Trading with the specialist was much easier. The market had more depth to it....instead of a couple hundred shares up, there was always several thousand shares available within a few cents of the specialist market. A trader could trade 5k shares much easier and move them on a single print, not many stocks you can do that in today. Not many played games because the specialist had the ability to hold cancels of orders, and this kept the ghosters under control. Today, the market is all fake, you never know how much size is at any give price point, but rest assured, if you want 5k shares, it's not there unless you are completely wrong. Price improvement was a big edge. Having an order at 25.7 and getting 25.5 on a buy was a tremendous edge. Now you get filled and run over for a buck instantly. Just a few examples too mull over. I have figured out how to adapt to the hybrid and am doing fairly well, but boy do I wish for the good ole' days with the technology I have available today!