able to implement it.

OldTrader
 
Originally posted by OldTrader


I hadn't intended to reply to this post. It stands on it's own. But I see you're taking a few shots here from Daniel, who has directed his post to newbies. So I thought I would just say that I thought your post was excellent. You use many of the same "indicators" as I do, and have for years.

Likewise, as I have posted elsewhere, I don't like having the "other" package type indicators "polluting" my chart as you say....because as you so correctly point out they have the ability to influence your actions at just the wrong time.

Good post. Newbies would be well served to read your post, and see how they might be able to implement it.

OldTrader
Oldtrader,

You remind me of a Grandmaster trader that I learned to trade from...

nitro
 
Originally posted by Kymar


Oh well, so I guess I'll have to do something else this weekend than debate TAST with you... darn. Still, thanks for you reply. Not to make you self-conscious, but it's interesting to picture what you're doing.

As you know, I trade individual stocks pretty much exclusively. I do so based on a very narrow set of pattern-based set-ups, with filters based primarily on market internals - which I in turn find more easily readable in relationship to structural S/R as well as classical price patterns in the major indices. On occasion, the situation of one of my main trading patterns within some classical (E&M) pattern in a larger time frame may make me a bit more aggressive on entry and willing to press before exit.

In the case of the much-discussed H&S pattern - I find it, if properly filtered and understood, to be more useful and tradable than many other traders and analysts seem to. Also, regardless of how the lower-level H&S's trade, when I see a nice one forming in the longer-term time frames, I'll usually put whatever stock or index on close watch: Whether or not things go the distance in the classic H&S breakdown mode, I expect increased likelihood of some form of day-tradable activity. If we had decided to take this to the level of a debate, I would also have produced examples of intraday wedges and flags, which I seem to observe more frequently, and which can often be traded in the intraday time frame in a manner quite similar to the E&M daily/weekly methods.
Heh,

I have to say that it amazes me that the stuff works - but I take it at face value when you say it works for you.

nitro
 
Originally posted by nitro

Heh,

I have to say that it amazes me that the stuff works - but I take it at face value when you say it works for you.

nitro

Well, I didn't say that it "all" works, or that making "it" work is as easy as the books sometimes make things look. I should perhaps add, if it I didn't make it clear earlier, that I only occasionally trade directly off TAST-type patterns: My main set-ups are unique to the intraday time frame. I'm just willing to acknowledge that the reasoning behind them has similarities with the classic E&M approach.

Otherwise, I share your skepticism about most "indicators," though, as other contributors have noted, TAST fits within this category only under a very broadly inclusive definition of terms. It may not be very helpful, at least in this context, to equate, e.g., "Falling Wedge" with "MACD."
 
Originally posted by traderkay
Kymar, some charts of intraday patterns in action would be appreciated. Thanks.

Well. here's a chart I happened to clip and save a few months ago, based on a formation we discussed "in realtime" in the ET chatroom. It illustrates a classic-style flag breakout - as well as some Fib projections and re-tracement, some S/R action, and some TICK stuff. (Um, don't get the idea that the discussion in the ET chatroom is always, or even very frequently, this TA-intensive.)

The color-coded "paintbars" have to do with shorthand readings from a TRIN-like indicator that I use.

As I run across other examples in my files, I may post them here, or I may even start putting them in an ET journal one of these days.
 

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Originally posted by OldTrader


I hadn't intended to reply to this post. It stands on it's own. But I see you're taking a few shots here from Daniel, who has directed his post to newbies. So I thought I would just say that I thought your post was excellent. You use many of the same "indicators" as I do, and have for years.

Well, Old DUDE, he wasn't really taking "shots" from me - I think I just posted the patently obvious; that just because Nitro hasn't found any way much use for that kind of T/A it doesn't mean it's WORTHLESS, and usually means that the person saying it hasn't found a way to use it profitably.

Now, I, personally, actually trade in a way very similarly to Nitro (judging from his post - except i don't puff myself out trying to get .05 out of GE:D). BUT, I do know of people who use those same "canned" indicators AND they make money. Whether it's their T/A or their experience that's makig them the money, I do not know, but SURELY someone's that's traded for 35 years - even some that's traded for 3 years - should know that there are no hard and fast answers on what to look at.

The other thing I think a lot of people don't get, is that the "A" in TA stands for "analysis". To me, this means that the technical information needs to be "analyzed", not just "buy on green, sell on red". Again, I know some traders who put a lot of work into their technical ANALYSIS (they are not daytraders), and then make trades based on this analysis. Seems to be working for them. THEREFORE, we can all post our opinions, but to categorically state that "this is right, that isn't", is kinda stupid wouldn't you say?
 
On the 1-min NQ, you just saw a head & shoulders play out, with stops run to the downside on the neckline violation @ 885, then when ES (which is the weaker sister today) didn't confirm that downmove, those playing the H&S got their stops triggered and hence the spike up to 889. Dangerous stuff.
 
Originally posted by OldTrader


I hadn't intended to reply to this post. It stands on it's own. But I see you're taking a few shots here from Daniel, who has directed his post to newbies. So I thought I would just say that I thought your post was excellent. You use many of the same "indicators" as I do, and have for years.

Likewise, as I have posted elsewhere, I don't like having the "other" package type indicators "polluting" my chart as you say....because as you so correctly point out they have the ability to influence your actions at just the wrong time.

Good post. Newbies would be well served to read your post, and see how they might be able to implement it.

OldTrader

There's always a danger in believing that those who agree with us have it right, and those who disagree with us are hopelessly misguided. Rather than try to herd newbies into one camp or the other, why not suggest that they study both Daniel's and Nitro's posts and make their own decisions based on their own experience?

--Db
 
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