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Intraday Charts |
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Intraday Charts |
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QuoteTracker builds live Intraday Charts for each symbol from the quotes data. Data can only be displayed for the time that QuoteTracker was active and getting these quotes in your portfolio(s), unless you backfill the chart. Access the chart by double clicking on a symbol, the mini chart in your portfolio or an index in the Indices Panel or through the right click menu.
This is an Intraday Chart displaying multiple days as set up in Multi-day Chart Preferences. The days are separated by vertical lines (same color as selected for the Grid Line in Chart Colors Preferences), showing day of week and date.
The Green/Red graphical indicator to the right of the chart is the Pressure indicator. This indicator, which is also available as a selected column in the Portfolio View, measures the number of trades (quotes with volume) over the last 30 quotes. It is the percentage of trades at or above the ask price (GREEN) vs. the percentage of trades at or below the bid price (RED). It is similar to the color coding used in Raw data to show buys vs. sell (pressure). This indicator can be hidden from the chart on the Select Indicators screen and the (right click) View menu.
Clicking on the pushpin will link the window to the selected color group.
Next to the pushpin link button in the titlebar is a Crosshair Sync button:
Clicking on the |
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The Crosshair Sync button can be set to show or not to show on the title bar per option in Misc. Preferences under Window Title Buttons.
Cross-Hair Tracking - Placing the mouse on any period in the chart will show you the prices for that period. The box will appear in a corner. Click on it to move it to another corner. The color for the text comes from the text color setting in Chart Preferences. If you have this option turned off in Chart Preferences, you can have it display if you hold down the Shift key. Release the Shift key to hide the Cross-hair again. To have only the crosshair displayed without the data box in the corner, uncheck the option to Always Show Data Box in Chart Preferences. To see the data box even with the option off, hold down the Control key.
By default, the crosshair will automatically only move to a point where a price point intersects with a time period/frequency. Hold down the Alt key to make the Cross-hair freestyle. To make the freestyle crosshair the default, select the option in Chart Preferences.
Price Tooltip - Place the mouse on the chart and tooltip will pop up showing the current Last, Bid, Ask, High, Low Prices, Change and Volume for the stock This only happens if you have this option selected in Preferences for Charts.
Trend Lines, Shapes and Text Annotations - Placing your mouse on the chart will change the cursor to a crosshair. You can draw/edit lines and shapes on the charts to help you detect trends in any one of the indicator windows. The default is set to draw lines. You can change this by using the Shapes icon button in the chart toolbar. To draw a straight vertical or horizontal line, hold down the SHIFT key on the keyboard as you draw the line.
Modify the lines/shapes that you already drew by clicking on it to select it. You can then move it to a new location or drag the ends (small boxes) to rotate it or change the start and end points. Remove the line or shape by selecting it, then pressing the Delete key on the keyboard or by dragging it off the chart.
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To avoid unintentionally selecting an object on a chart, you can hold down the ALT key on the keyboard to lock them so they can not be (accidentally) selected for moving, etc. When they are locked, a picture of a lock appears in the corner of the chart and although the existing objects are not selectable, you can still draw new objects. They will remain locked as long as the ALT key is held down. |
Options are also available by right clicking on the trend line or selected shape:
The menu selections will vary depending on the selected shape and as applicable to it. Shown is the right click menu on a trend line in the upper intraday chart:
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Line Options: Current selections as set are shown in the menu. Select to modify the attributes of the line/shape:
Color: Select the color of the trend line from the color list. Pattern: Select the pattern of the shape from the list. Thickness: Select the thickness of the line/shape from the list. Extend: This option allows you to select and override the default auto-extend options on a drawn trend line. Available options are No Extension, Extend to Right, Extend to Left and Extend Both. Arrows: For visual display - optionally places an arrow head on the Right or the Left of the drawn trend line. Holding down the right Alt key on the keyboard while drawing a trend line will automatically place an arrow on the right. Holding down the left Alt key on the keyboard while drawing a trend line will automatically place an arrow on the left.
Copy the Line: Creates a duplicate of the line/shape that can be dragged to a new location. Delete the Line: Deletes the selected line/shape. It can also be deleted by using the Delete key on your keyboard or by dragging it off the chart with your mouse.
