I don't think I would describe the platform as minimal. And if $10 for all those live feeds, and only that if you don't do the $30 in commish (different than 30 trades by the way), is a problem for anyone , then I feel your pain.
What I mean is you can run QCharts or some other charting application and have TWS running on a separate monitor or computer. There is no need to be able to point and click on a Lev II display, which is convenient when trading stocks. It's also helpful to have the two data feeds, so you can tell if one is lagging or stuck.
You know what, I agree. I stand corrected...I have seen MUCH more minimal (though they don't charge me for those...hmmm) nitro