TradeStation Futures 4.0 Quick Start Guide 1
System Requirements... 3 Operating System... 3 Processor:... 3 Memory:... 3 Monitor:... 4 Internet Connection:... 4 Installing TradeStation Futures 4.0... 5 TradeStation Futures 4.0 at a Glance... 9 Layouts... 9 Quote Page... 9 Option Strike Matrix... 10 Market Book... 11 Order Entry... 12 Top Day Order Manager... 13 Trade History... 13
System Requirements Before installing TradeStation Futures 4.0, please ensure that your computer conforms to the following standards to ensure satisfactory performance: Operating System Windows 2000 Professional or higher Processor: 1.4 GHz or larger Memory: 1 GB RAM or more To verify the specifications above, just right click on My Computer and click on Properties. On the multi-tabbed screen that is displayed, the General tab (displayed by default) will have 2 sections called System and Computer. 3
Monitor: Super VGA monitor or LCD display with at least 1024 x 768 color display resolution. NOTE: Keep in mind that the default layouts for the application were created at a display resolution of 1280 x 1024. This was done to enable a reasonable amount of data to be shown on the screens incorporated in the layouts. To verify or adjust your screen resolution, right click on the desktop and click on Properties. On the Display Properties window that is displayed, click on the Settings tab. In the Screen resolution section of the page will be displayed the current resolution your display is set to. It can be adjusted by dragging the fader left or right. Internet Connection: Broadband (DSL or Cable Modem). In order to support the data needs of the screens in TradeStation Futures 4.0, a large amount of information must move back and forth over your internet connection. If you find that broadband internet access is not available in your area, you may want to consider using another TradeStation-supplied platform for trading. 4
Installing TradeStation Futures 4.0 Once you have verified that your system is compatible with TradeStation Futures 4.0, you can install the program. To begin this process, open your internet browser and type in the following address: https://vanweb.rjobrien.com/tradestationinstall/ You will be brought to the following web site: If at this point, or at any point hereafter, you have a problem, feel free to contact your system administrator for assistance. To install TradeStation Futures 4.0, you must first click the Agree button to signify that you consent to the user license agreement. At this point, the Install button in the Install 5
section will become visible. Clicking on the Install button will bring up the following screen: At this point, you should click Run to commence installing TradeStation Futures 4.0 immediately. Given certain programmatic constraints, you cannot save the executable prior to running it. You will next be presented with the following screen: Just click Run to continue the process. 6
Next, you will be presented with a screen to verify you wish to install the program: At this point, click the Install button. You will then see the following screen indicating that TradeStation Futures 4.0 is being installed: 7
Once this installation completes, you will be presented with the login window for TradeStation Futures 4.0: You re ready to start using TradeStation Futures 4.0! At this point you would enter the user name and password supplied by your system administrator to get started. 8
TradeStation Futures 4.0 at a Glance Layouts TradeStation Futures 4.0 s windows can be resized and arranged in many ways. A user can create a layout which will save grid information (columns to display & sizing), window size & positioning, and account/quantity information. Windows can also be floated outside of the application window itself, allowing for many different possibilities in a multiple monitor configuration. A user can create many different layouts to assist them in different types of trading activity. Quote Page The Quote Page window provides users with a mechanism for viewing many contracts simultaneously with trading capabilities just a few clicks away. 200 contracts can be spread across 1 to 10 tabs, which can be renamed and reorganized. The grid's display style & information layout can be altered as well. 9
Option Strike Matrix The Option Strike Matrix window is a view designed to show a user all strike/call/put permutations for a given contract with trading capabilities just a few clicks away. The grid contains open/close, bid/ask, volume, and open interest information for each strike. The screen is divided by the Strike Price column with all call information to the left and all put information to the right. 10
Market Book The Market Book window is used to view the current activity for a selected contract at various prices. From this screen, a user can quickly place orders in a variety of ways and see order quantities for a particular order and a larger set of relevant accounts simultaneously. 11
Order Entry The Order Entry window is the most direct way for a user to enter an order in TradeStation Futures 4.0. It gives the user access to all parameters associated with orders and also supports setting up multiple orders for simultaneous submission. A version of this screen is also available for Spread Order Entry. 12
Top Day Order Manager The Top Day Order Manager window provides a user with a real-time, scrolling view of all activity for the accounts they are concerned with. The grid contains account, contract, status, and diagnostic information about the order. All columns on the grid can be relocated, removed, and resized. Filtering and sorting are also available for all data columns. Trade History The Trade History window provides a user with a query-based view of activity they have access to. The screen has pre-defined canned queries designed to bring back often-used views of data (all transactions, fills, working orders, etc.). In addition, the screen has fields to allow users to perform ad-hoc filtering by several values. Finally, a user can also create their own custom queries containing 1 or many qualifying data conditions. The grid contains account, contract, status, and diagnostic information about the order. All columns on the grid can be relocated, removed, and resized. Filtering and sorting are also available for all data columns. 13