Make ... (Box, Oval, Line): This will create the newly selected line/shape in place of the one currently on the chart. The default drawing shape is set to draw lines. You can change this by using the Shapes icon button in the chart toolbar. |
Text on Charts:
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To place text on a chart, you must first select the Text drawing tool from the chart toolbar by clicking on the Shapes icon button. Once in Text mode, draw a box on the chart where you want to add text to. The Chart Text Editor window will then open:
Type the text in the Caption Text area. You can select the Text Color by clicking on the color box, Text Style (Bold, Italics, Underline and/or Cross-out) and the Horizontal and Vertical Alignment of the text. If the Opaque Background box is checked, you can select a background color by clicking on the color box. Otherwise (unchecked), it will be transaparent. Select an optional Border shape, color and style (Thin or Thick).
Once the text appears on the chart, it can be moved or resized like a standard window. A right click on the text box gives options to Edit, which opens the Editor, make a Copy of the text or Delete the text. You can also open the Editor by double clicking on the text box and delete the text by hitting the Delete key, dragging the text box off the chart or by using the Clear Lines button. |
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With Trendlines, Fibonacci, shapes (Arrows, Boxes, Ovals, Text) and Andrew's Pitchforks drawn on the chart a
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Fibonacci Retracements and Fans - To see the Retracements/Fans on the charts, draw a Trend line, connecting two points and right click on the Trend line. Select Set to draw the Fibonacci lines. Once drawn, the same menu will have an option to Remove the Fibonacci lines. You can have multiple Fibonacci's drawn on a single chart. The Fibonacci percent levels and other options to be used are set on the Chart Preferences screen. Another way of drawing Fibonacci lines on the chart is by selecting the Shapes tool from the chart toolbar. The color of the Fibonacci lines will be as selected on the Colors tab in chart preferences and they will be the same as the color of the trend line.
Andrew's Pitchforks can be drawn on the chart by selecting the drawing tool from the chart toolbar.
Trend Line Alerts - Available only on time based intraday charts - You can draw a trend line for the purpose of triggering an alert when the price goes above or below the line. Draw the line to be used for the alert (in the upper price window) and right click on it to select Set Trendline Alert from the menu. This will open the Detail Alerts window to complete the settings for the alert if you have selected this option in Alert Defaults, otherwise the preset defaults for the alert will be used ("above" if the line is drawn above the current last price and "below" if the line is drawn below). Once a trend line is established as an alert, you can edit the alert as any other and can also select to Edit Trendline Alert from the right click menu on the trend line to open the Detail Alerts directly from the chart. The trend line is assumed to be extended at the right for the alert.
Right clicking on the chart will bring up the standard options for a symbol and options specific to the chart:
Opening a New Chart with the same symbol - You can open another chart with the same symbol (clone) by selecting the New Chart option from the right click menu. This is useful if you would like to view multiple charts of the same symbol with a different chart type, frequency, indicators, etc. Select the template to use for the new chart from the menu list or the option to use the currrent chart configuration. Note the separate sections for Intraday and Historical Charts.
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Spike Removal... allows you to easily delete the Highest and Lowest points of the entire day or for the specific chart period you are currently viewing without having to go to the Raw Data screen for the symbol.
Note: There may be more than one High or Low point in the chart that have to be removed to display it properly. For more options in dealing with Spikes, see The Miscellaneous tab in Chart Preferences.
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Emailing an Intraday Chart - Select Email the Chart from the right click pop up menu. The following screen appears:
Select the Picture Format to send. You can send as GIF (larger size but may be better quality) or PNG (generally smaller in size).
Enter the From Name and EMail address. Enter the E-Mail Server (SMTP outgoing mail) of your mail provider or select from the drop down list if you already have emailed previously and have a list of servers you already used. If the email server requires you to login to send email, check the Requires Authentication box and specify the login Name and Password of your email account.
If you already set this up for Email Alert Templates, you can check the Use the setting from the Alerts' "Email Templates" box and QuoteTracker will use those settings.
Enter the email address(es) you want to send the chart To and optionally enter CC and BCC recipients. To send to multiple email addresses, enter them separated by a semi-colon (;).
Enter a Subject and any Comments you want to appear above the chart. Press the Send button to send the chart. A progress dialog will appear.
If this is not the first time you are emailing a chart, some of the fields will already be filled in.
