I have posted this message in the hookup forum and I thought this forum would be good too. I am in the process of opening an account with IB. I have been trading with an on-line broker and am used to the simple order entry system that I have been using. Needless to say the IB software seems very daunting to me. I have been reading the manual but without the actual software downloaded for me to click on and try out I am not getting an understanding of what this software is all about. So I thought that if there are any IB traders in the Boston area that might let me look over their shoulder as they set-up their screens and possibly give me a short description of the software's methodology it would give me a great boost toward understanding how to get started. Any help that is offered would be greatly appreciated. I'll bring the coffee and doughnuts. Thanks to all Steve
Have you tried the demo? It's the exact software and allows you to play around without sending real orders. The theory behind the software is to see all your positions at once and place buy/sells, stops, limit orders, etc. all from one screen. It allows you to manage your whole portfolio quickly rather than scrolling through multiple web pages to place one order. It is a very fast setup, and for daytrading can be made faster with hot keys. The demo should answer most of your questions without reading the manual. Hint: After you enter your stock symbols and routings, make sure and save or you'll have to reenter next time you open software.