New video card or new computer

I agree with gnome. I doubt vid card is causing a slowdown. Most likely the problem is with the broker or your internet connection.

Describe what your screen does. Does it just freeze or do you get screwy problems with charts blacking out, etc? If you log off and then back on does it clear up? Does rebooting help?

Have you talked with your broker's tech support? Usually they will say the problem is on your end and no one else is complaining, but it's possible they will concede they had a bottleneck.
 
Quote from AAAintheBeltway:

I agree with gnome. I doubt vid card is causing a slowdown. Most likely the problem is with the broker or your internet connection.

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Ditto.

"Want to see something really scary?" Dan Akroyd.

Run your data through QT alongside your java charts and T&S from Scottrade. Sometimes it looks like two different stocks.
 
Quote from gnome:

Video requirements to display trading data and charts are always minimal (the cards are redrawing only what has changed... unlike a game where the entire screen is continuously redrawn). Just about any video card will be OK and a high-powered one won't help perceived lags appreciably. (Years ago, I ran 4 monitors, each with 4mb RAM and nothing ever lagged.)
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Thanks gnome. My two computers were built 3 and 4 years ago so a new computer is pretty much due anyway. Aside from the problem being worse on a higher res screen I wasn't thinking it was the card's fault either.
 
Quote from street carp:

Thanks gnome. My two computers were built 3 and 4 years ago so a new computer is pretty much due anyway. Aside from the problem being worse on a higher res screen I wasn't thinking it was the card's fault either.
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FWIW... I ran my new C2D machine as my primary trading rig for a while. It booted, shut down, and loaded programs a tic or 2 faster, but that's it. The cost was disproportionately greater than the speed increase.... overall a disappointment, actually.
 
Quote from AAAintheBeltway:

I agree with gnome. I doubt vid card is causing a slowdown. Most likely the problem is with the broker or your internet connection.

Describe what your screen does. Does it just freeze or do you get screwy problems with charts blacking out, etc? If you log off and then back on does it clear up? Does rebooting help?

Have you talked with your broker's tech support? Usually they will say the problem is on your end and no one else is complaining, but it's possible they will concede they had a bottleneck.
More...

The problem starts when Scottrade Elite is displaying a very actively moving stock in a Total View window. (Elite takes up about 1/4 of the monitor space and the quotes are only about 1/10 of that). The TotalView quotes are rapidly changing. If it gets too fast it causes the Java charts freeze for 1-5 seconds.

I would have no problem with Java if it were not for the Scottrade Elite program. I've also placed Elite in the 2nd monitor with the 2nd card and it still affects the Java charts, telling me this is other than video card related. Logging off doesn't help and I turn off my computer every night.

When the freezing occurs I can put my cursor into an order entry screen (java), but what I type doesn't appear until a few seconds later when everything "catches up". The charts can sort of black out, but not always.

The local branch said no one else was having this problem.
 
silver914,
Cable internet: 5MBs through Charter
I reload Elite multiple times per trading session. I went to http://myspeed.visualware.com/ and it shows 4.83Mbps download/489kbps upload and a 98% Quality of Service if that means anything. The modem is old...over 3 years, but I don't seem to be having any other symptoms.

Is there a better way to judge the quality of the internet connection?

Quote from silver914:

What kind of internet connection do you have?

And have you tried reloading Elite?
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Well, I'm out of ideas so I think I am going to build a new computer. If I go for mid-range perfomance I'll get:

E6750 C2D http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16819115029
Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16813128059
Foxcon 7900GS video card http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16814186013.
2 x 1MB Crucial Ballistix http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820146565
Seagate 250GB sata HD http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16822148262

Since I already have a good case/PSU it will cost (w/cooler and DVD drive) under $600 shipped after a couple rebates.

I can also see spending twice this to get more top of the line stuff like Quad core, Raptor, 8800GT, higher end motherboard. But, really, I'm not concerned about gaming and in a way that's throwing out money, right?

My last questions are:

1. Repeating...is there a more accurate way to find out (i.e. test) if the problem may be in my internet connection or modem?
2. To be safe should I just go all out and spend $1200 getting the Quad core, raptor, etc.?

