The Tools of the Trader By Floyd Snyder
As the moderator of Daytraders, the net’s top real-time, live, chat room dedicated to stock
trading, I receive many requests and questions on a daily basis. One of the most frequently
asked questions I receive is, “What are the tools I need to day trade?�
Many subscribers want to know what broker to use, what kind of computer, how many
monitors etc., etc.
So let’s cover a few of these questions.
Computers: The computer you choose today is not nearly as difficult a decision, nor as
expensive, as it once was. Most everything you buy today is going to have the horsepower for
trading and at a fraction of the cost it once was. With boxes as inexpensive as they are, you for
sure don’t want to skimp. Yet, at the same time you don’t need an IBM mainframe
either. I’ll not get into brand names because most, if not all, of the computers on the market
today will do just fine. However, there is one thing you do not want to over look - memory.
Many systems still come standard with just 512k of memory, especially laptops. I strongly
suggest you get at least a megabyte or more of memory. Get as much as you can comfortably
afford.
Monitors and Video Cards: Make sure you have a video card setup with the capabilities to run
at least three monitors. Some people are running as many as 7 or 8, but for the most part you
can get by with 3. I would suggest you get at least the 17 inch monitor, but of course, there are
certainly larger monitors out there. Depending on your budget you can end up with as much
viewing space as your local ten-plex theater. I suggest you don’t get that carried away.
First of all, the more you hang on the system, the more sluggish it will run. Also, the more screen
space you have, the more likely you will be to be opening up all sorts of windows that can only
become a distraction.
Brokers: I strongly suggest you look into using one of these two day trading specialists:
MBTrading or CyberTrader, with a strong personal bias for MBTrading. My bias is based
simply on past experience. Keep in mind we are talking day trading here, not investing. For day
trading, fast execution and customer service are the two most important considerations on
which you need to base your decision. Commissions are really not as important as you would
think. These companies are very competitive now, and the fee structures are not that varied any
longer. Poor execution and inadequate customer service can cost you many times more than the
savings you might realize by using the wrong broker.
I often make the somewhat silly analogy of “trying to trade with anything other then a fast,
point and click day trading system like MBTrading or CyberTrader, is like trying to win the
Indianapolis 500 with your family mini-van.� The other thing you need to be cautious of is
people recommending “their own� discount broker. Most have never even seen an
MBTrading or CyberTrader system. Suffice to say, the differences are drastic.
Quotes and Data Feed: Depending on which broker you choose, you may also need a stand-
alone quote/data feed. I suggest you ask the broker you choose to make a recommendation
here. They have worked closely with different data suppliers and should be able to tell you
which one is doing the best job with their service. However, who ever you do choose, make
sure you have real time charting, Level II quotes for both the NASDAQ “and� the Dow
listed stocks.
News and other information: You don’t need to subscribe to every news service in the
world. This is not only costly but is just going to fill your screen(s) with a lot of news you really
can’t use. Remember, it is not your job as a trader to be on top of every stock move on
every breaking news story. You only need to find a few stocks a day to make money on. This
is also why I was cautioning against too much screen space. If you have the space, you are
much more inclined to fill it with more information that needs digesting.
I suggest you subscribe to Dow Jones News. The best price is usually through your broker, and
in many cases it is integrated right into your trading platform or data feed. I also suggest you
subscribe to Daytraders.com (self serving as that may sound). Daytraders.com is monitored (by
yours truly), and we cover as many breaking news stories as we can. We also make stock calls
(Buy, Sell, Short, Scalp, etc.) including analysts’ actions, volume alerts, research alerts and
many trading ideas (stocks) posted by the membership itself. The room is for professionals and
is strictly monitored to eliminate inappropriate trading and off topic comments to insure
professional behavior. Being a part of a group of savvy traders gives you the benefit of many
pairs of eyes and ears.
I also suggest you monitor MarketWatch.com. It is free and does deliver some real time news.
