Trading Set-Ups

Beginner Questions
1

Hi, I thought I would say a little about my trading set-up, and habits’ I do this in the knowledge that most (retail) traders are in a room by them selves, trying there best, with what-ever trading method they have chosen.

So just to talk about your set-up, perhaps will help in that our minds for awhile will think of something else other than the strength of the gb v dollar, and perhaps pick-up a few tips on the way.
Here goes.
I use MT4, one PC, with a VTX3D ATI Radeon HD 5770 1GB GDDR5 Graphics Card running at the moment 2 monitors, a HP 24" and a Hanns G 23", but next week I add a 3rd Hanns G 23", this was the primary reason for buying this card, (it can run 3 monitors)
At the moment I use the 2nd monitor for my feeds ( News & Currency Strength) both are subscription so I want to be able to glance anytime and see whats happening, my No1 monitor (24" hp)is for demos & live account, I use signal software that I find a little slow if used in one demo account, but splitting the signal software into 2 brokers ends the problem, I also use a 2nd trading method on one of the demo accounts but this is more of a analysis software and allot less demanding on the bandwidth. (50meg broad band)
The third Monitor will be for my live account, at the moment I keep this virtually devoid of any bells and whistles, that way I can-not accidentally think I am in a demo account when in fact it’s my live account, I have this completely different for that reason, but being on my demo account monitor I must always be aware that a simple click and I am in my live account, ok you might think the odd’s are very low in accidentally placing a trade that’s meant for a demo, but I have caught myself looking for my signal software in my live account, “my mind is going” I never so much as place a trend line in my live account, I use this solely for placing trades, incidentally I plan to keep No1 (24" hp) as my center monitor, 3rd monitor to my right will be my live account, my work will be all on the center monitor.
Do I need all these monitors you might ask ? hmmmmm!

I am a Joiner by trade, yester-year they used hand saws for jobs we now use either battery powered or mains electric, it’s easier now, we used battery power to fasten a screw, we have sensors on cars when reversing it peeps to let you know there is something in the way, and lets not even mention the new mobile phones and all they can do, do we need all that crap, the answer has to be yes, we simply cant function in the real world productively speaking without tech, I think it’s a mental thing, I think it makes me feel easier perhaps better, more confident, thus it improves ( I hope) my mental status, which can only lead to better trading.
Would I add a 4th monitor, if I think it is needed for me, you bet your ass I would.
The annoying thing about multi monitors is that you lose your mouse pointer, and have to move the mouse around till you find it, and I imagine this will get worse with the 3 rd monitor attached.
That’s it, thanx taking the time to read this, and I would like to know / read about other set-up’s

Buckets of luck to you all

Gary

3

I trade with a 3 year old lap top with a 14 inch screen that i carry from the kitchen all the way to the bedroom and anywhere in between.

4

oh and my battery has conked out so thats abit of a bummer

5

I just use a laptop with 17monitor. I use my iPhone to monitor my trades on the go but I don’t trade from it.

6

I trade at my kitchen table using a pretty powerful laptop hooked up to a separate mouse, keyboard and 22’’ monitor, this means that I can unplug the monitor etc and just take the laptop and trade from that if I am on holiday etc. As it is a large table I am currently considering hooking up a second monitor, so I can keep my charts open while looking at my broker, news feeds whatever else. This is not essential to me by any means - I have traded for ages off a single monitor and it works fine (I started out just using the laptop screen, but added the larger one earlier this year so I could see more historical data on the screen at one time), but occasionally when placing trades, corresponding with trading buddies (and responding to Babypips threads!) it would be handy to have my charts up alongside my regular desktop. So I will be going the second monitor route shortly.

One thing that interested me recently and is tangentally relevant to this: not sure if any other UK traders on here saw but Greg Secker, boss of trader coaching company K2A, has this summer launched his ‘flying trader’ programme, where he trades from the passenger seat of a helicopter using a wireless laptop while the helicopter flies above London, and gives the proceeds to charity.

I mention this NOT as a sales pitch for him, but as I thought it made an interesting point: it is possible to trade successfully from a wireless laptop in an airborne helicopter!! So even though I am looking at getting a second monitor for ease, the fact of the matter is that all the whizzy toys are not the important bit of trading. Anyone who can trade can make money from a simple internet connection and single screen. The rest of it might be helpful, useful or just fun, but it is not important.

ST

7

No idea what setup i have, although it has a terabyte HD, plus another huge solid state HD. I got 2 23" monitors… and the thing whirls super fast.

I miss my old 14" laptop with a battery that died in 5 minutes. I made more money per month with that i ever have with this new computer.

alas, the laptop is now probably becoming a car seat or a trash can or some such nonsense as this.

I may sell this new computer, and get another laptop.

Jay

8

Yeah, I have an oldish Laptop running Linux, and I wouldn’t change it for the world, it still performs what I want to do better than some brand new Windows machines, in fact whenever I use a Windows machine I get depressed, when I click on my browser, the browser just loads in a flash every time, on Windows Vista with the dogs bollocks latest whizz ho mega ram and stuff it still goes ‘um hang on I’m not sure if I want to load your browser today just gimme a few seconds while I think about it’

I do have a second monitor, it’s absolutely vital a second monitor for me, I have my trading platform on one, then all my other stuff on the other so I can do things like wind people up on BabyPips to help pass the time of day when I’m trading, I don’t really, well Ok I do, but just the stupid 'know all’s that we get here from time to time.