exchange

When I picked up this book, I expected something similar to the book All About Market Timing, which overall I thouht was a good book. However, I got something very different in this book. This book consists of an introduction to a handful of indicators, such as on balance volume, the macd, moving averages, stochastics, and some subjective price patterns.
The description of these indicators seems okay to me, although nothing special. He has a brief section on options, where he makes a lot of extremely dubious claims, including the often-repeated professionals sell options, amatuers buy them. I suppose if you repeat this lie often enough, somebody is bound to believe it. He goes on to describe what is apparently his preferred option strategy: covered calls. There's nothing wrong with covered calls or being long premium or any other option strategy, but to claim that one is correct and the others are wrong is quite questionable.

He also is fond of uncovered puts, as a viable option strategy -- unfortunately, this strategy does not work out over the long term; you make steady small profits until you encounter a 10+ sigma event in the market, and get blown out. The lessons of LTCM and Niederhoffer should not be forgotten, especially given that equities markets trend far more than one would assume based on a log normal distribution. High probability trades are not always good trades!

I'm trying to get a handle on the intended audience of this book. It seems to be intended for people new to a technical approach to the market, and if that's the case, I don't think it'd make it to my top 100 list of such books. If someone is new to technical approaches, i'd probably recommend the much smaller (and in my view, much more useful) The Visual Investor by John Murphy.

Overall, I think this book should be avoided like the plague. There's nothing new in this book, just rehashed age-old advice, some of which is dubious, some of which is good.

This book has an exellent balance between TA and prescriptive action. It's not enought to be able to read a chart, you have to know when to act and what action to take given what the chart is telling you. This is not the very best book on TA, it is the very best marriage of TA and practical advice as to what to do with the TA. For example. Both for long and short positions he has a long check list you should make copies of and go through for each stock you take a position on. Further, he has three excellent case studies on buying into an established trend, buying a long term breakout, and buying into a repidly moving market. His 6 chapters on Selling Short are the only reference materials I could find when researching a book on shorting, still in print, of any substance. Again there is a checklist and case studies. Finally, his two chapters on Market Myths should be posted above every online investor's computer.

As a long-time avocate of investing on both the short and long side of the market I love the symetrical thinking throughout this book. There is just no way you will become a good investor unless you adopt this symetrical view because as every investor must realize by now, the market doesn't just go up, it goes up 2/3'rds of the time, and down 1/3rd of the time at twice the rate. It's a pitty this book is so little known. If you are on the perverbial desert island, this is the investment book you want. If you want to get into the nitty-gritty of TA look at the Bible, Technical Analysis of Stock Trends 7th Edition by Edwards and Magee. ISBN 0-8144-0373-5. Mere mortals should prefer Alexander's book. Best of trades!

RocketRoys

As good a book as you will read on Technical Analysis as it relates to the Stock Market. Very well written and edited with lots of charts demonstrating real case histories of the strategies employed. All the material was practically presented in a clear and logical manner. In short it was a an easy read which is good because you will want to return to it often to review key points of interest. Stresses the importance of looking at the markets from first the long term (months) to the intermediate term (weeks) and finally to time your trades using the short term (days). Well done and thanks.

I was disappointed that there seemed to be a lot of inaccuracies and incorrect information. Someone in a newsgroup explained to me that many of the statements in this book are incorrect because it was based on Exchange 2000 Beta 3 software and not the final version. The book should state that on the cover, rather than having the reader have to research a topic to verify that it is correct. That is why I bought the book in the first place. This is another disappointing release from Microsoft Press. Is it too much to ask for reasonable accuracy in a technical book? Is it too much to ask that a publisher let people know when a book was written using beta software? I don't think so.

There was some good things about this book, but it is pretty basic overall and some of it seems to be re-hashed material from other Microsoft texts and whitepapers.

As a primer on Exchange 2000 administration, this book stands up remarkably well. Although some topics (such as disaster recovery) lack the necessary depth, the coverage is generally thourough and intelligent, striking the right balance between concepts, how-to's, and gotcha's. Subject exposition is extremely lucid and precise, permitting easy access to its rather broad range of topics while providing the proper foundation for further study.

