The Trader Laptop
Stockscores.com Perspectives for the week ending March 15, 2017
In this week's issue:
In This Week's Issue:
- Stockscores' Market Minutes Video - Amateurs Open the Market, Pros Close It
- Stockscores Trader Training - The Ultimate Trader Laptop
- Stock Features of the Week - Long Term Turnarounds
-
Stockscores Market Minutes - Amateurs Open the Market, Pros Close It
The short term reaction to news or rumors can be wrong if the big investors in the market don't agree with it. When those large investors like a stock, they will accumulate it through the day as they build a large position. The result is stability in to the close with sideways trading near the high. This establishes a foundation for the stock to launch off of the following day. That is the topic of this week's Market Minutes, plus my trade of the week on OCRX and my regular weekly analysis. Click Here to Watch
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Trader Training - The Ultimate Trader Laptop
The following is an article that I wrote one year ago after buying the Microsoft Surface Book as my trading laptop. For the first few months, there were a few bugs (I actually ended up going through three of them on warranty issues) but a year later I still really like this computer. Here is the article that I wrote then.
I have been travelling a lot this past year, six months in Maui and now in Whistler which has made it impossible to trade from my normal trading desk, a desktop machine connected to 8 monitors. I have an Apple Macbook Pro laptop running Windows which has been a pretty good mobile solution, but it wasn't possible to have quite the same amount of screen real estate that I had with my normal trading desktop. So, when Microsoft announced their new Surface Book laptop late in 2015, I thought I might have found the solution to my semi-mobile trading set up needs.
I have now had the Surface Book for a few months and share with you my assessment of it. Keep in mind that I am a trader first and computer geek second so my technical assessment of the machine is not as sophisticated as what a computer expert might do. However, I come at this review from the standpoint of a trader, which I assume will be similar to most reading this.
What Caught My Interest?
There are a few things that I look for in a trading computer. First, all flash (also called solid state) memory. This does away with the hard drive and replaces it with a memory chip for data storage. Since trading analysis software requires the access of a lot of trading data to back fill charts and do analysis, replacing the hard drive with the speed of flash memory makes trading software perform a lot quicker.
Next up is screen resolution. As traders, we need to look at a lot of information so we can catch the fast moving stocks before it is too late. Resolution refers to how many pixels there are on the screen to display what we want to look at. A high definition screen displays 1920 pixels across by 1080 pixels down. If you want to display a 2 day, 2 minute chart you will need to use about ΒΌ of the screen, or 960 by 540 pixels, to view the chart without losing the detail you need to see to make a decision.
Many don't realize that the size of the screen has little to do with what you can display. I once had a student buy two theatre type projectors thinking that he would be able to view a lot of charts if he projected an 8 foot wide image on to a wall. The problem is that the projector still only displayed 1920 x 1080 pixels so he could not get more charts on to the screen even though it was a very large area.
The Surface Book has a beautiful screen that runs at a maximum resolution of 3000 by 2000 pixels. That resolution is squeezed in to a 13.5 inch screen so running it in its highest resolution means that the detail is very fine and can be challenging to make out. For day to day use, I don't run it without using the recommended 200% display zoom. This still allows to look at a lot of content on the screen and I don't need to strain my eyes to make out the detail.
If the screen were 30 inches wide then you would not need to zoom since each individual pixel would be larger. This is where screen size does matter but of course, having a laptop that is 30 inches wide makes no sense. There is, however, something very cool about the Surface Book that really caught my attention.
You can plug the laptop in to the Surface Dock, a black box about the size of a small brick (and about as heavy) that has multiple connectors including 2 mini display ports, 4 USB, Ethernet and audio plugs.
Each mini display port can power a 4k monitor. Now we have to go back to the resolution discussion again. 4k or Ultra HD monitors display four times the pixels as an HD monitor. That means you get 3840 by 2160 pixels; a lot more space to display charts and analytical windows while you trade. You can run two of these off of the Surface Book if you have the Surface Dock. For me, that meant I could have the same number of viewable pixels from two external monitors as I was getting from my desktop connected to 8 HD screens. Keeping in mind that I am a bit of a gypsy these days, I can now pack up and move to a new place with just two monitors and my laptop.
