Getting Started with Algorithic Trading and the IB API

[sef88]

These algos/ execution systems must be closely monitored, especially when entering and exiting positions is automated. Any bug, logic error, or market anomaly can blow out your account.

A friend went on vacation for a few days, and left one of these systems up and running. He came home to find his account value cut in half!

Yea some errors might creep up. Hence periodic diagnostics reports (through email or telegram or slack) are quintessential.

Probably have to include more engineering safeguards; triangulate with different data sources. Depending on your portfolio size, you may also want to introduce a self-monitoring architecture across different brokerages - with the reconciliation done at your side.

 

[zdreg]

I think that he was just overwhelmed... busy with his family and work obligations. He didn't think that it could blow up on him like that.

" work obligations" "on vacation" You are confirming his amateur status.

 

[Warren]

Anyone

Someone asked me how to get started with programming, algo trading, and the IB API. I wrote this up and thought I'd share there for posterity.

There are three main pieces to learn: the Pycharm IDE, Python 3, and the Interactive Brokers API.

<3 Keith

1. Pycharm:
- Download:
https://www.jetbrains.com/pycharm/
- Training:
https://blog.jetbrains.com/pycharm/2016/01/introducing-getting-started-with-pycharm-video-tutorials/

2. Python 3
- MIT online courses
https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electri...and-programming-in-python-fall-2016/index.htm
- YouTube free course

3. Interactive Brokers
- Short Videos are great.
Scroll to "TWS Python API"
https://www.interactivebrokers.com/en/index.php?f=14082

Well, I am up to a similar endeavor. While for someone like me who does not have a programming background, it is not that straightforward. And there are a lot to do. It is not only Python, also packages like: numpy, pandas, bokeh, backtesting.py, ib_insync....

Now, I am working on a streaming candle_stick chart, with bokeh. And there does not seem to exist a ready for use package based on bokeh?