This book is an excellent resource to introduce you to the basics of Exchange 2000 Server. All or Exchange Server's features are introduced and carefully explained. It also presents a good overview of the innards of Exchange 2000 Server, and how it differs from Exchange 5.5.

If you're new to Exchange 2000, or indeed to Exchange in general, then this book is a must-buy. Note that the book covers only the Server and, to a lesser extent, the Enterprise Server editions. Apart from a few sentences, Conferencing Server is not covered here.

A stock's float is the total number of shares available to the public for trading. When this total number of shares gets traded in the market (whether over a week, a month, or a year), you have a "float turnover". This book argues that float turnovers are closely correlated with significant price moves. It's a simple and clear idea, made all the more persuasive by the fact that there's a common-sense explanation for it: a float turnover represents an (approximately) complete change of ownership in who holds the stock; so if, for example, the new owners are significantly more bullish than the previous owners, they will be more reluctant to sell, and the price will rise. Mr. Woods makes a good case that the float is a relevant piece of information, and I don't doubt that many traders will be grateful to him for bringing this to their attention. Only one thing prevents me from giving this book 5 stars: the incessancy with which the author can't refrain from referring to his "discoveries", going so far as to compare his "discoveries" to those of Columbus, Copernicus, and Newton (to name only three). He seems like a good enough guy and is probably doing this out of insecurity, but it's off-putting. The book badly needed a good editor to inform Mr. Woods that the best, indeed the only real way for him to advance his work is to present it clearly and let it speak for itself, and that for an author to constantly urge the reader to think highly of his "discoveries" is not only in bad taste, but detracts from the persuasive power of his idea. This, however, is a minor complaint which should not dissuade anyone from investigating the idea, which seems like a good one. I say "seems" because, unlike a previous reviewer, I have not yet back-tested it; but after reading the book I certainly intend to do so.

Shares traded to the public are referred to as the "Float". The float is a constantly changing measurement.

The amount of time it takes for the cumulative volume total to equal the float is the unit of measurement referred to as the "Float Turnover". So intuitively the Float Turnover represents a span of time required to change all ownership in the float. Every stock behaves differently. Some stocks have a float turn over in a couple of days, whereas, it takes years for others.

The author states, At the Top, "Right at the top all the shares are bought by unsuspecting foolish investors who don't realize the stock is over-priced and they get stuck at the top" and at the bottom, "The really smart people are buying all the shares and the price goes up because they are holding them tightly."

As price rise and fall, the constantly changing ownership moves from one price level to another.

Float turnover formations will be found at the exact location that marks a long term bottom or top.

When the stock is being supported it will tend to be at the top of the float turnover price range

When the stock is dropping without support, the price will tend to be at the bottom of the float turnover price range with the float acting as overhead supply.

The timely sell signal occurs where the price drops below the float turnover at the top where the price crosses the bottom channel line for the first time on the chart. A buy occurs when price breaks above the current float turnover price range.

For several years, I always thought that there was a missing dimension to trading stocks and wondered how certain stocks go up so fast compared with others. When trading IPOs, one always looks at the stock's float because if it's very small, then the price move can be explosive in some cases.

The first thing I did was program all of the float indicators in TradeStation and even devised some of my own based on the ideas in the book. The whole idea of the float turning over at critical turning points turns out to be valid. As Steve Woods points out, float analysis in and of itself is not a solution, but if you pay attention to the trend of the float channels and have some kind of market analysis tool for short-term direction, then it is a gold mine.

This is an important book to read early in pregnancy to receive the most benefit, but it's never too late! By citing research,the author adds credence to ideas mothers have known about for centuries about the effects on your unborn baby of your own communications, relationships and experiences while pregnant. This book can be a useful tool for both parents in beginning a respectful and loving relationship with their baby.