Let's return to the issue of screen size. There are a number of companies manufacturing 4k computer monitors, most are around 30 inches. I found that this was still too small to display all those pixels. The detail was so fine that it was challenging to make out for my 46 year old eyes. So, when I discovered that Phillips was making a 40 inch 4k monitor, I jumped in and bought two. I managed to get them from Best Buy on a post Christmas sale price of $699 CDN each, a significant discount from the regular price.
Finally, traders who use analytical software like Tradestation (which I have used for over 10 years) and track a lot of stocks need processing power. I chose to get the Surface Book with the i7 processor with 512GB of memory and a 16 GB graphics chip. I don't know enough about the different Intel processor options to know if it would make a big difference to buy the i7 over the i5, I just figured I would get the fastest machine possible.
I had the same strategy when I bought my previous MacBook Pro Retina and found that it was extremely fast, slightly faster than my dedicated trading desktop. I was pleasantly surprised to find that a speed test I did comparing the Surface Book to the MacBook Pro had the Surface Book noticeably faster.
I ran strategy optimization back tests in Tradestation on both machines, a process demanding on both the processor and memory access.
My very informal tests found that the Surface Book was at least 20% faster on this test. In fairness, my Macbook is running the Apple operating system as well as Windows with Parallels at the same time which probably hurts its performance. Keep in mind, though, that the MacBook in this configuration was still faster than my trading desktop computer.
Fast memory, high screen resolution and a powerful processor are the primary reasons I bought the Surface Book and expected it to be the ultimate trader laptop. There are a few added bonuses as well though.
The Sweeteners
If you have seen the commercials for this machine, you will have witnessed the very cool feature that allows you to detach the screen from the keyboard and use it as a tablet. You can have the features of a tablet but still run all of the Windows software. Since most trading software, like Tradestation, can not run on Apple or Android machines, this is a big bonus for the trader who wants to do analysis from the comfort of a tablet.
Like any tablet, the screen is touch compatible, even when connected to the keyboard. I like this feature for scrolling through websites like when I am inspecting charts from the Gallery viewer on Stockscores.com. Faster and easier than using the mouse or track pad.
This machine also comes with a pen to draw on the screen with compatible software. If you have been watching my weekly trading videos on Youtube (www.youtube.com/stockscoresdotcom) this year you will have noticed that I use this drawing feature to mark up charts from my Powerpoint presentation. I have noticed a jump in viewers of my videos since I started doing this so it must be better!
The Cavities from All that Sweetness
On the surface (pun intended), the Surface seems like the perfect day trader computer. In reality, there are some issues ranging from mildly annoying to maddeningly frustrating that make the experience less than ideal.
First up, the trackpad. I have found that the trackpad that comes on Apple computers to be excellent. They work great for scrolling, right mouse clicks, zooming and moving through different apps. I can not say the same for the Microsoft version. It works pretty good but I find that pressing on it to do the equivalent of a left mouse button click often activates the right mouse button click, which should only happen if I press with two fingers or press in the lower right corner of the track pad.
For this reason, I bought the Microsoft Arc Touch mouse. Design wise, I love that you can collapse this mouse to be as thin as possible when you are not using it and need to through it in to a computer bag. However, it does not work quite as well as I would hope. The main deficiency is the scrolling feature which often stops working or activates unintended functions, all seemingly randomly. Again, not terrible but annoying.
One of the other annoyances of the mouse/trackpad may not be their fault. I find it is very hard when working in finer detail to get the mouse to go exactly where I want on the external screens. For example, if I am drawing trend lines on charts, it can be very challenging to get them to cut across the candles perfectly. The ability to move the mouse around on screen is far from perfect.
I think the reason may relate to the refresh rate of the screens. One of the reasons I bought the Phillips monitors (in addition to their larger size format) was that they were one of the few 4k monitors that had a 60hz refresh rate. As long as you use the right cable, you get better than the 30hz refresh rate that most 4k monitors offer.
This is important when doing finer detail work with charts or playing games, although it is not that big of a deal for simply monitoring market action during the trading day.
It was frustrating to find out that no matter what I did, the monitor set up in Windows would not let me set the refresh rate to anything more than 30hz. A little research made me discover that the weak link is the Surface Dock which can only run two external 4k monitors at 30hz each. It was not easy to find out this fact as Microsoft does not do a great job of defining this deficiency in their technical specifications. Unless they are able to rectify this issue with future software updates, I expect I will have to deal with the difficulty of getting the mouse to exactly the place I want it to be on my external screens. I don't play computer games but if you do, the lower refresh rate becomes a much bigger issue.
