Building Winning Trading Systems with TradeStation™

Introduction

Before System Writer (the grandfather of today's current TradeStation), system developers and traders did not have a commercialized software platform to develop their trading ideas. We are not talking about charting packages; we are talking about programs that could understand a trading strategy based on technical analysis. Sure, there were other sophisticated programs in the 1980s that could be used, but they required a thorough understanding of programming, additional software, and extreme patience with the software developer. Most of these programs were not open platform; you had to program within their limited scripting language and could not share your programs with others. The programs that were potentially open platform usually required a separate editor and compiler and a very sophisticated user. In fact, we developed and still use a package that is based on a FORTRAN compiler. The System Writer/ TradeStation programs provided one sleek package that gave the ability to test, optimize, and trade to the trading masses. TradeStation has been accepted worldwide as the premier market analysis platform and the standard against which other trading/testing platforms are measured. The latest version of TradeStation has evolved into more than just software; it is a fully self-contained trading platform that incorporates direct access brokerage for futures and equities traders. Along with the birth of TradeStation 6.0, Omega Research has been reborn and renamed to TradeStation ...