This is a truly amazing book and a must read for people who have worked to better themselves before bringing a child into this world with all its responsibilities. I do not need a psychology degree to see the effect of how this book changed me and my perceptions; I respected my child before it was even conceived. I truly believe by respecting myself through my pregnancy, I have one of the most wonderful being with me today - she is now 4 1/2. Our bond is more than I ever would have imagined, our love is unlimited and our respect mutual. This is not for everyone as I believe that many have children but many are not ready to be parents. If you are mentally ready; this will only help you savour the "fruits of your labor."

sorry for my spelling but I am from mexico
I am amazed buy the people who dont love this book, personaly I love it perhaps it lacks more proof and more studies but the information can change the life of your children I folowed all their advice for I had no maternal instinct during my pregnacy
so I did everithing the book said to bond with my child, and I can tell it is the best thing I have ever done my daughter and I have a wonderfull bond and I am rereading it again for muy second pregnacy, congradulations to the authers.

John Rothchild has done a great job of outlining and explaining what bear markets are, what leads to them, what to expect in bear markets, and when to expect them, and what to do to survive and profit when faced with a bear.

Rothchild explains under what circumstances the mantra of "buy and hold" would work and when it doesn't work. He also destroys another present-day myth that earnings and stock-prices march in lockstep (they don't -- surprise!)

There are sections devoted to the various other players in the markets -- the Cassandras, the Doomsday best-sellers, New Era thinkers, eternally bearish newsletters, Fed Watchers, and the "Magazine Cover Jinx" phenomenon. I think Rothchild does a very fair job in evaluating all the above.

Rothchild comments at length on whether or not there is any truth to statements that the world's fortunes are linked as never before (something the investors kept hearing repeatedly until the Asian crisis in 199! 7, when "the tune changed").

Next, Rothchild goes on to suggestions on how to "bear proof the portfolio". He lists sectors that are expected to do better than the market when things turn bearish. He also examines the relative merits of cash, bonds, gold and stocks that pay dividends, and how they can be expected to fare when things get tough.

And coming out of a bear, where should one invest? There is an interesting chapter, titled, "Jumping On The Next Bull" that has some very useful advice on what to do in such a situation.

Rothchild also demolishes the myth that is harbored by many of today's investors that their mutual fund managers know how to bail them out. Most of them will fail to do so. However, Rothchild provides information on how mutual fund investors can improve their chances, in the chapter "Bear-friendly funds"

Finally, the book has interviews with three "survivors" from the Crash of '29 ! -- three nonagerians who are still actively managing money ! today!

On the downside, the author seems to overstate the bearish case. Whenever he refers to market indexes making highs and then getting back there after a downturn lasting several years, he uses the raw index numbers and doesn't take dividends into account, even though he doesn't forget to take inflation into consideration. Bear markets are scary enough that Rothchild needn't have made them look any scarier!

Also, some of the figures seem to be inaccurate -- the graphs and the explanations don't seem to agree with one another. And there are a few typos here and there.

All in all, this book is very useful as it helps investors get a glimpse of the darker side of the markets and deserves to be on the bookshelf of every investor.

I am a management accountant but still needed the global view of markets that this book eloquently describes. I began investing in 1992 and never paid attention to the market because I WASN'T IN IT. I have never seen a bear market up close, John really gave me a good look and a readable look. Now, I can study the markets with a broader understanding. Excellent book for me.

Someone said that the book doesnt teach how to predict bear markets. I would rate it ridiculous if it aimed at that. No one can. (The market goes where it wants to go remember?)
Just like stop losses, shorts are a tool, learn how to use them.
This is not a pure technical book ,but it is probably one of the most enjoyable to read about this thing we all love: trading.
And if one recomendation is allowed on the technical side: Stock patterns for day trading and swing trading by Barry Rudd (No comissions here, lol)
Best regards

Being in the asset management consulting field I thought this highly recommended title should be as insightful as Swensen's "Pioneering Portfolio Management". I found it directionless, full of unconnected pointless anecdotal comments, as well as giving misleading shallow guidance regarding indexing.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book. Warwick has managed to make an important but esoteric topic accessible through practical and entertaining anecdotes and examples. Initially I read it to inprove my investment knowledge on what is now a critical part of my business, but soon became engrossed in the more quirky side of the book's respites and characters. Frankly, I would have liked to see more of this earlier in the book. There is very little information on this subject out there, especially with with this depth of real life application. I think it is a worthwhile read.

