Saico, The bar chart looks a little more clear to me than the line chart does. But the candlestick looks better than the bar chart. I guess it all depends on what you are used to though. On the line chart it looks like both of my entries are early whereas on the candle it looks like I left a little wiggle room on both sides. How do you see it if you compare?
Well 4re, I dont know what you usually take into consideration to determine your levels. Whatever it is, it seems to work in an acceptable way for you. Unfortunately I'm still unable to see the way how you get to your s/r levels. According to your statements it looks like you need the informations that only candles do provide. If it comes down to only look for significant lows and highs, both the HLC and the line chart can do that in an acceptable manner as well. Saico
I back tested my system using a similar method to the 30 minute candlesticks, (they look pretty good - and obvious - in the printout, don't they?) but I'm just looking at the last day, exclusively. My LOGIC is that each day represents a new day in terms of the information that Mr. Market is getting to determine the "real value" of the indice(s), and so it will break support/resistance and/or reverse, based on that new information. In keeping with that train of thought, I (and most other traders I've seen when I've watched them trade) keep an eye on the DOW, S&P and NASD, as well as the TICK, TRIN and VIX. Learning how to read them takes time, practice and concentration, but they give the traders clues in to what is MOST LIKELY (probability) going to happen in the markets. I was talking over this methodology with another trader (years ago) and he was of the opinion that I'm looking at too many things to make an informed decision correctly, accurately and in a timely fashion, and that I should just 1 or 2 of the indicators that I just mentioned. So hey, experiment with all of the above and find what works for ya (that's pretty much is what everyone else does). Best, Jimmy P.S. Great thread. And they say you can't learn to trade from any of the threads at ET, this one is proving'em wrong. We've just delivered WAY MORE information than any trader really needs to put together a great trading methodology! P.P.S. Late post in reponse to Saico - it's just that with the candlesticks S/R is kind of OBVIOUS. 4re is just giving the theory, the individual trader has to work with the system for a while (weeks, months), until the "light bulb" goes off!
I guess it is just that I am so used to cnadles that they make sense to me. Try looking at fridays candlestick chart and you will probably see it a little better. Maybe I need to start posting that instead if you think it will help. Now, sometimes like last week I had to keep using lows going back as far as 12-30-05 just to make a determination for the next day. Right now we are in a weird level for me shorting the ES. It kept working so I imagine somebody else was doing the same thing.
Btw 4re, the numbers you provided for tommorrow, are these the exact entries, or will you allow .5, .75 additional wiggle room to that ones? Thanks!
Jimmy, Thanks for the nice words about the thread. That is what I am hoping to make this thread into. I have a few friends that mainly are just lurking in here and I hope they can see that people are willing to help and ask nothing in return. I do agree with you on looking at the previous day. I tend to look further back just so I can see if that S/R has been used in the past week or so. If it has that will make it stronger. So when we go through it we do it POWER. I relate trading with boxing. I was a boxer for about 15 years. I am left handed and had a very strong left hook the problem was I needed a strong right jab to get in and use it. I developed those two things and it made me hard to beat. In trading I try to specialize on a couple of things and get good at them. Then I go for the knockout....Hooya....
These will be my exact entries. Which ever one comes first, long or short. Will be my trade for the day, provided I get my 2 points. Remember what I said earlier though. If it goes through and gets up to 1.5 points in the money then starts reversing get out and take the money. You can always re enter. But I hate to watch a winning trade turn into a losing trade. It should provide 2 points pretty much with out stopping for a retracement. 4re