Thanks again for all the input so far!
Matt
 
Quote from street carp:

Well, I'm out of ideas so I think I am going to build a new computer. If I go for mid-range perfomance I'll get:

E6750 C2D http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16819115029
Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16813128059
Foxcon 7900GS video card http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16814186013.
2 x 1MB Crucial Ballistix http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820146565
Seagate 250GB sata HD http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16822148262

Since I already have a good case/PSU it will cost (w/cooler and DVD drive) under $600 shipped after a couple rebates.

I can also see spending twice this to get more top of the line stuff like Quad core, Raptor, 8800GT, higher end motherboard. But, really, I'm not concerned about gaming and in a way that's throwing out money, right?

My last questions are:

1. Repeating...is there a more accurate way to find out (i.e. test) if the problem may be in my internet connection or modem?
2. To be safe should I just go all out and spend $1200 getting the Quad core, raptor, etc.?

Thanks again for all the input so far!
Matt
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Its been a few years so I am going of memory of when I owned a computer parts company.

Based on what I understand you do not have an internet problem. Surely the internet speed (which appears very fast ) will not effect your computers performance in differenct resolutions.

What WILL effect that is the type and amount of video memory as well as the video processing chip on the video card. To a lessor extent the bus speed of the motherboard will play a part

The other big factors will be the amount and speed of the main memory. Consider 1 GB to be the bare minimum with no reason to have less than 2 GB as price vs. performance almost always justifies it.

The hard drives you have listed are 'consumer grade' and ATA type of bus. For a computer that is truely a tool to make money and performance is important you should be looking at SCSI hard drives. and if the information 'CANT' be lost then you need to have a RAID 5 configuration. between the video card, memory, and hard drives you will get the least bang for the dollar in hard drives but something to consider.

If your 'rolling your own' then give a lot of thought to getting the biggest baddest video card you can afford. The extra money spent today will give you a longer life at the end and wont need to be replaced as soon.

Suggestions for getting a system that is pre built is to get a workstation (or even better a server) from dell or HP as they are true to what you want to do and not some cheaply made crap like at best buy.

Best of luck with your upgrade
 
Quote from street carp:

Well, I'm out of ideas so I think I am going to build a new computer. If I go for mid-range perfomance I'll get:

E6750 C2D http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16819115029
Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16813128059
Foxcon 7900GS video card http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16814186013.
2 x 1MB Crucial Ballistix http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820146565
Seagate 250GB sata HD http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16822148262

Since I already have a good case/PSU it will cost (w/cooler and DVD drive) under $600 shipped after a couple rebates.

I can also see spending twice this to get more top of the line stuff like Quad core, Raptor, 8800GT, higher end motherboard. But, really, I'm not concerned about gaming and in a way that's throwing out money, right?

My last questions are:

1. Repeating...is there a more accurate way to find out (i.e. test) if the problem may be in my internet connection or modem?
2. To be safe should I just go all out and spend $1200 getting the Quad core, raptor, etc.?

Thanks again for all the input so far!
Matt
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Since you build computers can you tell me how this one sounds?
A guy I know who trades told me he recently bought it from the builder..$700 or $800 he paid for it.


Ultra Grid mid-tower ATX Chassis:
Ultra V Pro 600W ATX Power Supply
Intel DQ965GF motherboard
Intel Core 2 DUO 6320
Onboard Intel 82566DM Gigabit NIC
Onboard 5.1 Sigmatel Hi-Def Audio Codec
2GB 800MHz PC6400 DDR2 memory (2 x 1GB)
QTY 2 Western Digital Raptor 150GB 10,000rpm HDD (RAID 1 Mirror) (O/S drive)
Seagate ST3250310AS 250GB SATA II HDD
Lite-On DH20A3P 20X DVD+/-RW Drive
Lite-On 52x32x52 DVD/CDRW Combo Drive
nVidia Geforce 8800GTS 320MB PCI-Express video card
D-Link 802.11G PCI Wireless Card (DWL-G510)
Windows XP Professional w/ SP2
 
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