Ben Warwick has done an exceptionally good job at taking a subject (Investment Policy) that to most readers is maybe dry, and unexciting and making it a highly enjoyable subject about which to read. Interlaced among truly entertaining stories and anectdotes ranging from the discoverery of nitroglycerine to the life of Ludwig van Beethoven are well-researched, sound, quite readable discussions and theories about Index-based Investing, Capital Asset Pricing Model, Modern Portfolio Theory, Managed Futures and much, much more. Warwick is incrediblly knowledgeable about the subject of investing, and as an Investment Advisor, my Investment Policy will be greatly enhanced having read this book.

If one merely times (cpu time) the binomial lattice implementation found in this book (the simplest option pricing model imaginable!), one will quickly see why this book is no more efficient than it is valuable, for code that is roughly twenty times slower than code that simply avoids such practices as unecessarily calling the "pow()" function* is code wrought via hodgepodge and not innovation.

But in all fairness it provides a vast index of necessary functions for those taking courses in computational finance, i.e., it is well suited for use in an academic, non-professional setting, where efficiency is secondary in most users' desirata.

And of course it's always possible to find ways to speeden things up onself.

However, do not expect the book to cultivate -- whatsoever -- ways to make things faster; by necessity then, expect it to cultivate ways to make things slower.

*it is considerably faster say to evaluate x*x than it is pow(x,2).

This book has the contents that a graduate student will look for in a course that covers derivatives application development using C++. Dr. Brooks book is by far the best I have ever scanned for the purpose of finance. For a quant analyst position it is important to understand how to generate various mathematical tools using C++ and the book covers such code in details. The book covers Lattice based solutions through extensive coding of Black Derman and Toy, Monte Carlo simulation, curve fitting techniques and iterative numerical solutions technique .The most attractive part of this book is the simplistic approach to mathematical complexities and Dr. Brooks excels in handling the mathematics and the language. His examples are in Borland C++ so VC or other C users need not be intimidated as the basic C++ principles are the same for any type of proprietary C++ language. In fact Borland is a good way to get introduced to the visual C++ modeling approach at the graduate level, it definitely reduces the entry barrier into coding.

If you have shopped around you may be aware that this is one of the only books available that is dedicated to pricing derivatives using C++. Perhaps like me as a student of Pure and Applied Mathematics you have wondered why all those Financial Engineering grad schools are pushing so hard for C++.
You can expect that this book will introduce you to a set of traditional algorithms for option pricing at a basic level. It will be helpful if you already know standard C++, and also if you have seen mathematical models of what is being implemented here.
The bottom line is that this is the best available book dedicated to this subject of derivative pricing and C++. If it is not written in your favourite compiler, just be thankful it isn't written in Java. If you cannot convert the source code, which Dr. Brooks will provide upon request, then you probably won't get in to grad school.

i feel larry is giving a morsel here and a morsel there and not giving away the real meat! Disappointed.

besides it a dated book, needs an upgrade

satish paul

i feel larry is giving a morsel here and a morsel there and not giving away the real meat! Disappointed.

besides it a dated book, needs an upgrade

satish paul

Mr.Williams never ceases to amaze me. He has done a phenomenal job of putting this compendium together. He doesn't get bogged down in trivial mathematics. He makes futues accessible to the lay person. I have been trading futures as an investor and broker for the past 11 years. ... With my experience I find it is very important that new investors feel like futures is accessible. Mr.Williams does that in all of his books. The is definitely a great reference guide.

Order: Book of Angels, Stephen King: The Dark Tower, II, & Bruce Springstein, CD.
Attempted to change order, next day for something else. I cannot edit or add to an order. That was a forced purchase. I am never purchasing from Amazon.com, again.

I try to read most of the new books on stock trading. I enjoyed Dr. Sarkovich's book "Electronic day trading made easy" and thus I did not hesitate purchasing his new book "Electronic swing trading for maximum profit". And I was correct.

