Tutorial: Learning the Basics

Tutorial: Learning the Basics

The TradingSolutions Interface

i Tutorial Task
Understand the basics of the TradingSolutions Interface

This brief tutorial task will give you quick tour around the TradingSolutions interface so you can perform the other tasks more easily.

Step-by-step Instructions

1. The main focus of the interface is the Portfolio View. It lists all of the stocks and data in your portfolio.

· Data can be imported from Internet data services or from files on your computer. TradingSolutions can be used with stocks, futures, FOREX data; domestic or international – pretty much any data-based financial data.

· The Portfolio View can be customized to split the data into groups and display current signals, analyses, and other data for each group.

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Figure 1. Location of the Portfolio View

2. Right-click on any of the stocks in the Portfolio View. This displays a context menu of options available for working with this stock.

· Context menus are available for many different parts of TradingSolutions.

3. The $image\ebd_ebd226.gif$ icon in the Portfolio View indicates your Primary Signal. The Primary Signal is the signal you are most interested in for each stock. TradingSolutions displays signals as directional arrows and triangles. Here is a quick overview of the symbols.

$image\ebd_ebd227.gif$ Enter Long

$image\ebd_ebd228.gif$ Exit Short

$image\ebd_ebd229.gif$ Hold, price may increase

$image\ebd_ebd230.gif$ Hold

$image\ebd_ebd231.gif$ Hold, price may decrease

$image\ebd_ebd232.gif$ Exit Long

$image\ebd_ebd233.gif$ Enter Short

Ä Note: If you forget what a symbol means, simply place you mouse over it and tip will appear.

Ä Note: For information about what "long" and "short" means, see the Notes.

4. You quickly view an analysis of any signal by right-clicking on it and selecting Analyze Signal… . You can also compare all of the signals for a single stock by right-clicking on it and selecting Analyze Signals….

5. Beneath the Portfolio View, the Information View displays additional information for the currently selected stock or group in the Portfolio View.

· You can use the Information View to keep notes about how a stock is trading.

$image\ebd_ebd234.gif$

Figure 2. Location of the Information View

6. Along the bottom of the screen, the Messages and Alerts window displays information about activities that are happening in the background.

· Messages are issued when the importing of data is completed, when an analysis is ready, and any other time information is available.

· TradingSolutions Real-Time includes the ability to generate custom alerts which are displayed here.

$image\ebd_ebd235.gif$

Figure 3. Location of the Messages and Alerts Window

7. To the right of the Messages and Alerts window, the Current Tasks window displays an overview of the tasks that TradingSolutions is currently working on.

· After updating your portfolio with lots of new data, you can see TradingSolutions updating all of you calculations and signals.

$image\ebd_ebd236.gif$

Figure 4. Location of the Current Tasks Window

8. The gray area in the middle of the interface is where you can display charts and spreadsheets of your data.

· Click on a stock in the Portfolio View. Then, press the Chart button in Information View. This will display the default chart for a stock.

· You can also display custom charts and spreadsheets for any data by right-clicking on it in the Portfolio View and selecting Display in Chart… or Display in Spreadsheet….

$image\ebd_ebd237.gif$

Figure 5. Location of charts and spreadsheets.

Congratulations!

Now that you have had a tour of the interface, continue on to the next task for an understanding of how TradingSolutions calculates and stores values.

_ Continue to the next task.

Ä Understanding Fields