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Clear the Chart - Resets (clears) the selected data collected up to this point. The menu will have options depending on how the charts were set up for Multi-day and what data is available. |
Export Data Exports the data used to build the chart as a CSV (Comma Separated Value) text file which can be used to import to several programs such as spreadsheets. Selecting this option brings up a standard Windows Save dialog box allowing you to choose the folder and the filename to save as:
For other ways to export data from QuoteTracker, please see the section on the QuoteTracker Server and Raw Data (for intraday charts) and Historical Data (for historical charts).
Sync Open Charts - Make all the visible charts' properties the same as the current one, including size and indicators.
Color Schemes and Chart Templates:
To select another color scheme to be used, right click on the chart and select:
You will see a list of available color schemes to select from to apply to the chart.
A template is a set of configured options for a chart. These options include chart type, frequency, indicators, color scheme, the size of the chart window, etc. To create a template that you can easily recall later, select Save Chart Template from the right click menu on a chart. You can overwrite and existing template from the list or select Create New Template to save a new one:
Type a name for the new template and click OK. The template will then appear on the templates list.
The Save Chart Template and Reset All option works the same way as regular save except that it will also reset all charts in the system to use this template.
To apply a template to a chart, select Load Chart Template from the right click menu and choose the template you want to load. To load all the characteristics of a template and leave the size of the chart window as is, uncheck the Template Load Resizes Chart option in Miscellaneous Chart Preferences.
Select Manage Chart Templates from the right click menu to manage your saved templates:
Chart templates are created and saved separately for Intraday (left column) and Historical (right column) Charts.
Options are available to Rename, Delete or Set as Default a selected template. The template selected as Default (shown with a check mark next to it) is a template like any other except that it is used as the template for a newly opened chart (i.e. for a symbol that a template is not currently defined for). Intraday and Historical Charts can each have their own defaults.
You can Export selected templates that can be shared and Imported into QuoteTracker. A file dialog window will appear to select the file location and file name. The default file extension is CHT.
For each group, you can use the up and down arrows to reorder the list or the ascending/descending sort buttons to sort them alphabetically by template name. This is the order as they will appear on the right click menus template lists.
Chart templates options are also available on the Chart Toolbar and by using the keyboard shortcut CTRL E.
Chart Options:
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The exact menu selections will differ depending on the selected Chart Type. |
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Line Chart - A contiguous line (showing all ticks).
Line Chart - Consolidated - differs from a standard Line Chart in that only the closing point of each period is charted.
Candlestick - Standard candlestick type chart based on the frequency setting selected.
OHLC - Standard Open/High/Low/Close type chart based on the frequency setting selected.
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Unlike a Line Chart which is a contiguous line for the duration of the chart, Candlestick and OHLC type charts allow you to specify the duration of each bar displayed:
| • | Time Charts: Each bar contains all the data that comes in for a set time (in minutes) as specified. |
| • | Tick Charts: Each bar contains a specific number of ticks as specified. A quote is considered to be a tick only if the total volume changes (from the previous quote). To get the full benefit of tick charts, a 'tick by tick' data source is recommended. |
| • | Volume Charts: Each bar contains a specific total volume as specified. |
| • | Range Charts: Each bar contains a specific price range as specified. As each new bar starts, the first quote is the base price. When a quote comes in that is above or below the price range specified, the bar ends and a new bar starts. |
The objective is to identify the points at which established supply/demand relationships change (these are known as "breakouts"). These changes will very probably lead to a future significant move in the stock price. These charts are composed of Xs and Os - with X columns indicating rising stock price and O columns indicating falling price. Each X or O is a "box" (Box size is specified on the right click menu of the chart) that symbolizes a price range. There is no continuous time axis - unlike normal charts, on these charts only price change generates chart action.
Point and Figure charts will not change direction (i.e. from a column of Xs to a column of Os) unless the price moves more than a certain number of 'boxes' (or unit of price) in the opposite direction. Conventional Point and Figure charts have this number set to 3, but you can customize the Reverasl Size on the right click menu of the chart. There can therefore be no fewer than this specified number in a column. This reversal technique is one of the key strengths to Point and Figure charting as it effectively filters out minor fluctuations to reveal patterns. These charts make it easier to identify support and resistance trends, due to lesser noise levels.