As expected, the swing trading book was well written and organized and easy to understand. Again, all book illustrations were sharp and professionally done. The author expanded the material to include additional technical analysis tools and trading alerts for short-term traders, as well as the new material on fundamental stock analysis and IPOs. Everything seems to be there-- from trade order executions to tax considerations. There is a lot of good stock information packed in the book for both the stock market beginners as well as the seasoned traders. For instance, the book included an appendix with the list of the best swing trading stocks in 2000.

Most importantly, the author moved the focus of the book closer to the investment center. The book now presents valuable trading information that appeals both to active investors, that might hold the stock position for a few weeks or days, and active day traders, who might hold the stock position for a couple of hours or minutes.

I particularly liked the author's objectivity and honesty. The author wrote a responsible book. The author did not succumb to temptations of becoming the industry promoter. This is clearly not one of those "how to get rich quick" books. The risks of swing trading were well disclosed, as well as the tools for managing such risks. I do recommend this book for anyone active in the stock market without any reservations.

Since I lived in Nevada I tend to compare stock trading, whether it is day trading or swing trading, to speculation. If you are inclined to speculate and take a short term stock position, I recommend that you read the book before you engage in stock trading. It will help you understand the risk, tools and strategies required to survive in the business of stock trading.

I like the book a lot because it was an honest introduction to short term stock trading. The book did not contain any hype or promises of returns or road map to fortunes. All of the trading risks in specualting on the stock price movements were disclosed upfront. Most importantly, the tools to manage such risk were introduced.

Secondly, the book has more than 400 pages of stock trading information and so the book is complete. In my opinion, all of the trading information, from technical and fundamental analysis to Level II screen, was systematically presented in an easy to understand language. The book was also well organized and well illustrated so it was easy to read.

In short, this book is one of the most complete introductory texts to stock trading that I have read. I particularly recommend the book to novice stock traders, although experienced traders will also benefit by reading it.

I have read all of the existing reviews for this book, and the truth is that everybody has a point. The profits that some reviewers claimed to have made are very achieve-able. Profits like this happen on a regular basis. On the other hand, to trade these markets exactly as the book says could get quite expensive. The author does not hide this fact. The numbers and cost of downdraws are there in black and white. The important thing to note is that the system is a good one. You do not have to play to the levels suggested, nor do you have to enter these markets at such high levels. This is by no means a get rich quick scheme. However, it is possible to make large amounts of money with this general system. This book is not the be all, and end all of position trading, but if you have a true interest, and the willingness to pursue it, then this is a book that can really help put the puzzle together. My advice is to use this system on paper, and learn what it has to teach. It wont cost a dime, and you will learn quite a bit. This book is a step in the right direction....keep in mind it is only a step, but one that I would recommend if you truly have the commitment and desire. Best of luck to all!

Anyone considering trading should begin with this book. This book puts it in to simple words what it takes to make it trading. Makes it so easy to trade commodities that it takes the fear out of it. Great money management and risk control. Clear and concice trading system without all the fluff. This book is a must buy.

I purchased this book a couple of days ago. This was a fairly easy read and a different approach to trading. The investor invests in this as if he was a long term trader in a mutual fund. I think this is a great trading method. However, the issue of contract rollover has me a little concerned. This issue can either benefit or hinder your trading. If a contract rollover trades higher, this can be a disaster to an account. If the contract rollover trades lower, this can make your profits even greater.

For example, lets say that cocoa is trading at 500 and the rollover contract is trading at 550. You the trader has just lost 500 dollars because of the gap up. Let's look at an example of when the contract trades lower. If we have the same scenario where cocoa is trading at 500 and the rollover contract is trading at 450... you the trader has just gained 500 dollars. Since you didn't experience the drawdown from 500 to 450, when the market goes back to 500 you are up 50pts or 500 dollars.

I'm going to conduct a test on ALL the past trades and see how contract rollover acutally effects the various commodities. This test will be based on rolling over to a new contract when a distant contract has greater volume two consecutive days, thus rolling on the open the third day.

I will post the results for each commodity after completing it. The results will be based on the beginner trading method.