Bro, I used this book and an old code to start with. Then it’s practice, practice and more practice.
For questions best heading straight to the source on the forum at mql4.com. Be tuff but, they are brutal over there and don’t understand the needs of us noobs. But they are a few who will help out.
Also the mql4 reference in metaeditor is a valued resource.
Finally they tell me C then C++ are good to learn first but then I never and I don’t think it’s necessary. Best of luck bro!
This is a good idea. Working and progressing as a group is often a good way to stay motivated over longer periods of time.
I have some basic and outdated dev experience. I try to upgrade my knowledge using the INTERNET, which has a metric tonne of good educational sites and programs, both free and paid, but when you’re simultaneously trying to learn how to trade, and keep solvent, it’s a bit of a juggle. I have no C or C++ and just a tiny bit of C# experience. I’m basically a newbie.
In terms of MQL resources, I’ll have to have a look around but here’s where I’d start if you have even a basic coding background. Maybe even if you don’t have that. It doesn’t hurt to start getting familiar with terminology
The MetaQuotes software documentation. So here’s my goal. I’m going to read a chapter of this manual, every week. Then I’ll report back here and explain, as best I can, what I’ve learned. If I don’t, or if I"m late, please nag me and complain in this thread! Motivation!
For new coders who have very little knowledge of basics, there are a lot of options. Two I would recommend are codecademy.com and codecombat.com. Although they don’t have C++ courses, they are a fun way to learn about syntax, structures, and data types.
Just a suggestion to learning mql4… CHEAT!
You dont have to learn everything about mql4 to be able to make EA’s. Find an up to date template or existing EA that has all the functions you need. Make sure it has clear buy and sell functions.
All you really need to do to start making ea’s is to change the indicators and entry conditions. This is very easy! There is a lot of info on how to use the indicators.
eg if you want to add a stochastic indicator… just add a couple of lines of code such as
yes, there is a bit of study to do. It is just c++ syntax.
Point about using a template is that you do not have to bother with the more tricky parts of writing an ea like oredersend and ordermodify and check trades, etc…
There is no point writing code if you dont have to. You can make an ea in 20 mins instead of a week!
I agree with both approaches. If you are starting from scratch you will probably need a basic course to understand the terms and you might need some outside help to start thinking like a programmer.
However you can also get trapped in a ‘classroom’ mentality where you try to absorb and memorize facts all the time, and coding is very much a ‘hands-on’ skill where you learn by doing. So, finding a basic template and making changes to it and then seeing how those changes affected the script are a big part of learning.
This is a great thread. I am dabbling in learning to build my own EA’s. To be honest, I don’t think you can have a successful automated system unless you can tweak yourself; the market is constantly changing. Having said that, I’ve been in search for an EA that would fit my style. I finally found ‘something’. The coder pushed it out in another forum saying, “here it is, use at your own risk, I spent about 15 minutes coding this thing and I’ve not tested it” and then, poof, he was gone. Why would anyone even consider downloading something like that? Well, I guess out of desperation. But I did and surprisingly enough, it does enter at about where I would enter on a manual trade. Problem is it closes as quickly as it enters. I would like to make this thing work but I exhausted trying. I can’t even understand exactly what it’s doing but it does use all of my ‘custom’ indicators. I don’t know whether to ditch this thing and struggle with writing my own or keep trying. While we all learn MQL4 together, has anyone signed up for any of the automated writing block systems? I think I have a good one and it helps, but you still need to understand MQL4. I’ll be following this thread closely. If anyone has any suggestions on my TDI strategy (mentioned above), let me know.
Oh how I wish I knew enough to know what all of this means. I know what you’re saying, we don’t need to learn ALL there is but to do something as simple (and I think you felt it was simple) don’t we at least have to understand what it’s actually saying? Is it extern that is a whole number and double is a decimal? Now didn’t that sound pretty good (if I’m right)? But I can’t grasp it. Do they mean the price is a double? No doubt we can go far if we just bust through the confusion.
Rhelt -I don’t know if you’ll benefit as much from reading documentation at this stage.
In my opinion you need a basic primer so that you can get comfortable with the terminology. For complete beginners I can’t recommend a site like codecademy.com enough. It’s mostly free. It will not teach you any C but it will teach you about data types and so on.
If someone gives you a file with an .ex4 extension, how can you tell if it is an indicator to be placed in the Indicators folder, or if it is an expert advisor to be placed in the Experts folder? My understanding is both file types carry the same .ex4 extension, and no source code file was provided.
I have 2 instances of MT4 running on the same account, 1 on my desktop PC and 1 on the VPS. How do I synch both instances so that if I add an indicator, template or layout on the PC version, it automatically loads on the VPS version, and vice-versa? They are on the same account so I want them to be identical and a mirror image of each other.
And sorry if this is the wrong forum. I just purchased Jim Dandy’s MT4 programming course and this sounds like the proper venue for these questions.
You can put an indicator in the experts folder but it will not open. It will not attach to a chart.
How do you sync your pc demo and vps account? You have to do it manually. Set it up on your demo, make sure everything is correct, then transfer it to your vps. Save the set file, etc and copy and paste. Each MT4 instance is independent. Although if you are trading the same account with different MT4 instances, the trades can be adjusted by either instance. That’s why you use magic numbers to differentiate between trading systems.
So i can add to the conspiracy theory hahaha. It goes along the lines of. The lizard people want to bankrupt the UK or at least punish the UK for leaving the eu. They have decided that the Yuan will be the new dominant currency.
So selling the pound is a no brainer… But maybe look at buying the Yuan.
BTW. The lizard people have already moved out of London and have setup hq in Beijing. They already had it planned for China to be the new eccenomic capital.