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diablo272

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Everything posted by diablo272

  1. Check out this thread: http://www.traderslaboratory.com/forums/f30/price-action-only-5074.html
  2. IMO, all of these systems that are for sale on the net are BS. If anyone had a consistently profitable, scalable system, why would they need to sell it? Why would they need to sell it if their system was that good? It makes no sense. If Chewbacca lives on Endor...you must acquit. Edit: For the record, I've never tried any of these 'pay to play' systems, but I've stayed away from them specifically because they are very suspicious to me. It can't be that easy--that's what I think. Pay $7,000 to make millions? That just doesn't make sense in the markets.
  3. Here is a good place to start: http://www.w3schools.com/
  4. I addition to reading books, one of the best ways (that I know of) to improve your trading is to get screen time. Screen time is just that--time that you spend in front of your screen watching the markets. This is very important if you're trying to get a grasp on price action. Just look for patterns in price, and also look at what price does at areas of support and resistance. You can also look at volume at these areas of support and resistance, and also look at what volume does when price reverses. Just keep watching the market as much as you can.
  5. Here is some tax info comparing stocks and ETFs with the e-minis: http://www.traderslog.com/futures-trading-taxes.htm
  6. I agree pappo, and I should have mentioned that in my first post. I use a computer that I built because I trust my own work more than another builder's, not because it was cheaper (though that is always something to think about). But yes, unless you have experience building or servicing computers, the one you use to make money shouldn't be your first attempt, because something most likely will go wrong, and you might not know how to diagnose and fix the problem if you're inexperienced.
  7. The last 3 computers I've owned have been self built, and they have been as stable as any other computer I know of, ones built by Dell, HP, Voodoo, Alienware, and even Apple. One big advantage to building your own is that if something does go wrong with it, you're more likely to know how to fix it. To think that Dell's PCs are "tested" or somehow more stable than a self-built computer is just not true, as long as you know what you're doing when you build your own. In many Dells I've seen (I used to work for a school district here servicing PCs, and they only used Dells, so I've seen quite a few), the cooling is much worse than is possible in a self built computer--the wiring obstructs airflow, the cases are cramped, and there aren't enough fans (IMO) in many cases. This isn't to say Dells are bad, but just to say that you could build a better one yourself for less money.
  8. Steve, thanks again for your awesome work here, and I hope your job goes well for you and the people you're training.
  9. The bid represents the highest price at which participants are willing to buy at a given time. The ask represents the lowest price at which participants will sell at a given time. One way to visualize this would be by looking at a level 2 or DOM screen. If you're looking at a DOM and you see that the bid is 700 @ $1050.00, this means that there are currently orders to buy 700 contracts at the price of $1050.00. If someone has a big position of 700 contracts they want to unload and they are willing to sell at $1050.00, then they would be able to do so right away (this is called "selling at the bid"), and the bid at $1050.00 would probably drop down by one tick to $1049.75. However, the entire size of the bid doesn't need to be taken out in order for the bid to move down. If all of the participants who have orders in at the bid pull their orders, the bid will drop. This is all true for the ask, but in the opposite direction. Regarding your question about your limit order not being filled: when the market comes back down to your price, you would be buying at the ask, because all buying is done at the ask, and all selling is done at the bid. A market buy order is an order to buy right away at the best possible price, which means buying at the ask, and a market sell order means selling at the bid. To answer your question, markets orders can have a more immediate effect on price, because they will always be filled (unless it's a very illiquid market). A limit order, on the other hand, can be entered at any price. Say the current BxA is 1049.75x1050.00, and you enter a limit buy order at 1049.00. If enough people do this, this could have an effect on price, because short sellers (this is just one scenario) watching market depth might see the big size (lots of orders) at 1049.00, and decide that 1049 will be impossible to get past at the moment, and they will begin to cover, driving price up.
  10. On the same topic, I was on YouTube earlier tonight searching for footage of trading floors, and I found this video about a simulated floor at a university...pretty cool: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNd9AGYtCdI&feature=related
  11. I agree about ETFs instead of e-minis. I first started with uncovered SPY options, and they were much more beginner friendly (much less leverage at the time) than trading even 1 contract lots of ES. SPY or QQQQ are good places to start if you're brand new.
  12. My understanding of IB data (I've never used it) is that it's a "snapshot" of data rather than real tick data. So the data you're getting isn't tick by tick, but something like millisecond by millisecond, so each update to a 1 tick chart may be several ticks rather than one single tick. It may not actually be milliseconds, but it's a very short amount of time instead of tick by tick. In a fast market, this could make a difference in how you view price action. With Ninja, I use Zenfire, and I'm happy with it. I've heard good things about Esignal, and not so good things about Tradestation, though I think it depends on your style.
  13. I'd say that your strategy there is not going to be successful long term. You mentioned that you view trading as gambling, and the way that you're doing it, that's all it is. I don't trade equities so I can't help you much in that area, but I do think that if you're going to trade them, it might be helpful to trade those that are higher in price, because the liquidity will generally be much better, and it will be much easier to see patterns and signals. Buying a stock that is under $1 and if still falling is a recipe for disaster, especially if your only criteria for buying are that it's around $.50, near its low, and still falling. Also, what do you do if the stock falls immediately from your entry? Being profitable isn't just a gift that some people have and others don't. The way to making money trading isn't just by doing some magic trick--it's hard work, just like any other profession. My advice is that if you really want to become a better trader, read as much as you can, and keep at it. After reading the last several lines of your post, I get the feeling that you aren't very serious about trading, and that you wouldn't mind too much if you blew out your account. I guarantee that if this is your attitude, you will blow your account, because there are people in the markets who take trading very seriously, who spend hours and hours per day in the markets, and who make their living taking money from people like you. I don't mean to be discouraging, but if you equate trading with simple gambling...you'll lose, just like you would in a casino over the long term. For some good reading: http://www.traderslaboratory.com/forums/f52/ (have a look at the "Topic of the Month" threads) http://www.traderslaboratory.com/forums/f30/best-of-tl-2954.html http://www.traderslaboratory.com/forums/f30/i-look-back-now-and-wonder-4014.html
  14. That's true, and it's a good feature of NT if you set the beginning and end of each day as the same time (ie 4:15 PM is the open and close, or 12 AM is the open and close, etc). One thing I don't like about this feature though, is that if you set the open and close to different times, like 9:30-4:15, and you look at a chart with those times set as the open and close, the chart will ONLY show data from 9:30-4:15, and it will not show data from after hours or premarket.
  15. I realize this is an old thread, but I think Ninja Trader would suit most of your needs.
  16. I don't want to move this thread off topic, but could you elaborate upon the correlated markets idea a bit if you don't mind? I trade the ES, and I've tried comparing YM to the ES, and I can see divergences and confluences between the two, but I haven't been able to think of a way that these divergences or confluences could give me an edge with my particular strategy. I have read a bit on this subject (only a bit), and I'm just wondering if you could give your own opinion on it.
  17. What do you guys use for calculating pivots, in terms of the session opening and closing times? This is for ES.
  18. Yes, many people trade like that, using only price action and S/R. Just make note of some S/R levels (or pivots like you mentioned) and see what happens when price reaches those levels.
  19. Steve, I would like to give a HUGE thanks to you. I have been following your thread for a while, and originally found it on another forum. This thread has SO much useful knowledge in it. You are one of the ones I have to credit for helping me find my strategy. My strategy doesn't actually resemble yours at all anymore, but seeing your strategy was a vital step for me. Thanks again.
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