It also gives you a lot of trading ideas as well as in-depth stories on stocks that are in play for
the day. The other free news service you will want to bookmark and keep handy is Yahoo
Finance. It’s not real-time, but it has a wealth of research information along with delayed
news. Other information at Yahoo Finance includes detailed quotes, 52 week highs and lows,
float information, short interest, analysts’ opinions, upgrades, downgrades, stock screeners,
etc.
You will also want to have your TV tuned to CNBC. A mere mention on the air can move a
stock. This may give you any number of trading ideas, or explain why a trade your are in is
reacting the way it is.
There are a number links at www.TraderAide.com that you will also want to bookmark and
keep close. The NASDAQ page, for instance, has the pre-market and during market Radar
which tells you what stocks are moving in real time. I find this extremely valuable in pre-market
trading. The NASDAQ page also has halted stocks information, a daily calendar of economic
events, Market Maker lists, and a plethora of other data. In addition, at TradeAide.com you
will find links to many other sites that can be very helpful during the trading day. You will also
find a link on how to set your Stochastic chart which will include a daily candlestick chart and a
volume overlay. It is not the goal of TraderAide.com to give you a link to every site on the net
that deals with the markets, only ones that will help you make money on a daily basis.
When you are setting up your data feed/quotes, keep it simple. A couple of market maker/level
II windows are all you need, with the ticker (time of sales). You need a stochastic chart, a daily
(one year) candlestick chart for price history and your news feed. You can open up a multitude
of other screens and studies inside your data/quote feed, but too much information is just that,
too much information.
Remember KISS!
Happy trading!
No permission is needed to reproduce an unedited copy of this article as long the About The
Author tag is left in tact and hot links included. Questions and comments can be sent to Floyd at
floyd@TraderAide.com.
Floyd Snyder has been trading and investing in the stock market for three decades. He was on
the forefront of the day trading craze that swept the nation back in the late 1990's, both as a
trader and as the moderator of one of the Internet's largest real time trading rooms, http:
//Daytraders.com. He is the owner of http://www.TraderAide.com and Strictly Business
Magazine at http://www.sbmag.org
As the moderator of Daytraders, the net’s top real-time, live, chat room dedicated to stock
trading, I receive many requests and questions on a daily basis. One of the most frequently
asked questions I receive is, “What are the tools I need to day trade?�
Many subscribers want to know what broker to use, what kind of computer, how many
monitors etc., etc.
So let’s cover a few of these questions.
Computers: The computer you choose today is not nearly as difficult a decision, nor as
expensive, as it once was. Most everything you buy today is going to have the horsepower for
trading and at a fraction of the cost it once was. With boxes as inexpensive as they are, you for
sure don’t want to skimp. Yet, at the same time you don’t need an IBM mainframe
either. I’ll not get into brand names because most, if not all, of the computers on the market
today will do just fine. However, there is one thing you do not want to over look - memory.
Many systems still come standard with just 512k of memory, especially laptops. I strongly
suggest you get at least a megabyte or more of memory. Get as much as you can comfortably
afford.
Monitors and Video Cards: Make sure you have a video card setup with the capabilities to run
at least three monitors. Some people are running as many as 7 or 8, but for the most part you
can get by with 3. I would suggest you get at least the 17 inch monitor, but of course, there are
certainly larger monitors out there. Depending on your budget you can end up with as much
viewing space as your local ten-plex theater. I suggest you don’t get that carried away.
First of all, the more you hang on the system, the more sluggish it will run. Also, the more screen
space you have, the more likely you will be to be opening up all sorts of windows that can only
become a distraction.
Brokers: I strongly suggest you look into using one of these two day trading specialists:
MBTrading or CyberTrader, with a strong personal bias for MBTrading. My bias is based
simply on past experience. Keep in mind we are talking day trading here, not investing. For day
trading, fast execution and customer service are the two most important considerations on
which you need to base your decision. Commissions are really not as important as you would
think. These companies are very competitive now, and the fee structures are not that varied any
longer. Poor execution and inadequate customer service can cost you many times more than the
savings you might realize by using the wrong broker.