Renko (from Japanese "renga"="brick") charts are similar to Point and Figure charts, with a fixed reversal size of 1. Just like Point and Figure charts, they are used to filter out market noise and to identify major trends. In a Renko chart, a "brick" is drawn in the direction of the prior move only if a fixed amount (the box size as specified on the right click menu of the chart) has been exceeded. The bricks are always equal in size. Very active traders may wish to use smaller boxes, less active traders, larger boxes.
The Heiken-Ashi Technique is not a new chart type. It works on a candlestick or OHLC type chart using modified open-high-low-close values as needed to eliminate irregularities from a normal chart, "balancing" the chart and offering a better picture of trends and consolidations:
Both charts above are using the same data and settings and are for the same period. Notice how the chart on the right with the technique applied, smooths out the noise on the chart resulting in an overall better visual flow from candle to candle.
Select the Upper Indicators and Lower Indicators you would like to see on the chart.
Click the OK button to close the selection window and set the selections on the chart.
Click the Apply button to see the selections applied immediately to the chart, without closing the selection window, allowing you to make further changes as necessary.
For both the Upper and Lower Indicators, the column on the left contains the available indicators and the column on the right are the selected indicators to appear on the chart. Select an indicator by double clicking on it in the left column, by using the Right arrow key button or by dragging and dropping the indicator into the right column. The selected indicator will then appear in the right column below the current highlighted location or at the bottom of the list if nothing is highlighted. Similarly, remove an indicator by double clicking on it in the right column, by using the Left arrow key button or by dragging and dropping the indicator back into the left column. To re-arrange the order of the indicators, simply drag and drop to a new location or use the Up and Down arrow keys to move the highlighted indicator.
You can change the default parameters of an indicator once it is selected by clicking on the Edit button to the right of the selected indicator:
The Period is based on the frequency selected for the chart. If the frequency is set to 1 minute, for example, each period is 1 minute.
You can select the colors to be used to display the indicator by clicking on the color box. This overrides the default colors selected in Charts Preferences for the color scheme. The spin box controls next to the color selections control the width (thickness) of that indicator line. This overrides the dfault settings in Chart Preferences. Select a number (in pixels), Def (Default) or Clr (Clear - whiich effectively hides the line on the chart).
Adjust Scale: The upper indicators appear in the main price chart. The price scale is based on the actual prices that come in from the quote site for the symbol. If the selected indicator value is outside of this range it will not show unless this box is checked so that the scale is adjusted accordingly to include these values.
Show Current Value: This option will highlight the current indicator value on the Y scale or on the chart itself (depending on the indicator) using the selected color for the indicator. Also see additional highlighting options in Miscellaneous Chart Preferences.
Hide Indicator: This option hides the specific indicator from being displayed on the chart without having to deselect it. This option is also available from the right click menu on a selected indicator. This is also useful for Paintbars if you only want the paintbar displayed but not the indicator that it references, which must be selected on the chart for the paintbar to display.
If the indicator legend is not set to be hidden on the chart, you can double click on it to edit the indicator's parameters directly without the need to bring up additional screens. You can also right click on it for other indicator options.
Reset Colors: This option is available in the right click menu for selected lower indicators. It resets the selected colors for the indicator to the current color scheme defaults for the chart. For linked indicators, it will adjust the colors such that none duplicate by replacing the colors as necessary in order as specified for the bottom indicators in the color scheme.
Horiz. Line: You can have a horizontal line (used as a reference) drawn in the upper chart and set to one of the price values, such as Open, High, Low, etc. available from the drop down list. An absolute specific value can also be used by selecting The Value from the drop down list and entering that number in the Value text box. The Value type Horizontal Line is available for both upper and lower indicators. Check the Adjust Scale box, so that the price axis will be adjusted to include this value.
Volume: The volume bar up or down color, as selected on the Chart Preferences screen, shows the up color when the price is up for the period (frequency) and the down color when the price is down for the period (frequency). The color selected for Last is shown if there is no price change.
Volume Projection: This option, available for the VOLUME and VOLUME+EMA indicators extrapolates the current (last) candle's volume bar upwards depending on how far into the current candle we are currently. For example: if current volume is 2000, and it is 20 seconds into a one-minute candle, then the projected volume would be 6000 and would appear as:
To enable this display feature on the volume bars, edit the indicator for VOLUME or VOLUME+EMA and check the Show Projected box. Uncheck the box to disable this display:
Note that Projected Volume is available only on Intraday Charts, not on the Historical daily charts.
