Multicharts has a serious flaw

Discussion in 'Automated Trading' started by bidask, Aug 7, 2007.

  1. bidask

    bidask

    If you are running two strategies, each with its own workspace, the orders from one strategy will intefere with the other strategy. Multicharts cannot keep track of the position of each strategy.

    For example, say Strategy A long 5 contracts and Strategy B generates a sell short order contract. The sell short order from Strategy B will actually close all the long positions from both strategies!

    The Multicharts team don't think that this is a serious problem and said they won't fix it! Multicharts is a good product in many aspects, but I frankly don't see how it will get off the ground without fixing this major, serious flaw.

    http://forum.tssupport.com/viewtopic.php?t=4038
     
  2. maxpi

    maxpi

    Maybe you can have a separate account for each strategy?
     
  3. bidask

    bidask

    i think that's a ridiculous solution. if a trader has 5 strategies, then he'll need to open 5 brokerage accounts. no trader will do this. he will simply not use multicharts.
     
  4. I have been busy and haven't been to ET in some time.

    After I saw this thread, I emailed TradersStudio and they said this was not a problem in their platform. They said this was a bad design flaw.

    I guess that is why you want to buy from a U.S. company from people who actually trade.

    The next problem to consider may be that the solution would be so complicated from the technical point of view that it might compromise other aspects of the program's work.
     
  5. Good point.....if what you have isn't working, find something that is! If multicharts won't change, won't provide what you need, someon else will!

    Traderstudio seems like a good product, and they are working to constantly improve it!
     
  6. maxpi

    maxpi

    I'm just suggesting a workaround for somebody that was going to use the software.
     
  7. Multicharts is not a serous product. Or if it is, it is certainly unsuitable for anyone with serious intent. It has too many design flaws in areas that really matter to traders. I paid for MC a long time back and have since sidelined it to a support role. What I do use it for is checking out easylanguage code that I might port onto my real backtestng platforms (Tradersstudio & Quant Developer).

    While Multicharts has a strategy testing anyone who regards it as anything more than a technical analysis and charting tool is making a mistake in my view.
     
  8. Multicharts is not a serous product. Or if the developers are serious, it is certainly unsuitable for anyone with serious intent. It has too many design flaws in areas that really matter to traders. I paid for MC a long time back and have since sidelined it to a support role. What I do use it for is checking out easylanguage code that I might port onto my real backtestng platforms (Tradersstudio & Quant Developer).

    While Multicharts has a strategy testing arm anyone who regards it as anything more than a technical analysis and charting tool is making a mistake in my view. And i am not surprised by the reaction of the developers. When I eventually got them to admit to the rickety nature of the data management subsystem and proposed that fix it they refused citing that it would require too much work.

    And this gets to the heart of the matter with Multicharts. What it really is, is a couple of pre-existing products glued together along with some additional development. The lack of a coherent design concept becomes apparent to anyone with a little technical background and anything more than rudimentary working requirements.

    Tradersstudio, which bears direct comparison with Multicharts, blows it out of the water.
     
  9. I think you mis-stated the problem...re: "position of each strategy". You meant position of each workspace. Tradestation had the same problem.....2 strategies within the same workspace were co-mingled. However, once separated into separate workspaces, the strategies acted independent of the other.

    Hard to believe TSSUPPORT missed this in their implementation.
     
  10. bidask

    bidask

    i did not mis-state the problem. two strategies in separate workspaces. one strategy per workspace. the orders will interfere with each other. they are not independent. if you look at the link i provided, TSSUPPORT agreed that this is how it works but they won't fix it!

     
    #10     Aug 7, 2007