had lunch with some HFT traders

C

cactus_trader

I was back in my home town of Chicago -I had to buy a stocking cap on Thursday last week :confused: - no joke

non to less I had lunch with two of my childhood friends who work for HFT shops as programmers. both are at U of Chicago studying Fin Math for their masters.

What I learned,

1. Most HFT shops use Linux as it is superior for time stamping live data

2. I learned if you are studying engineering, computer science, switch over to Financial mathematics right now the pay is good. Damn good. The demand will always be high and the pay will always high too.

3. Hinsdale, IL has crazy high property taxes. holy cow
 
Quote from cactus_trader:

1. Most HFT shops use Linux as it is superior for time stamping live data
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Time stamping is trivial... and Linux has a 1% market share.
 
Quote from DeeDeeTwo:

Time stamping is trivial... and Linux has a 1% market share.
More...

The market share that a product has is not connected to its qualities as a real-time operating system. Linux can be altered to be a reasonable RTOS, like QNX.
 
Quote from cactus_trader: I1. Most HFT shops use Linux as it is superior for time stamping live data
More...

I once applied for a job with Renaissance Technologies in long Island, NY . Nearly all of their 400 servers run Linux.
 
Quote from cactus_trader:

I was back in my home town of Chicago -I had to buy a stocking cap on Thursday last week :confused: - no joke

non to less I had lunch with two of my childhood friends who work for HFT shops as programmers. both are at U of Chicago studying Fin Math for their masters.

What I learned,

1. Most HFT shops use Linux as it is superior for time stamping live data

2. I learned if you are studying engineering, computer science, switch over to Financial mathematics right now the pay is good. Damn good. The demand will always be high and the pay will always high too.

3. Hinsdale, IL has crazy high property taxes. holy cow
More...

Regarding number 2, you are spot on. I am shocked how many young kids on here asking about prop firms to trade when they have financial engineering backgrounds. When I heard what these kids were getting paid right out of school I was floored. FWIW, anyone in Chicago, IIT has an outstanding Fin Engineering program with courses taught by guys from top firms here in the city. Excellent connections there too when you get out.

Regarding item 3, how high were they?
 
Quote from DeeDeeTwo:

Time stamping is trivial... and Linux has a 1% market share.
More...

So by your logic, McDonalds must also serve the best food in America? Hmmm...

Linux has 60% of the web server market and 95% of the supercomputer market btw just to throw some more statistics. There is a reason that the fastest computers in the world run Linux and this is probably a better judge of how good it is as an OS than comparing desktop market share.
 
Quote from Maverick74:

FWIW, anyone in Chicago, IIT has an outstanding Fin Engineering program
More...

you are kidding? i worked with a lecturer there; he was an incompetent idiot who fell a sleep at his desk. He couldn't even keep track of PnL
 
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