"Kinks". I doubt it. I am not one to complain about software or cars or anything that works without me putting in any effort.

I believe what all of them do is pretty magical and do not hold any negativity towards Microsoft, Apple or any other provider of opportunity.

Ubuntu is pretty cool and I have to admit I considered it, but like you said, it requires some effort like all systems. I have been busy playing w/ my Android cell phone which does stuff I never thought could be done this soon. Pretty cool stuff. Soon we will all be trading off of voice-recognition and have pulses wired into our brains to feel the rhythm of the market!

My feelings today are ruled by frustration. Not at trading. That went fairly well. I used the method outlined above and took with trend trades (trend defined by price and moving average on 12R chart) following a retrace on the 4R chart. Had one trade that stopped out, but in looking at it, had I been closely following the price action (as I should have been), I would not have entered. That trade occurred at 10:19, but if you look to the left you see there was a higher low that gave a good hint that it is best to stand aside now. I was preoccupied with something else at the time and just glanced at the chart and saw it approaching the 60 ema, so I just threw in a sell stop. By jinhar's guidelines, you should only take the first pullback on the 4R after the trend change on the 12R, but I do scalp the other pullbacks.

Any way, my source of frustration is Sierra Charts. First time using them on rithmic, so was anxious to get them setup and running. I downloaded SC, put in the appropriate username and password for SC and then setup the data/trade service with its username and password. I then created a 6B chart. I did not get the 30 days of back data I expected. All I could get was data from the time I created the chart. I went through the getting started guide again and again trying to find the mistake, but to no avail. I created a 6E chart and it loaded as it should with the 30 days of back data, so I think I have all the settings correct on the data feed. I deleted the 6B data file and tried again, but got the same results. I posted a note on the SC support board but it has been a couple of hours and so far no answer. It is my first day, and I really dislike technology not working like it is supposed to, so I will try to remain patient and calm until the issue is resolved. I suspect it is some box somewhere not checked (or checked) but man, I can't find it.

I won't get down though. I do have Ninja Trader 7, and for me, it has worked like a champ. I am using the chart trader, entering with either a buy or sell stop. If I can't get SC working within a day or so, I will just focus on NinjaTrader.

I attached a screen shot of my setup on my laptop. I didn't put in the trades but I suspect you can see where they were. Overall, I stuck to the process goals today and more than pleased with the (simulated) trading results. I will be on sim at least through this week and most likely next also.
Papa 15

Hello,

what i would suggest is very simple if you are scalping other pullbacks as you said earlier then use lower position size ? that way if trend is strong you will still get a bite from the pie and if not you wont give away as much and when u get proper setup you can go all in .. this will also cause less frustration and more stress free trading .. Just my one cent hope it helps .. Love your chart setup .. Happy trading.

Best Regards
Jinhar

jinhar 

Hello, what i would suggest is very simple if you are scalping other pullbacks as you said earlier then use lower position size ? that way if trend is strong you will still get a bite from the pie and if not you wont give away as much and when u get proper setup you can go all in .. this will also cause less frustration and more stress free trading .. Just my one cent hope it helps .. Love your chart setup .. Happy trading. Best Regards Jinhar

Jinhar
Thanks for the response. When I do the other scalps, I go with the trend on the 12R. I am a bit tighter with the profit target on these trades also, and I keep the stop above the recent swing high or low. I have had good success with it so far. I am truly thankful for your thread and glad I took the time to read it.
Papa15

Spent a bit of time on the phone with Matt at Optimus trying to figure out the issue with Sierra Chart. Problem seems to have been that 6B was not enabled on a data server at SC. Or something like that. Anyway, I decided I am changing enough already. I am familiar with NinjaTrader, so late this afternoon, I emailed Matt to cancel the SC account (he is paying for it, and if I am not going to use, he should get his money back).

I am practicing with the NT chart trader. I like that a lot. However, my only concern is where bracket orders are held. I think for NT these are either at NT on their servers, but it could be on my PC. (For SC, the OCO orders are on your PC). The safest DOM to use here is the R-Trader, where orders are sent to the exchange; but R-Trader does not have a sim capability. Once I go live, I may try that, but that is for another day.

I also finally downloaded Jing so I can better mark up charts.
Papa15

I am saying mea culpa once again. The kinks have been worked out with Sierra Chart, so I asked Matt to let me try it for a few more days to fully explore its features. I really like what I have seen so far. Attached is the chart for today, using SC.

The third trade I took on a lark. I saw the same setup as yesterday where there was a minor pullback in the pullback to the 60 ema on the 4R chart, so I wanted to see if the response was the same. I set a sell stop below the low of the minor pullback (the dip on the pullback to the ema). Price stopped me in and then I took some heat. Eventually the trade turned profitable. I am forcing myself to trade as if this is real money, but on this one trade, I gave myself a little leeway. This is not the beginning of a bad habit.

I am liking the way 6B moves. It is slow enough for me to handle (there are times it moves a little fast but for the most part it has a good pace) yet the price change is enough to give profit potential. I am liking the multiple contract setup.

Papa15

Hello, Papa...

What is your view on range bars verses time? I am using a 5 and 15 minute chart.

Does SC have an order entry screen, chart trader or something to enable you to actually place orders. Last time I looked at it, there was no order entry method at all. Charting only. That is why I passed on SC and went with NT.

tderrick 

Hello, Papa... What is your view on range bars verses time? I am using a 5 and 15 minute chart.

In my past I have only had the option of time bars and tick bars. I have been watching folks here trade range bars for a while. Over the holiday period I did a demo of SC where I tried the range bars. The method of entry was not necessarily good but I did notice that the range bars helped to smooth out trends so that I could spot them easier. I no longer had to look at long wicks or excessively long candles. I am not sure the "classic" candlestick signals are fully valid with range bars but I don't really trade based on those signals anyway. I use pull backs and I am able to spot the price swings a bit easier with range bars. I am far from an expert on them but so far I am comfortable with them.
Papa15

aztrader9 

Does SC have an order entry screen, chart trader or something to enable you to actually place orders. Last time I looked at it, there was no order entry method at all. Charting only. That is why I passed on SC and went with NT.

Yes. It does. Get a free demo from any broker who supports SC.