PaintBar: This selects the Paintbar rules created using the Paintbar editor. They are available as both upper or lower indicators.
Compare to Symbol: This indicator allows you to add another symbol to the existing chart either to the top (for percent comparison) or bottom chart window.
The ART® technical indicators from TradersCoach that are integrated into QuoteTracker are available for TD AMERITRADE clients only. You can purchase and purchase and install the ART® Trading
Software for QuoteTracker and get more details at the TradersCoach website. If you need assistance on the purchase or functionality of these indicators, please check the help and FAQ sections on their website and contact their support directly if the need arises. If you need assistance specifically with the integration portion in QuoteTracker, you may contact our technical support.
Options are available to Show or Hide the selected upper and/or lower indicators (same as from the right click View menu). The top line on the chart window will display the legend and colors of the selected indicators. To hide the legend for either upper or lower indicators uncheck the appropriate Show Legend box. If you hide the legends, you will not be able to use the shortcuts form the legend on the charts. To show the Pressure indicator on the side of the chart, check the box to Show Pressure. To hide it, uncheck the box.
Several Lower indicators can be linked together to appear in one indicator window as opposed to each appearing in its own window. The indicators to be linked must follow each other. If they do not, drag and drop indicators to a new location or use the Up and Down arrow keys to move the highlighted indicator.
To link two or more indicators together, click on the dot to the left of the selected indicators as shown (circled) in the screen above. To un-link indicators, click on the dot again. The state of the links will be shown with a handle connecting the dots. Holding down the CTRL key on the keboard as you click to link is the same as the Reset Colors option in the right click menu - it will adjust the colors such that none duplicate by replacing the colors as necessary in order as specified for the bottom indicators in the color scheme.
Right clicking on a selected indicator will show a menu also allowing you to link and un-link indicators: |
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QuoteTracker, by default will attempt as best as possible to display the scale(s) appropriately for the indicators in the same window using both the right and left sides of the indicator window as needed. This, of course is not always possible depending on the selected linked indicators. The first selected linked indicator(s) will take precedence in displaying the scale(s). Other options are available in Chart Preferences to override this default for the scales.
The indicators available on the charts are generally standard market indicators. Specific indicators used in QuoteTracker are defined on our website at:
http://www.quotetracker.com/help/techind.shtml
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Hide or show the top Indicators, the Bottom Charts, the Bid and Ask in the top chart and/or the Pressure indicator and the Toolbar. Last price can not be hidden. Bid/Ask lines are not applicable to Tick type charts and the option will not show.
Tick Interval (for non-time based charts only) will show the amount of time between vertical grid lines. Since the time varies for a fixed amount of space, it in effect gives a sense of how fast the action is. |
Candle Countdown shows the duration left for the current candle to complete followed by the chart frequency. The duration (time, number of ticks, etc.) shown in the times depends on the chart type selected. The counter is displayed in the upper or lower corner of the chart. Click on the counter to change corners.
Pace Indicator shows the pace (momentum) for the stock based on volume in a percent form. It compares the current volume for the last number of minutes (Pace Period) that you specify to the average volume for every Pace Period in the Averaging Period specified:
If you leave the Pace Period at 0, it will use the current frequency setting on the chart.
The Pace Indicator % is displayed in the upper or lower corner of the chart. Click on the Pace Indicator % to change corners. You can change the Pace Parameters once it is displayed by right clicking on the Pace Indicator %. This will bring up the parameters window again.
The View menu selections will display Hide or Show depending on the current state of the specific selection.
Show Pre/After Market... shows the current setting and allows selection of how to display the pre/after market hours for this specific symbol. You can select the Default as set in Chart Preferences or override by selecting Never Show (on all days), Always Show (on all days), Last Day Only or Last Day Only Until Market Opens (hidden once the Start active time for the Timeframe arrives).
