i have a hotkey programmed to send orders to sell 10 cents above. also to buy back 10 cents below. this is crucial for my scalping... putting orders out there to take adv of the spec spreading. also of course NX keys. nyse scalping i only route to specialist, i hardly use the ecns.
i like that idea but it somtimes takes a while for most nyse's to move 10cents or doesnt happen all that much. so as soon as you getinto a position u will automatically throw out a 10cents buy/sell depending on trade right away.
Swipe routes the order to all the ecn's you specify to fill up to your order size. Blast sends your order size everywhere as seperate orders. Say the stock is spreading up and I want to buy it. If i set my size to 1000 shares and swipe to a limit price, my order will route to all the market centers I have set for that key until my order is filled for 1000 shares. If I do the same with the blast key, I am sending multiple 1000 share buy orders up to a limit, each going to the market centers programmed for that hotkey. I could be filled more than 1000 shares, but I use this key when I really want the fill and if I get more size, that's a bonus. Unless I'm wrong and get filled on everything, then that's almost always bad. What key I use depends on the situation. The good hardcore scalpers I know send out lots of orders with lots of size and try to pick off good fills wherever they can. If they are right, they are in the money almost instantly and can use a super tight stop. Btw, I'm talking listed scalping here, not nazz, I'm not very familiar with scalping those stocks.
Oddly enough, swipes (double my intended initiating size) are great for me as a confirming indicator. When I do not get filled nearly enough, I know something's going on on a larger time frame that I might need to focus on. When I get filled fully and instantly, I know I have been gamed and to stay away until I get a better read. Never felt confident enough to try blasts for some reason, but I probably should insteading of doubling down with a swipe. I'm not a top notch scalper though, as it grates on me. Though the entry and exit techniques I learned from scalping (over and over until I catch something on target for a hold) I still value.
I don't think I'd ever use that. WAY too few keys. I WOULD like to try a flat tablet instead of a mouse however. Roommate in college was an artist and used one of those with great skill. Even better if the desktop display was right on the tablet.