nikoschopen 2,824 posts msg #41641 - Ignore nikoschopen |
2/28/2006 4:44:57 PM
A brief synopsis of pros and cons between Interactive Brokers, TradeStation, and CyberTrader is written in the "Opinions on Direct Access platforms?" thread.
In my not-so-humble opinion, direct-access is largely a misnomer used beyond its shelf life these days. Back in the heyday when the Nasdaq was on steroid, fast executions were essential to scalp a teenie from here and there. But now with the decimalization in place, scalping simply is not possible. Of the three that I've already mentioned, you should go with Interactive Brokers if you're just an average Joe who likes to kick back and chill while indulging ureself with only a few transactions per week. If ure the type who can't keep ure ass in one place 'cause ure suffering from trading jitters, then you might opt for either TradingStation or CyberTrader. At least they provide much colorful displays that will keep ure raging hormones in check. If you trade futures, keep in mind that you must subscribe to the various futures exchange in order to receive live data feeds. This can really add up. Thus I tend to favor IB for the fact that they provide free futures quotes and I can trade to my heart's content.
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