Frequency:
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Select the frequency - the duration of each indicator and price stick. For Line Charts, all the points are connected so the frequency is used for the indicators only. If you are not getting enough points, you can switch to Line Charts or increase the frequency. For Candlesticks you can also use the Stairs option in Preferences/Charts. |
If the Frequency you want is not listed, you can specify a Custom Frequency:
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Frequency Shortcut Keys - Note the numbers next to the selections on the pop up menu. You can quickly change the Frequency, without going through the right click menu, by pressing the CTRL key and a number simultaneously on your keyboard. This acts similarly to a zoom in/zoom out function: CTRL 1 - 1 min. CTRL 2 - 3 min. CTRL 3 - 5 min. CTRL 4 - 10 min. CTRL 5 - 15 min. CTRL 6 - 30 min. CTRL 7 - 60 min. CTRL 0 - Custom Frequency dialog box. CTRL = - Custom Frequency as preset. |
Chart Period:
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As new data comes in, it appears to the right of the chart showing all the data for the selected Chart Period. This selection allows you to select how much of the latest data you want to view on the chart at one time. Selections for days will depend on Multi-day settings.
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If the chart period you want is not listed, you can select a Custom Period in the form of Show Last days (if there are multi days) and minutes or Start From days ago (if there are multi days) at a specific time:
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Time Chart Period Shortcut Keys - Note the numbers next to the periods on the pop up menu. You can quickly change the Chart Period, without going through the right click menu, by pressing the number on your keyboard. This acts similarly to a zoom in/zoom out function: 5 - All Data. 1 - Last 10 min. 2 - Last 30 min. 3 - Last 1 hour. 4 - Last 2 hours. 6 - Current day 7,8.. - Last number of days. 0 - Custom Period dialog box. = - Custom Period as preset. |
The Chart Period and Frequency/Ticks per Bar are displayed in the title bar of the chart.
Frequency (Ticks per bar):
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Select the ticks per bar - the number of ticks (trades) each bar should display on the chart before a new bar starts.
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If the Ticks per bar you want is not listed, you can specify a Custom (ticks) Frequency:
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Ticks per Bar Shortcut Keys - Note the numbers next to the selections on the pop up menu. You can quickly change the number of Ticks, without going through the right click menu, by pressing the CTRL key and a number simultaneously on your keyboard: CTRL 1 - 10 ticks. CTRL 2 - 30 ticks. CTRL 3 - 50 ticks. CTRL 4 - 100 ticks. CTRL 5 - 200 ticks. CTRL 0 - Custom Ticks per bar dialog box. CTRL = - Custom Ticks per bar as preset. |
Chart Period:
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As new data comes in, it appears to the right of the chart showing all the data for the selected Chart Period. This selection allows you to select how much of the latest data you want to view on the chart at one time. Selections for days will depend on Multi-day settings.
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If the chart period you want is not listed, you can select a Custom Period in the form of Show Last days (if there are multi days) and number of bars:
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Tick Chart Period Shortcut Keys - Note the numbers next to the periods on the pop up menu. You can quickly change the Chart Period, without going through the right click menu, by pressing the number on your keyboard: 5 - All Data. 1 - Last 10 bars. 2 - Last 30 bars. 3 - Last 50 bars. 4 - Last 100 bars. 6 - Current day 7,8..- Last number of days. 0 - Custom Period dialog box. = - Custom Period as preset. |
The Chart Period and Frequency/Ticks per Bar are displayed in the title bar of the chart.
Frequency (Volume per bar):
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Select the volume per bar - how much volume each bar should display on the chart before a new bar starts. |
If the Volume per bar you want is not listed, you can specify a Custom (volume) Frequency:
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Volume per Bar Shortcut Keys - Note the numbers next to the selections on the pop up menu. You can quickly change the volume per bar, without going through the right click menu, by pressing the CTRL key and a number simultaneously on your keyboard: CTRL 1 - 100 volume. CTRL 2 - 1,000 volume. CTRL 3 - 10,000 volume. CTRL 4 - 50,000 volume. CTRL 5 - 100,000 volume. CTRL 0 - Custom Volume per bar dialog box. CTRL = - Custom Volume per bar as preset. |
Chart Period:
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As new data comes in, it appears to the right of the chart showing all the data for the selected Chart Period. This selection allows you to select how much of the latest data you want to view on the chart at one time. Selections for days will depend on Multi-day settings.