The Surface Book is very well made and looks great. However, the one I received had a faulty screen. The screen glass is glued to the frame and the glue was not sticking properly in the lower right hand corner. The screen worked fine but with the glass peeling up I imagine it would have eventually failed. I contacted Microsoft and they sent me a new one without any hassle, although I did have to go through the process of installing all of the software I had put on the first one again when I got the second.
I am not crazy about the location of the audio jack. It is on the upper right side of the screen which means the headphone wire inevitably hangs across your hands while typing and listening to Steve Miller's Take the Money and Run. Microsoft had to put the headphone jack on the screen to allow for its use when the computer is in tablet mode but it would have been better to put it in a lower corner.
While we are on the audio topic, I also find that the audio drivers that control the headphone and microphone need to be updated. With the first machine I received (the faulty one that I had to send back) there was a lot of interference noise coming through the mic when I was recording my weekly Market Minutes video for YouTube. I fixed this by updating the Realtek audio driver. I did not have this problem when the second machine arrived but now I find that the microphone for my headset works with a very lower audio level. I can change to using the microphone that is built in to the computer which actually sounds very good but I will probably try doing an audio driver update to fix the headset microphone issue when I get a chance.
There are some issues with Windows 10 that seem to slowly be getting fixed with each update. I find that the toolbar, which I have set to auto-hide, will often get stuck and not auto hide, thus blocking the lower part of my screen.
The biggest issue I am having is with how the computer wakes up from being in sleep mode or once the monitors have turned off after a period of no use. With the way I have set mine up, the system should come alive when I click on the keyboard or move the mouse, lighting up the laptop and two external screens. What often happens is the two external screens do not come alive. The only solution I have found is to close down all of the software I have running and restart the machine. It is only a few minutes of my life wasted but it seems like I am doing this every morning before the trading day starts.
The Final Assessment
Is the Surface Book the ultimate day trader laptop? For me, I would say it is. Its power and ability to run multiple high resolution screens give it trader required functionality that I can not find in any other laptop. It is the first laptop that I have owned that can actually replace my bulky desktop trading computer.
The caveat is that I have lived, and grown accepting of, Microsoft's software issues over the years. I like Windows, I find it easier to use than the Apple OS, probably because it is what I am used to. I find the Apple OS works better with less bugs, however, and using the Surface Book has required a good deal of time spent fixing problems or just having the patience to deal with the annoyances that mostly relate to Windows 10. With that in mind, this machine may not be right for you if you are not willing to put in the work to overcome, or at least deal with, these issues.
Since I have noticed that some of the bugs seem to disappear when there is a Windows update, I am hopeful that eventually all of the wrinkles will be ironed out. My Surface Book definitely works better today than it did two months ago. Right now, the need to reboot the machine often to get all of the screens to display after a period of no use is the biggest issue bugging me.
The one issue that I don't expect can be fixed with software updates is the inability two display two external 4k monitors with a 60hz refresh rate. I feel a little duped by Microsoft that this is not possible since I thought the weak link was going to be the actual screens I used but now it seems that I won't be able to run them at the refresh rate that they are capable of.
All said, I think the Surface Book is a solid 4 out of 5 and I recommend it to any trader with a bit of computer savvy and patience to overcome the issues that arise.
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This week, I scanned for stocks that have done poorly over the past few years but are showing positive signs in the past few weeks. These long term turnarounds show up on the weekly charts with breaks up from rising bottoms after lengthy downward trends. Here are three names to consider for position trades.Back To Top
1. GNCA
GNCA has fallen from $23 to $3 in the last three years but broke to the upside from a rising bottom last week. Support at $4.60.
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2. SKM
SKM is breaking higher from a rising bottom with abnormal price and volume action last week. Support at $22.10.
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3. V.PHM
V.PHM was one of the hottest stocks in Canada in 2014 - 2015 but has suffered miserably since. Has started a walk down the come back trail over the past few weeks with strong volume coming back as it has moved higher. Probably pulls back in the very short term but consider on a break of the pullback. Support at $0.165.
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References
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Disclaimer
This is not an investment advisory, and should not be used to make
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