My "7 Monitor" set up

After getting frustrated with my current set up and contemplating buying several monitors for real, I decided to give this a try first to see whether I could get the same basic functionality out of a virtual multi-monitor set up. I'm taking advantage of the "Spaces" technology from Apple to set up 6 distinct virtual desktops:

Anyway here is my set up:

I have 4 screens for watchlists, so I can separate the combo lists from the short list and also have some room to chart what comes off the hod list. The 5th screen is for the chat and the 6th is for IB. The 7th you ask? That is where I run Windows XP in the background where I have Scottrade Elite running Trade Ideas (detailed here) with my backfiltered list of deadly combo stocks (detailed here).

The great thing about this set up, actually the only thing that really makes it functional, is the fact that I can set each window to a quick key for instant and direct access. I find this direct pivot actually to be about the same as moving one's eyes and refocusing on a new screen. Anyway if I find that it just isn't working out then I will invest in a multi-monitor set up. But for now this has the advantage that I can bring it with me wherever I go, like now.

** UPDATE

To clarify about Spaces- it is true, for obvious reasons if you think it through, that an application can only exist in one space only. To get around this problem I use a different web browser in each space. Therefore, the number of spaces ("watchlist monitors") is really only limited by this, since the number of virtual windows you can create is limitless. There seems to be no shortage of browsers available so this is not a problem. I use: Safari, Firefox, Camino, Seamonkey, Stainless, and Opera. Of course IE is also available (puke) and a few others probably. I can also use Chrome on the Windows side, although there is no need since that does not exist on the Spaces interface so I can have multiple browsers open there as well (I run the hod list from Firefox; running it on the Windows side allows for the freeze frame technique).

What I've been doing over the holidays

1-  Going over all the chat logs to make lists of all the stocks in play

2- Going over all the chat logs to chart the premarket leaders looking to see how they played long and short

3- vomiting violently due to some mysterious virus

4- trading occasionally (here is SIL from today (unrealized))

5- reading Brian Shannon's great book

6- reading another great book from Brett Steenbarger (I will post about later)

7- taking care of my wife who is vomiting violently from the virus that I gave her

8- tweaking my "7 monitor set up" (hehe)

9- complaining about the lack of borrows from IB (really!)

The situation has really been quite comical. After I got ill at my parents' house (after spending 3 days at my wife's parents'), unable to even get out of bed, then my wife got sick, causing us to delay our flight back, only to have the plumbing blow up forcing us to retreat to a hotel at the airport (where I'm writing this). We will try to fly out tomorrow. It's amazing I was even able to trade today.

Speaking of IB, it's awesome of course. But I can't believe given my extremely limited trading, that already on 2 shorts I tried to get, EPIX and HPSO, I was denied... I know nothing is perfect, but geez... maybe this means I'm just too slow...

How has everyone else's vacation been?

** UPDATE

I had to update the picture 4 times because my SIL profit kept going up in afterhours, hehe 

Funds available Dec 22

Apparently there is a 4 day hold on new deposits at IB? Plus I waited 4 days for all the funds to settle before I could pull out of the other brokers. This is why I waited until now to do this. I hate missing all the action, but I'm reading about it in the chat logs. I will be able to trade again on Monday. However I am going to be traveling and I don't know how much control I will have over my schedule. 

I will try to keep my blog updated in the mean time- this weekend I will show you my "7 monitor" set up that I have been working on in my down time. I will also post an excerpt from the book I am reading and show you how that Muddy displays the behavioral characteristics of a genius trader... and how you can try to get yourself into that framework.

Down for a bit

I'm going to be off until I finish moving over to IB. Plus my head is throbbing from this unfinished root canal. 

A great combination

I have to say I'm loving Yngvai's Correlation filter... I've added day range to it so here is a watchlist of stocks that are all over 80% red on $DJI red... AND all over 20% ADR5! A delicious combination.

RAS ARA UEPS FCH ICOG FTK GRA URE GNW

Watches Monday Dec. 8

HIG OGXI BBX RDN TLB LCC HRP PGI OREX ATPG

Lots of run ups but a few others...

LCC and all airlines on 4+ day run up, keep on short watch... these are good options plays also, will detail in future posts

OREX huge down, could be bad news so keep on watch ala CPE 

ATPG 88% down on $DJI red

PGI 1 day up, 1 day down... guess which day we are on

HRP look at what happens to the chart when it ends on high of day... where did it end Friday

Watches Thursday Dec. 4

LSI ATPG BBX HRP PPO IFLO OWW ASTI IMP PGI

I'm really digging the late day run ups... nothing like RAS today but HRP nice.. and BBX back to 3 is why it's back on the list...

also on watch: Vanessa Ng (just kidding)

also... did my blog get mentioned on ft-talk.com? I got a lot of traffic from there today... I hope you are saying nice things haha

thanks everyone for the birthday wishes

The Daily Babe-o

Vanessa Ng

Global Vento part II

Really getting a nice cross section of hits. This is only the most recent 500. Thanks everyone!

Anatomy of a day trade: BBX

That is one beautiful chart.

After reviewing the chart I changed to a limit order



This was the key to the entire trade since I got filled at 3.30.



Penny by penny we wait




I consider this a successful trade at this point.

A very nice dip below 3 however the spread is like .15 here so no opportunity to cover.




Who buys into a falling chart like that with a spread of .15-.20???




Trading sideways now. Will take here. Even though I really wanted this one below 3, the market is surging now and I don't want to fight the headwind. 

I will take profits and move on to the next one.

Position entry:  A+  

Position exit:     B

Overall trade:    A-

This trade alone meets tortexal's requirements of making $200 per day.

Happy birthday to me.

** UPDATE

So I looks like I'm missing out on a big part of the trade. There are two reasons for this. The first is that I am forced to make decisions about when to close a trade that are less than ideal because they aren't about the trade itself. Because I have to go to work I will be away from the computer for 45 minutes and I don't always have time to watch trades during the day. The second reason is that I have a hair trigger for taking profits which I consider to be both a good and bad thing. On this trade my instinct was good in that the reversal was real. However that stock dropped sharply the following morning so in the end patience would have paid off. Am I glad I took that trade when I did? Yes in part because the market could have rallied the next day and I would have potentially had a losing position. I can't get too upset about it because I made profit... that is the most important thing. I changed my exit to B.

Watches My Birthday Dec. 3

RAS ISSC BBX HRP BC CRMT STSI PLD SAH OVEN RMBS EGY PGI ATPG YRCW 

RAS

I'm going to do something I don't usually do, I will try to short RAS in premarket tomorrow since open is usually too late

Watches Tues Dec. 2

FRPT YRCW XING OVEN RMBS EGY PGI ATPG (still)

My favorites from other lists... sorry I didn't have time to do any scans today

My favorites on this list are EGY PGI ATPG

I will have an upcoming post about how a stock's chart feel makes me want to trade it or stay away