Electronic Day Trading Made Easy, Revised and Expanded 2nd Edition: Become a Successful Trader Review
Posted by
Palmer Harmon
on 11/01/2011
/
Labels:
day trading,
finance,
investing,
investing books,
investment strategies,
stock investing,
stock market,
stock market books,
swing trading,
technical analysis
Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Great writers make complex tasks easy and not vice versa. I read this book, because one of my protégés bought it and asked for my opinion. My background is of a professional futures, options and equity trader for 23 years. Here are my conclusions:
1. The author is trying really hard to show his knowledge by defining almost every little thing in this industry. He over did it and included things he should have not. For example, on page 159 he talks about "Trading Against the Hedge Box" He says clearly in the first sentence that NASDAQ market would no longer allow this type of trading, but he goes on to explain the concept over the next five pages! Why? This is not making things EASY ...
2. The author tries to explain how scalping stocks (trading for 1/8 of a point) is the way to go on 1000 share lots. He sounds just like a graduate of the Online Trading Academy, and I will tell you this doesn't work. You will also find contradicting statements arguing if volatile NASDAQ stocks should be your favorite or trying to scalp the specialist on the NYSE should be the way to go? You can try and scalp the specialist, but let me tell you, the odds are not on your favor, because trying to make a 1/16 buying on the bid and selling on the ask (all day long as the author suggests) works in fantasy land.
3. The coverage of order execution is just completely WRONG! Page 113 "When stock prices are moving up FAST, the SOES buy order is an excellent tool for getting into the market ... if stock prices are declining QUICKLY, the SOES sell order is an excellent tool for getting out of the market quickly. Whoever wrote this statement, never traded a fast moving stock in his life! SOES will be the last place to go. Here is more, page 114, "Getting in the market with the SOES is one of the most common execution methods of day trading" WRONG AGAIN!
4. Level II screens are wrong, they are quoted in 1/32 increments for $50+ stocks. That is not something you will see in real life and it hurts illustrations of S/net orders.
5. Page 148 contains a strategy using Instinet. "A large Instinet BID volume by itself is ALWAYS a positive or bullish indicator." The author fails to tail you about MM and ECN tricks, and headfakes. There is more to it than that!
6. Page 167, "The day trader must have a higher percentage of winning trades than losing trades." In reality, professional traders such as Sunny Harris will say that on the average, out of ten trading days, successful traders will have 6. losing days and 4 winning days.
7. ARCA? One of the best execution vehicles was completely omitted from the book!
I can keep giving more examples, but I think I made my point clear. This book does not offer the TRUTH. If it did the title would be SUCCESSFUL Day Trading Made Easy. It seems to me that the author took the already published books and repackaged them. No real substance, and a guaranteed method to lose all your money.
An important method for making money in the stock market is to FILTER out the noise. I wish the author would have FILTERED out the fluff and fillers out of his book and made it EASY, other than including information that is not correct or irrelevant.
I doubt that the author would be able to show a real life WINNING trading record, based on what is in his book.
Afterall, what do you expect for twenty bucks?
One more thing, I hated the idea that the author will even say that it is possible to get financed by someone else. Page 24, "Hypothetically, the loan money is never at risk." WRONG AGAIN! What happens if you used those 100K to buy 1000 shares of ABC at 100, and the stock was halted intraday and opened for trading at 28? The trader will lose $72,000, but only $10,000 was his equity, who will pay the rest?
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