Provide a different fg/bg color setting for the Destination column of an order line, and add a field to the order ticket form, which indicates that the order is simulated. This is much easier to use than having to memorize or look up a given combination of order parameters to figure it out.
IB Suggestions & Improvements
- Thread starter Babak
- Start date
Add a chart parameter that lets the user specify a percentage to be used to filter out bad print ticks in charts. It should ibe used to filter out any prints that are more than that percentage up or down from the previous print for line charts, or above the high/below the low of the previous bar for OHLC charts. This allows one to easily filter out bad/late ticks that currently exist in backfill data, as well as new intraday data, without IB having to work on scrubbing (yet).
VOLUME AT each price level of the DOM window (they call it BookTrader). Please see the attached JPEG.
Honestly, it is the absence of this feature which has always kept me from opening an interactive brokers account for futures trading.
Well, the above-mentioned feature and also the inability to configure the size of the DOM and to center the data in the columns of the DOM have always been major disadvantages of using IB to trade futures.
I guarantee that many futures traders would take interactive brokers more seriously as a possible professional alternative to X_TRADER if only these few modifications were made to the current IB DOM. And these issues are GUI issues which can probably be coded over a weekend or two.
It would be nice if IB took my comments seriously and actually fixed these issues. Will they? Probably not......they offer access to too many markets to be worried about catering to professional futures traders.
The funny thing is that they recently lowered their futures commissions in the hopes of luring more futures traders toward IB. But there are few futures daytraders (who are, i might add, the traders that generate the most commissions) who would take their booktrader execution system seriously because of the absence of the basic functionality mentioned in my post.
Anyways, there's my (and countless other futures daytraders')reason for not having an interactive brokers account.
Honestly, it is the absence of this feature which has always kept me from opening an interactive brokers account for futures trading.
Well, the above-mentioned feature and also the inability to configure the size of the DOM and to center the data in the columns of the DOM have always been major disadvantages of using IB to trade futures.
I guarantee that many futures traders would take interactive brokers more seriously as a possible professional alternative to X_TRADER if only these few modifications were made to the current IB DOM. And these issues are GUI issues which can probably be coded over a weekend or two.
It would be nice if IB took my comments seriously and actually fixed these issues. Will they? Probably not......they offer access to too many markets to be worried about catering to professional futures traders.
The funny thing is that they recently lowered their futures commissions in the hopes of luring more futures traders toward IB. But there are few futures daytraders (who are, i might add, the traders that generate the most commissions) who would take their booktrader execution system seriously because of the absence of the basic functionality mentioned in my post.
Anyways, there's my (and countless other futures daytraders')reason for not having an interactive brokers account.
See that patent notification at the bottom right of xtrader's screen? That might have something to do with it. Just like how Refco and many others had problems with their pro system because it allegdedly was so similiar to Trade Technologies system that many of them settled with TT.
But I like your ideas nonetheless. Right now, the Book trader (depth of market) shows bid and ask sizes at specific price levels. coding in volume at price wouldn't be too difficult as I believe IB charts have tick volume.
Well, I know Transact Futures has Volume at each price level and their software is fully compliant with the TT patent. The only thing keeping me from trading with TransAct Futures is the fact that they require you to trade like $500 or $600 in commissions per month. So there is pressure to churn your account.
Bottom line, if TransAct Futures can do it whilst fully complying with the law, then why not IB?
i really want to trade with IB because of the access to nearly every market out there. The possibilities seem limitless.....you don't have to worry about whether you can trade this or trade that with your broker since they cover basically every market out there. However, with breadth of service we should expect other areas of their offerings to suffer for example the mediocre BOOKTRADER which no professional futures daytrader in his right mind would seriously consider as a viable alternative to X_TRADER. That is, unless they modify the BOOKTRADER to suit the needs of the professional futures trader.
The upgrades I mention could probably be worked on over a weekend and be up and running in a month. It seems like such an easy way to boost their reputation as the broker professional futures traders choose. But will they do it? Probably not.....don't ask me why...
Make the IB papertrader much more realistic by:
1. Not filling orders in one Papertrader account against orders in another Papertrader account. Orders should be "filled" according to market prices. I was told by an IB rep that my BUY LIMIT order in my papertrader account was filled even though it was well below the low of the day due to someone else selling the stock in another Papertrader account!
2. Allow DAY LIMIT orders to be placed on SUPERSOES before the open (right now only marketable orders can be placed). Supermontage (ie SUPERSOES) DAY LIMIT orders are normally eligible for the NASDAQ opening cross and if not filled, they remain on the Supermontage books for the rest of the day
1. Not filling orders in one Papertrader account against orders in another Papertrader account. Orders should be "filled" according to market prices. I was told by an IB rep that my BUY LIMIT order in my papertrader account was filled even though it was well below the low of the day due to someone else selling the stock in another Papertrader account!
2. Allow DAY LIMIT orders to be placed on SUPERSOES before the open (right now only marketable orders can be placed). Supermontage (ie SUPERSOES) DAY LIMIT orders are normally eligible for the NASDAQ opening cross and if not filled, they remain on the Supermontage books for the rest of the day
I never knew about that. I'll definitely look into it. Thanks
This thread will fill you in on the gory details of the legal situation.
http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=36783&highlight=TT+lawsuit
Note that many of the settlements involve a per execution payment to TT. Forever.