I believe, correct me if I am wrong, that X Trader can utilize dual processors in conjuction with say E signal.
What about the dirt slow hard drives in laptops? Have they made any advances in that area? That's the real problem or at least it was with the last laptop I used a couple years ago.
It's actually what makes the move (for now) not a great one. You're only as good as your weakest link! I have been using my multi-processor Dell servers for many operations for years. Data/video/music streaming, SQL/MySQL databases, etc. There are many pluses and minuses in the mix. Most of the negatives are around software issues for multi-processor capabilities. I use my server processor monitoring quite extensively and after many years of review I can tell you that unless you are a real software teckie, save your $$$. With that said, I love the ability that knowing how to tweak my machines and get the boost that multi-processor enhancement gives me. But that's just a nerd thing!
it is exceedingly hard to catch the blips on the taskmgr of the 2nd processor when in use, and verify this visually.... they are worth the extra money, especially with the bloat-ware of the Microsoft Operating Systems. That is why the Mac's and other UNIX based systems continue to beat the WinTel (windows intel) operating system bloatware from microsoft every time. They are thin footprint systems by definition, and you have the problem of not being able to support every plug/play device and you have to hunt for drivers or create them and hope that they work, that's why its risky to run your trading apps on a Linux system, unless the software vendors for your broker certifies operations on Linux, or Unix, or Mac. these dual cores run wonders, and minimizes the deliterious effect of the 5400rpm and 7200 rpm HDD's. the problem you're attempting to address and point out are the motherboard front side bus(s) that are used in laptops....these are the true bottlenecks and delays.... there are some custom fabricators that take their specs to PNY and the other Tiawanesse fabricators and build and sell their own custom laptop configurations, but they specifically use small footprint desktop motherboards in their laptop models, just to bypass these inherent problems. once they improve on that, then there really will be no difference between desktop and luggables. in the mean time, then I vote for the AMD dual cores. haven't had much success with the other Acer's, but the SagerNotebooks beat the Dells any day of the week. cheers
I owned one of those overweight behemoths (NP9890) and you can have them. I have an associate who used to swear by them because of the customer service for life policy. Overrated would be where I would start my description of the monster. For an average computer user (which is what most folks including traders are) it made absolutely no difference. But if you're a nanosecond watcher...oh wait, I Am! The difference in speed was negligible in the whole scheme of things. Because of a client need I'll be testing one of their dual core offerings in the next 30 days. Once again I'll be proving to them the overkill factor for their uses. As I always say, match the use to the needs properly and effectively compete with and outrun the competition. When you live out on the bleeding edge of technology, you bleed a lot!
If you got a charting app, a couple TWS windows, a trading app, and a web browser going all at once, a second processor makes it easier going.
Ready to checkout..what do you think? intel® Core⢠Duo Processor T2400 (1.83GHz/667MHz FSB) 80GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive 1GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz 17 inch UltraSharp⢠Wide Screen UXGA Display with TrueLife⢠gonna be running REDI+ and AIQ charting and analytics.
why would you want to trade on a laptop? why dont u buy a computer for 300-400 bucks, & 4x17LCDs for about 800 & run it from there? 1.66 duo core. 512mb 60gig 15.4 WUXGA+(1620x1050) (100$ option) for around 700-800$(after tax) purchased by my friend last week. hope you paid no more than 1100 for that config
make sure you get the coupon and save some extra $$$ http://www.xpbargains.com/dell_coupons/ in this configuration, you'll probably use the $750 off $1999+ Inspiron notebook.. edit: I have checked out Dell's WUXGA 1920x1200 17" notebook screen - very small pixels - you really have to see it for yourself to decide if the resolution is too high for the 17" monitor.