[thinkingfield]

I am interested in starting to system trade. I have several years of option market making experience in commodities. I also have many years of hobby programming experience (C, VB, VBA, Java, some C++).

I am looking to start with a low cost platform to get my feet wet with systems and backtesting.

Looking for charting also.

So, any suggestions between Amibroker or Ninjatrader? are there others that i should be looking at?

I am concerned mostly with energy futures and commodities, not equities.

Thanks!!

[Tams]

if cost is an issue... then NinjaTrader is the obvious starting point.

Ninja is free, until you trade live.

Mind you, Amibroker PRO costs only $279 one time fee -- hardly a stumbling block for any aspiring trader.


Ninja supports C#... it might be preferred over Amibroker's proprietary AFL.

I should point out that Amibroker's AFL is a subset of C.

i.e. you should have no problem adapting to either.


Some people consider Amibroker's graphics more inuitive,
others like Ninja's comprehensive training.
I have tried both programs, I found both are capable software.

[diablo272]

Just a small addition to Tams' post above: You can trade live with the free version of Ninja, but you won't have access to the ATM function (I think it stands for "Advanced Trade Management"), which basically allows you to predefine a stop and a target, so both orders are placed simultaneously as soon as your entry order is filled. It is quite useful, and I always use it, but it isn't absolutely necessary depending on what you style is. Regarding cost though, I believe Ninja is about $60/month if you lease it for 3 months, which is the shortest lease they offer, and AmiBroker is even cheaper as Tams mentioned, so they are both among the most affordable platforms you will find.

[thrunner]

Originally Posted by diablo272 »

Just a small addition to Tams' post above: You can trade live with the free version of Ninja, but you won't have access to the ATM function ...

Unfortunately that is slightly incorrect. The NT "Direct" version that is free is only free if you opened an account and funded such account with a NT affiliated broker. The Direct version will let you trade on the chart and DOM without the functionality of a strategy or ATM (advance trade management).

The 'free' version of NT you get from NT will not let you live trade with any broker, although you could still chart and trade in simulation mode with no expiration.

[diablo272]

Originally Posted by thrunner »

Unfortunately that is slightly incorrect. The NT "Direct" version that is free is only free if you opened an account and funded such account with a NT affiliated broker. The Direct version will let you trade on the chart and DOM without the functionality of a strategy or ATM (advance trade management).

The 'free' version of NT you get from NT will not let you live trade with any broker, although you could still chart and trade in simulation mode with no expiration.

I didn't know that, thanks for clarifying. I've only used NT through Mirus, so that is my only experience with the free version of NT.

[thinkingfield]

thanks, since the cost for both is low, i was interested in which had more flexibility. I don't want to put in all the time learning the syntax for one platform only to move to another.

i have been using NT for charting right now, it is a bit clumsy and does not handle volume and continous contracts very well. but the programming features seem to be good.

i was wondering if anyone had experience with both?

diablo272, how do find working with NT? do you need any other programms to compliment it?

thanks

[Blaiserboy]

You may find in the backtesting and automated systems areas of this forum people who have used both.....

Just a hunch.

[diablo272]

Originally Posted by thinkingfield »

diablo272, how do find working with NT? do you need any other programms to compliment it?

thanks

I like NT for the most part, though you should check out the official NT forums and read about some issues people have with it, in terms of speed. I haven't had many performance problems with it, but you should be aware of them. I don't program, so I can't offer my opinion there. I don't find that I need another program besides NT. I do use Think or Swim to look at other contracts and equities, but that is only because I don't get data for them through Zen-Fire. If I could view these contracts in Ninja with Zen, I would just do that, since NT is far superior to TOS for what I do (though I can't complain since TOS is free).