OMG, I just noticed...That is not just toast, is it. That is French toast. With baked beans? I'm going to hurk if so.
LOL I'm not knocking Spreadsheets. Heck, I USE spreadsheets for things like keeping track of records, building a quick grid, etc. I'm more talking about people that try to fine-tune a Spreadsheet to the 'magic formula' that makes trading 'work'.
What of the people's retirement I provide for. The pensions with Mom and Dad's money in it, that I provide for. The 401k's that have people's wealth and savings they build over decades. That they take money from, go on vacation, help their kids out ... treat their cancer ... That machine doesn't need liquidity?
Well everyone to their own. Mant traders swear by indicators - well imo garbage. Many traders are chart addicts - well imo it's time wasting and limiting. An algo which number crunches could be considered a spreadsheet, what's wrong with that? In seconds you have a birdseye view of all the conditions you program. So it takes you where you want directly, you can grade the results, you can then peek at a chart to finally double check your target, very time saving imo.
Hrm. Yeah, I'm not explaining myself properly. Because yeah, I'd agree with you. We have a Volatility Presage "switch" we use, and yeah, that's kicked out via spreadsheet. Of course, I don't need the spreadsheet to do that work; it just makes it easier. I don't know how to describe the sort .. and what I mean. They tend to use Spreadsheets ... as if putting things on a table is why things work. I guess what I'm trying to say, is that instead of using Charts and Technical Indicators and dressing charts up like a Christmas Tree? They use the Spreadsheet as a Proxy for that, with the same effect. Just pattern-curve-fitting ... except, they don't use Technical Indicators to do it ... they have to have their Spreadsheet "crutch". There's a definite difference in that you take a spreadsheet away from those folks? They'd have no idea how to place a trade. All we use ours for? Is to do the math more quickly.
The "pattern curver fitting", my thoughts are this is a rampant problem with the majority of the more junior traders. These days I never backtest anything, one reason being a good system is usually looking at stuff which is far too complex and sourced from different locations to be able to code into a paper trading system. Now I'm not saying the system needs complexity, just the manner of obtaining the information historically. As an example, I'm an EOD stock trader but I look at 1 minute charts and I check a couple of fundamentals, this gets too complex to backtest on an EOD system when you also add in how price is behaving and reacting. After years of trading, imo, I can eyeball something (no indicators whatsoever) and determine whether some theory is viable or has promise. Then strike in boots and all and live trade, on small size, to test and tweak. Live trading is my preference to test a theory but it is also time consuming.
that is not trading that is investment.....and that is all about companies that have good management, satisfy customers needs............