I have just subscribed to Tradestation6 for the backtesting abilities it has and also just that I found the charts nice. However, I dont seem to be able to link the charts...so if Im going to put in a new symbol I need to put it in every single time. This is a major pain obviously, so I was wondering if there is a way to link them like you can with Real Tick. If this isnt currently possible, maybe some of the powers that be at TS will read this and add that function to it, I think it would make it a much better platform. Brandon
I have Tradestation 6 on my home computer and Neovest's First Alert at work. The latter allows you to click on a symbol from your watchlist and the corresponding chart or charts (you can have several charts covering different timeframes tied to your single symbol) pop up. You also can have the software rotate through a list of symbols you select, and generate charts automatically, refreshing every x seconds. So for example say you have 100 stocks on your watchlist, you can have the software generate a new daily and 5 minute side by side of each symbol, each chart lasting (your choice) say 5 seconds each. This is powerful stuff. The bad news is that the charts and the indicators are cumbersome compared to Tradestation 6. TS6 has the crispest and most functional charts and indicators I've seen. Invite comments from a TS6 rep, there was a big thread here recently on backtesting in general and reps from the major vendors weighed in. Tell me if you find anything!
Hey Brandon, I just subscribed to TS6 also, and had the same question. First, if you haven't been turned on to www.tradestationworld.com yet it is a very good site for these questions as it is operated by tradestation. There is a poll presently being taken on this subject. Say you have three charts of the same symbol but different times. And you want to evaluate a different symbol. Type "global symbol"...without the quotes. On the active chart you will notice a box open in the left upper corner as you type. Hit enter and voila, all charts change. Level 2 and T&S windows do not change so you have to do those individually. Then lets say you have looked at 5 symbols and don't want to type them in repeatedly. Just hit the enter key and the box opens up. Press the down arrow key and all you have typed in is there. Scroll to the one you want and hit enter. Hope this helps.
I do get sick of using the mouse myself and enjoy the keyboard sometimes. Another neat thing is the Ctrl-tab function that changes the active chart to another active chart within the same workspace. I wanted this on qcharts but they didn't have it. Two ther things I would like to see added are color coded T&S and multiple order entry windows.
i just ordered tradestation too...today actually. i have the worst sore throat ever, so now is a good time for me to sit around tinker with it.
Lots of that sore throat going around, especially in Florida. I don't know where you are from. Yeah, and I made the mistake of sending a personal check to fund he account so I have been on hold with TS all week...til tomorrow. I did use my qcharts and cybetrader earlier this week. But I cancelled qcharts today before they bill me again. I too have used the down time to tinker with TS. I don't want to be trading wishing I had a different cart screen setup. Tonite I am going to try get the code right for some ideas. It is a lot like Excel, which I don't use much either. That www.tradestationworld.com site is monitored by the easylanguage staff and looks to be very helpfull. There is also www.tradestationzone.com, but it seems rather commercial. Even after all the back-testing, one thing will still be true...
They're very aware of this deficiency over in TS-land. inandlong's methods are helpful ("global [symbol]"), but, if you're using order entry, you'll still have to type the symbols into the order bar manually except when using automatic or semi-automatic signals, or when closing a position off the position graphs. Though there is a kind of dwarf L2-linking feature, it's too stiff to be very practical. Once you have typed in the symbol, you can make things work fairly quickly for entering and executing actual orders either by clicking on the bid, last, or ask buttons for limit orders, or by utilizing whatever "advanced" and "auto" order functions. The main workaround that I've been using, like other TS users, is to construct workspaces ahead of time that already contain all of the charts and other objects (L2, etc.) that I'd like to be looking at at once, so that all I need to do is either click between already-loaded workspaces or open up the already-saved workspace. It's also the only practical way to make the most of multiple monitors with TS6. By now, I have around 250 stock-specific workspaces on disk. I put around 75 or so in an ACTIVE TRADING directory each evening for easy access, and I make new ones whenever a new stock of possible interest comes up. One advantage of this method is the ability to save all of your analysis over time, obviously with the most active tradables getting updated the most frequently. I also use other kinds of workspaces for other purposes, of course (index analysis, trade review, and the like). I also keep duplicates that consist of daily charts with a pseudo-strategy that outputs/appends to an Excel file. I use them as a pseudo-scanner to set up for the next day. I have said this before on ET: At least until the upcoming upgrade, and probably all the more so even then, what it mostly comes down to is treating TS on its own terms, and using its unique features creatively (templates can also help, speed stuff up a lot, btw), not trying to make TS6 work like RealTick, CyberTrader Pro, or similarly designed trading software.
If you like to keep your eye on a relatively large number of tradables, and like to maintain ready access to other workspaces, and want to keep other applications open, too, you may run up against Windows "heap memory" limitations fairly soon - and get crashes or other failures. The tradestationworld site includes instructions for increasing heap memory in the tips and tricks section.
Kymar, I was thinking the same thing about just using multiple workspaces saved with different symbols. I trade less than 10 stocks, but iwas still wondering whether having several, ie., 6-10 workspaces open would bog things down. Each workspace covers three monitors and has 4 open charts and 1 time and sales and Level 2. I don't put a lot of info on any one chart, or in any workspace. I'm using a Pentium Celeron 1.4 with 256K Ram. Also cable modem. What are your thoughts?
I think it should be fine - though you must mean 256MB RAM, not 256K (I guess we've both been around long enough to remember when 256k RAM was high end) - and I'm presuming you're using Win2k, NT, or XP rather than the alternatives. My machine has 512 MB RAM, but it's not the main issue for this problem. I started running into the "interactive heap memory" limitations at around 20-30 open workspaces, each with ca. 7 "objects" - through I'm not entirely sure how to count the latter (e.g., multiple symbols in one chart). I have also heard that the various analytics you employ may also have some effect. The main "bogging" I now encounter has more to do with opening or closing workspaces (tho not switching between them) when I have a large number of them open (and typically am heavily multi-tasking as well). In any event, you'll find out fairly soon if your set-up is too ambitious. Probably not, is my guess.