Sorry, I just saw this. I generally like to discretionary trade off support and resistance levels, much like what you can find in the Margo_trader journal or in Tony Oz books, for example. I also have been into having the computer recognize realtime chart patterns such as some of the more "reliable" three bar candlestick reversal patterns. I look for a day or two per trade and maybe .85 to 1.00 profit per share per trade as a baseline.
Gordon, Stick to the QQQ's or SPY's and a couple of big time stocks. Don't trade futures and don't trade anything else, just stick with those. I've gotten a lot better concentrating on a small subset of trading instruments. I'd rather be a big fish in a small pond than a lost fish in an ocean.