Looks like there's a big IB community here... I'd appreciate your thoughts on this. 1) Why TWS doesn't have a Time and Sale feature? Every other software I've seen has it. Is there a way to get this data from other sources? 2) TWS doesn't look user friendly to me. Although execution might be fast, but order entry actually looks clumsy with all those market line setups. In other software's you can just double-click on an MM/ECN in the Level II montage and off you go. Here you double click, and still need to send the order. Give me some comfort that using it is not as bad as it looks like in the first sight (in the demo software). 3) I chatted with support and asked if they have an order routing report for smart orders. S/he said they don't, but this cannot be, as it is a SEC requirement to have it. Does anyone knows where such a routing report can be found, or what is the venue IB usually exercises smart orders? 4) Unfortunately the demo software doesn't have Level II. Seeing there's no time and sales, I'm suspicious now. Does TWS has a decent Level-II montage? Thanks for any help.
1) Time & Sales - TWS data is not true tick by tick, which would be required for Time & Sales. 2) TWS is quite different from other systems and does take some time to get used to. Many say that once they get a good feel for it, they like it much better than the traditional direct access order entry. You do have alternate options for both #1 an #2. You can use QuoteTracker in conjunction with TWS, in which case you can have T&S based on the data TWS does return and the trading interface is more friendly (IMHO) http://www.quotetracker.com/ib 3) routing reports - can't help you there. 4) IB has very good Level II, though a bit expensive. We compared it to other brokers as well as subscription services running side by side and IB was as fast or faster than all of them.
2. IB TWS is user friendly, when you get used to it. It takes a bit of time, like any software, but once you start playing around with it it becomes very familiar. Using hotkeys or even point and click can be very fast. Just play around with the screen until you get a setup that you can work quickly with.
Try www.futures-trader.net or www.ninjatrader.com as examples which simplify the order execution for IB.
the help desk probably didn't understand your request. the order routing reports are on the IB web site.... go to about IB and click on announcements. should add that IB concentrates on fast executions and not charting/data services.