I often make the somewhat silly analogy of “trying to trade with anything other then a fast,
point and click day trading system like MBTrading or CyberTrader, is like trying to win the
Indianapolis 500 with your family mini-van.� The other thing you need to be cautious of is
people recommending “their own� discount broker. Most have never even seen an
MBTrading or CyberTrader system. Suffice to say, the differences are drastic.
Quotes and Data Feed: Depending on which broker you choose, you may also need a stand-
alone quote/data feed. I suggest you ask the broker you choose to make a recommendation
here. They have worked closely with different data suppliers and should be able to tell you
which one is doing the best job with their service. However, who ever you do choose, make
sure you have real time charting, Level II quotes for both the NASDAQ “and� the Dow
listed stocks.
News and other information: You don’t need to subscribe to every news service in the
world. This is not only costly but is just going to fill your screen(s) with a lot of news you really
can’t use. Remember, it is not your job as a trader to be on top of every stock move on
every breaking news story. You only need to find a few stocks a day to make money on. This
is also why I was cautioning against too much screen space. If you have the space, you are
much more inclined to fill it with more information that needs digesting.
I suggest you subscribe to Dow Jones News. The best price is usually through your broker, and
in many cases it is integrated right into your trading platform or data feed. I also suggest you
subscribe to Daytraders.com (self serving as that may sound). Daytraders.com is monitored (by
yours truly), and we cover as many breaking news stories as we can. We also make stock calls
(Buy, Sell, Short, Scalp, etc.) including analysts’ actions, volume alerts, research alerts and
many trading ideas (stocks) posted by the membership itself. The room is for professionals and
is strictly monitored to eliminate inappropriate trading and off topic comments to insure
professional behavior. Being a part of a group of savvy traders gives you the benefit of many
pairs of eyes and ears.
I also suggest you monitor MarketWatch.com. It is free and does deliver some real time news.
It also gives you a lot of trading ideas as well as in-depth stories on stocks that are in play for
the day. The other free news service you will want to bookmark and keep handy is Yahoo
Finance. It’s not real-time, but it has a wealth of research information along with delayed
news. Other information at Yahoo Finance includes detailed quotes, 52 week highs and lows,
float information, short interest, analysts’ opinions, upgrades, downgrades, stock screeners,
etc.
You will also want to have your TV tuned to CNBC. A mere mention on the air can move a
stock. This may give you any number of trading ideas, or explain why a trade your are in is
reacting the way it is.
There are a number links at www.TraderAide.com that you will also want to bookmark and
keep close. The NASDAQ page, for instance, has the pre-market and during market Radar
which tells you what stocks are moving in real time. I find this extremely valuable in pre-market
trading. The NASDAQ page also has halted stocks information, a daily calendar of economic
events, Market Maker lists, and a plethora of other data. In addition, at TradeAide.com you
will find links to many other sites that can be very helpful during the trading day. You will also
find a link on how to set your Stochastic chart which will include a daily candlestick chart and a
volume overlay. It is not the goal of TraderAide.com to give you a link to every site on the net
that deals with the markets, only ones that will help you make money on a daily basis.
When you are setting up your data feed/quotes, keep it simple. A couple of market maker/level
II windows are all you need, with the ticker (time of sales). You need a stochastic chart, a daily
(one year) candlestick chart for price history and your news feed. You can open up a multitude
of other screens and studies inside your data/quote feed, but too much information is just that,
too much information.
Remember KISS!
Happy trading!
No permission is needed to reproduce an unedited copy of this article as long the About The
Author tag is left in tact and hot links included. Questions and comments can be sent to Floyd at
floyd@TraderAide.com.
Floyd Snyder has been trading and investing in the stock market for three decades. He was on
the forefront of the day trading craze that swept the nation back in the late 1990's, both as a
trader and as the moderator of one of the Internet's largest real time trading rooms, http:
//Daytraders.com. He is the owner of http://www.TraderAide.com and Strictly Business
Magazine at http://www.sbmag.org
TraderAide.com
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