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If the chart period you want is not listed, you can select a Custom Period in the form of Show Last days (if there are multi days) and number of bars:
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Volume Chart Period Shortcut Keys - Note the numbers next to the periods on the pop up menu. You can quickly change the Chart Period, without going through the right click menu, by pressing the number on your keyboard. This acts similarly to a zoom in/zoom out function: 5 - All Data. 1 - Last 10 bars. 2 - Last 30 bars. 3 - Last 50 bars. 4 - Last 100 bars. 6 - Current day 7,8..- Last number of days. 0 - Custom Period dialog box. = - Custom Period as preset.
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The Chart Period and Frequency/Volume per Bar are displayed in the title bar of the chart.
Frequency (Range per bar):
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Select the range per bar - the price range in each bar to display on the chart, before a new bar starts. |
If the Range per bar you want is not listed, you can specify a Custom (range) Frequency:
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Range per Bar Shortcut Keys - Note the numbers next to the selections on the pop up menu. You can quickly change the price range, without going through the right click menu, by pressing the CTRL key and a number simultaneously on your keyboard: CTRL 1 - 0.10 range. CTRL 2 - 0.30 range. CTRL 3 - 0.50 range. CTRL 4 - 1.00 range. CTRL 5 - 2.00 range. CTRL 0 - Custom Range per bar dialog box. CTRL = - Custom Range per bar as preset. |
Chart Period:
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As new data comes in, it appears to the right of the chart showing all the data for the selected Chart Period. This selection allows you to select how much of the latest data you want to view on the chart at one time. Selections for days will depend on Multi-day settings.
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If the chart period you want is not listed, you can select a Custom Period in the form of Show Last days (if there are multi days) and number of bars:
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Range Chart Period Shortcut Keys - Note the numbers next to the periods on the pop up menu. You can quickly change the Chart Period, without going through the right click menu, by pressing the number on your keyboard. This acts similarly to a zoom in/zoom out function: 5 - All Data. 1 - Last 10 bars. 2 - Last 30 bars. 3 - Last 50 bars. 4 - Last 100 bars. 6 - Current day 7,8..- Last number of days. 0 - Custom Period dialog box. = - Custom Period as preset. |
The Chart Period and Frequency/Range per Bar are displayed in the title bar of the chart.
The Vertical price scale on the chart is Dynamic, by default, i.e. the scale is automatically adjusted to accommodate the values needed to display. This can be adjusted to accommodate your own needs from a menu that is accessible by a right click anywhere on the chart scale:
If Absolute scaling is on, there will be arrows at the top and bottom of the price scale. Clicking on the arrows will shift the scale up and down, while keeping the range the same.
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Dynamic - Default, as above. Absolute - Specify a Minimum and Maximum price fixed value: Sliding Window - Specify the price Window Size as opposed to a fixed scale: |
You can also adjust the Absolute and Sliding scales visually on the chart directly:
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Absolute Scale: Hold down the SHIFT key, then with the mouse click and hold the left mouse button on the upper half of the price scale. Moving the mouse up or down changes the upper limit of the scale.
Hold down the SHIFT key, then with the mouse click and hold the left mouse button on the lower half of the price scale. Moving the mouse up or down changes the lower limit of the scale.
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Sliding Scale: Hold down the CTRL key, then with the mouse click and hold the left mouse button on the price scale. You will see a bar show up next to the scale. While holding down the mouse button, move the mouse up to increase the scale, down to decrease it.
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If selected in Preferences, a scroll bar appears on the bottom of the chart allowing you to scroll through and set the viewable chart period.
When All is selected as the Chart Period, the scroll slider bar will extend the entire width of the chart. All available data is viewable at one time and there is nothing to scroll:
If you select a specific chart period (from the right click menu or using the keyboard keys), the scroll slider bar will become wider or narrower, reflecting the viewable chart period:
In this state, you can slide (drag) the scroll bar left and right to see other parts of the chart for the selected (viewable period). Clicking the arrows at the either of the bar will also scroll the chart view. The Home, End, PageUp, PageDown and directional arrows on the keyboard may also be used to scroll. The wheel on a compatible mouse will also scroll the chart. Dragging at the tabs on either end of the scroller will increase or decrease the viewable chart period.
You will notice that when the scroll slider bar in not at the far right, the border is colored red:
In this state, the chart is in a fixed (or locked) view period. Although new data may be coming in, it will not be visible until the slider is moved to the far right (and the red border is no longer there). This allows you to specifically view the selected area on the chart.
