Coding & Programming
A solid basis of quality.
Petit Trader’s focus is not only on functional and useful tools for the trader, it also focuses on quality of coding and programming. Having reliable, clean, scalable tools is a building block for proper systems and plans.
Standing in the middle and standing aside
Becoming a trader is choosing to stand in the middle, as well as to stand aside. Whether it is a profession or a side business, a crystal-clear approach to trading is a necessity.
Standing in the middle
To stand in the middle means to know, thoroughly understand, have a solid ground, in front of an extremely complex and constantly moving environment. Within this knowledge we would find:
- Understand the instruments I am trading
- Be able to write a trading plan
- Be capable to count, do approximations quickly but accurately
- Know the functionalities of a platform in detail
- Have the appropriate tools to analyse the market
- Integrate reliable trading assistants
- Understand how a broker makes money, and why it is not necessarily your friend
Standing aside
To stand aside means to add a layer of a personal approach (difference) based on observations, personal discipline, aims and goals, preferences, tolerance to risk etc. Among them we could find:
- Know my weaknesses and how to overcome them
- Find an edge on the market (strategy, system)
- A trading plan
- Risk and Money management plan
- Learn, and practice with, tools that allow a greater flexibility in regard to standard trading mechanisms (soft stops/takes, trailing stops/takes, emergency closes etc)
- Avoid common mistakes made by thousands of traders every day, making brokers wealthy and traders poorer
Growing on solid basis
Psychologists, Osteopaths or Chiropractors who provide fantastic care to a broad variety of situations from health protection to desperate conditions, often say that their profession can be seen as an art grown on science. A Trader is an artist who has grown on solid basis to then face an extremely broad variety of market behaviours.
As a result, if you trade on Metatrader then the best advice here is to start with quality MQL programmes. A number of brokers, forums or even sharing platforms offer free MQL experts, scripts or indicators. From my trader’s perspective they are just part of the financial lure presented to potential customers.
A good software
A commercial software developer relies on solid practices to deliver a piece of software, that can be integrated to any kind of system.
For a developer, reading a good quality piece of software is a pleasure. Because a programmer is often expected to “open the box” in order to integrate the code into something bigger, the expectation is to read something which is:
- Clean
- Tested
- Written with clarity and rigour
- Following a coding standard
- Commented / annotated wherever necessary
This is essential to modify a software when necessary or integrate it without rework. That’s the reason why companies pay good high day rates to developers!
By writing good trading software a programmer demonstrates:
- Functional knowledge of finance / investment / speculation
- Technical knowledge of trading platforms
- Rigour
- Software life-cycle including reusability
- Testing
The code I write is rigorous, tested and properly documented: you buy quality software. Do not just download any free software on the web. Buy a tool at a fair price to build a solid Trading System and Plan.
Trading requires an enormous amount of time spent in market research. Do not waste your time with dubious tools or dirty code. To build a growing profit, start with a clean basis.