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Question 14: What is the biggest mistake people make when purchasing software? |
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Neal: In my opinion, students buy software that requires too much time to learn. For instance, one software firm has a language that traders must learn in order to back-test. You also take classes to learn the software. In short, you develop programming skills at the expense of improving your trading. Traders who trade Chicago style are more pragmatic. They are not interested in learning programming language or the sorcery of back-testing. Why not purchase software that is compatible with the way you trade? |
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I am not saying one product is better than any other. Most are basically the same. I just take issue with claims that imply a particular programming language will propel you into the "traders' hall of fame." |
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Question 15: What is your opinion of day-traders? |
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Neal: That is a very hot topic these days. First, I am convinced that day trading should be done by those who get member rates or incredible discount rates. When you add in slippage, commissions, and short-term capital gains, the long-term trader clearly has the advantage. The apparent insouciant behavior of daytraders on television commercials frequently turns to irascibility when trading takes place in the real world. |
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Question 16: What trader do you think best represented Chicago-style trading? |
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Neal: I believe it was Charles P. DiFrancesca. He was a trader virtuoso and was known as the "Sultan of Scalp," the same way Babe Ruth was known as the "Sultan of Swat." You know, he never granted interviews or went on the seminar circuit. Why, he isn't even in the Futures Hall of Fame, yet he was a natural-born trader and risk taker. It was not uncommon for him to |
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