If you select Tiny Scrollers in Preferences, the scroll bar will be smaller and not show the viewable chart period in the scroll slider bar, thus saving on screen space:
Zooming into specific areas of the chart:
You can use the + and - keys to zoom in and out of the viewable chart period. Each press of the key will zoom in or out a little. Holding down the Control key and moving the wheel on a compatible mouse will also zoom in or out like the + and - keys. To zoom into a more precise area of the chart, hold down the Control key while drawing a box around the specific area in the upper chart. Notice the scroll slide bar getting wider or narrower to reflect the viewable chart period.
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The Chart Toolbar and its functions are available on the chart as an auto-hide bar. It will pop out when the mouse is placed in the corner of the toolbar location and then auto-hide when not in use. The option to remove and disable the toolbar is available from the right click menu (View) on a chart, on the Miscellaneous Chart Preferences screen and as a right click option directly on the toolbar. |
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Extra Space on X Axis - Provides extra blank chart space horizontally on the X (Time) Axis. Each click provides more space. Each click on the button provides more space. See below.
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Less Extra Space on X Axis - Removes the extra space. Each click on the button removes more space until all extra space is removed.
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Extra Space on Y Axis - Same as above except provides extra blank space vertically on the Y (Price) Axis. Each click on the button provides more space.
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Less Extra Space on Y Axis - Removes the extra space. Each click on the button removes more space until all extra space is removed.
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View and select the current timeframe for the chart. This option allows you to select the default system assigned timeframe or override it by selecting another predefined system or user entered timeframe. You can select the pre/after market setting for the chart as well as bring up the screen to Edit Timeframes.
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Load, Save and Manage Chart Templates.
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Shapes - Allows you to select the drawing tool to be used on the chart. A check mark appears next to the selected shape.
Select from Line (Trend line - this is the default), Arrow (same as trendline but with an arrow at the end point), Box, Oval or Text. Line, Arrow, Box and Oval are drawn shapes. Selecting Text allows you to draw a box area on the chart into which you can type text to appear.
Fibonacci and Andrew's Pitchfork selections allow you to easily draw these studies directly on the chart. You can also draw Fibonacci by first drawing a trendline on the chart.
These selections are only temporary - after ~10 seconds of (drawing) inactivity on the chart, the drawing shape selection will return to the default - Line.
Check the Snap to Candles option to automatically attach (magnetize) to the high/low of the closest candle as you draw. A check mark will appear next to the option when the feature is on. Click again to turn the option off.
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Move Toolbar - The default location is the top left corner of the chart. Click to move to another corner. |
Extra Space - useful for visual trends:
Chart without Extra Space on X Axis |
Same chart with Extra Space on X axis |
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| • | Double click on the upper price chart to maximize the chart. |
| • | Double click on the lower chart indicator windows to bring up the Select Indicators screen. |
| • | Double click on the chart legend of an indicator to edit the indicator's parameters. |
Right click on the legend of an indicator appearing on the chart for options specific to the indicator such as Backfill (extra symbol indicator) Delete, Edit, Hide (or Un-hide) an indicator. |
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To quickly change to a different symbol or add a symbol on the chart, type the new symbol and a small window will appear in the chart. Clicking OK will replace the current symbol. Clicking Add Symbol ... will add the symbol to the top or bottom of the chart. |
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Although you can not print these charts directly from QuoteTracker, there are ways to accomplish this:
| • | Email the chart to yourself, as described above, and print it from the email program. |
| • | Use standard Windows Copy and Paste - Give the chart window focus (click on the title bar of the chart) and press the Alt and PrintScreen keys simultaneously on the keyboard to capture the chart to the clipboard. Then, use a program, such as Paint or Word to paste (Edit menu) the chart into and print from there. |
| • | The Snapshot function, available from the right click menu (or CTRL S keyboard shortcut) on a chart allows you to save the chart as an picture (image) file for later review or for easy printing. Options for the snapshot are set in Miscellaneous Chart Preferences in the Snapshot section. If preferences were set using the Auto-name snapshot file, the file will be automatically saved using those preferences. Otherwise, the Save Chart Snapshot window appears: |
Select the directory (Save in), File name and the image file type (GIF or PNG) and click the Save button.
