For the past couple of weeks, DSL service has been patchy and staccato from noon until late evening here. I'm not sure if it's my hardware, over-subscribed service (outskirts of Verizon coverage) or something else. Regardless, I cannot handle frequent outages for 10 ~ 30 second chart freezes while trading. What intraday trader can? I signed up for Verizon wireless service, $59.95 monthly with 5gig monthly limit. After that it's 25c per mg. Most normal usage will be two intraday charts, dome and T&S table from 8am est thru 4pm est max. If I'm streaming Ninja charts on two 24" monitors for seven - eight hours daily and light browser surfing at different times, is that limit something I may use up per month, come close to or never even scratch the surface of? I looked thru numerous threads here but never saw that topic covered. I assume because it's so basic, but my tech knowledge is extremely basic, embarrasingly enough. My girlfriend and her boys joke about my (to this day) never having sent anyone a text message, let alone programmed my own cell phone. Appreciate any expert responses
How many symbols are you monitoring? For example, tick by tick data for ES comes to around 40 - 50mb / day.
Hi Austin - You may come close to the limit, but it's very user/setup specific. Best idea is to get one of these tools and measure your use for a day or two: http://www.techsupportalert.com/best-free-download-upload-meter.htm It may all be moot anyway, make sure you're happy with the smartcard; they make a great temporary backup, but can stutter for some people depending on where you are on the Verizon network.
I'd be running a 5min chart and 100(ish) tick on each 24" monitor. Two trading domes, one time & sales dome. The salesman said it's almost roadrunner speed and connectivity is stable as cell phone coverage permits. We have strong cell signals here, hopefully that translates well. Cable or T-lines are not an option. My choices are DSL, dial-up or wireless. Already been the Direcway route, that is not dependable during any kind of inclement weather. Will definitely use wireless as a backup and remote service on laptop, worst case. Hopefully it will serve as a solid backup to DSL. Thank you for the advice... much appreciated. Anyone else have live trading experience with wireless service?
In this case, it is not only the capacity that you should be concerned about, imho. It is the speed, or the lag. Think about it, the packages are sent to a satellite and sent back to your pc and are subject to all kinds of interference. Even home wi-fi connection is not as stable as wired connection, so I never use it personally. I have not used verizon wireless internet, btw. Other experts please weigh in. Best is to try it for a month and compare it side by side.
Austin, does your local phone co. offer a dedicated DSL line? Search for "dedicated DSL Line" in your state.
I use Sprint UNLIMITED wireless broadband as my backup (and for my laptop trading when traveling) and it works just fine.
A couple of things to consider. I've looked at just about everything. If you have a telephone line and twisted pair running to your outside phone box you should be able to get a 1.5MB T1. Try this option first since it is the most reliable and now days can be had for under $400/mo. Have Covad, MegaPath or Telnes Broadband deal with your local telco on the provisioning. Never believe the initial "not available" in your area. That is BS and there are FCC guidelines for the telco to follow. Everything is downhill after a T1. There is no better connection for reliability, low latency and limited packet loss. These are more important than peak download/upload speeds. For Verizon EVDO wireless contact the folks at 3Gstore.com 866-347-8673. Cancel your initial purchase before the 30 day evaluation period and buy directly from 3G. They will provide the best technical support for all components. I would get the UM150 usb, cradlepoint router, amplifier with roof antenna for the best possible signal gain. Finally, get a dual wan router so that your 2 connections can be managed for primary and failover. Send pm for questions or more specifics.
Austinp i use verizon too. It's Patchy at times. I am trying to switch to verizon fios. You might wanna check if thats available in your area. Also, does anyone know if upload speed matters for trading? I have a measly 370 kb upload speed....