As an emini's trader I use the L2 in combination with charts to help nail down entries/exits. Without watching the level 2 my entries/exits are around 25% worse. The short term resistance/support areas are usually very visible on the L2. Watching for patterns on the L2 in the index futures markets isn't that important IMO as they tend to change a lot. Sometimes there is very visible patterning, sometimes there isn't. It's not consistent.