Accounts/Users

This tutorial starts from a brand new settings file and goes through to downloading historical prices from FXCM.

It assumes:

1. You installed the FXCM bits when you installed ATM.
2. You started ATM, created a new settings file, opened it, and ATM is sitting there ready to go.
3. You used this information to go and open an FXCM demo account, and also you logged in to that account using the FXCM trading platform and got your account number.

In this tutorial:

1. Try to download prices, but realise you need to create a Data Manager entry first.
2. Try to create a Data Manager entry, but realise you need to create a User first.
3. Enter the FXCM demo user and account details.
4. Create the Data Manager entry for EUR/USD, Daily, FXCM.
5. Start the download.

This is the opposite order to that demonstrated in this video tutorial. But actually the method on this current page is more intuitive and also works out to be a bit quicker.

Anyway... let's download some EUR/USD Daily bars...

Click here to watch the video, and use the browser's back button to come back. Or click here to open in a new window.
 

See also:

• Video: Backtesting

This tutorial starts from a brand new settings file and goes through to downloading historical prices from FXCM.

It assumes:

1. You installed the FXCM bits when you installed ATM.
2. You started ATM, created a new settings file, opened it, and ATM is sitting there ready to go.
3. You used this information to go and open an FXCM demo account, and also you logged in to that account using the FXCM trading platform and got your account number.

This tutorial does these things:

1. Enters the FXCM demo user and account details.
2. Creates the Data Manager entry for EUR/USD, Daily, FXCM.
3. Starts the download.

We, as creators of the software, know the pre-requisites and create them first. However, a normal person just knows that they want to download prices, so they might try that first without entering any of the pre-requisite information. There's a sister video tutorial doing it that way as well.

Ok, so... let's download some EUR/USD Daily bars...

Click here to watch the video, and use the browser's back button to come back. Or click here to open in a new window.
 

See also:

• Video: Backtesting

There is the Import/Export window, and that let's you import/export trading systems, alerts, saved charts, and custom indicators.

When exporting, your information is saved as an ordinary text file. You can read the contents by opening the file in Notepad, Wordpad, Microsoft Word, or whatever other program you normally use for text files. Like this:

If you add a password when you export the file, most of it will just be garbled text. Like this:

The very basic details are left unencrypted, but everything else is unreadable. The encryption level is pretty strong.

You can then give that file to a friend, sell it, use it as a backup, or use it to copy your settings to a different ATM settings file of your own.

There are some complications with importing/exporting, and most of them centre around the fact that you could be importing something that you yourself exported; or you could be importing something that somebody else exported.

If you are importing your own exported file, you probably want the same accounts to be re-selected for you. The only way to achieve that is to include the account information in the exported file. That is to say, these exported text files may contain private information that you don't want other people to see.

Only the description you gave for the account is exported (e.g. "My FXCM demo account") - not the account number. But there's every possibility that you typed the account number as part of that description (e.g. "My FXCM live account #12345678").
 

The easy workaround

If you intend to give your exported file to someone else, the solution is very easy. In ATM make a copy of whatever it is you intend to export. Edit that copied version. Remove any private information. Export the copied version instead.
 

Protecting your secret sauce

Use a password when you do the export. That will encrypt the file. For someone to be able to import your encrypted file, they need that password. But the password doesn't unlock the file completely - it just lets them do the import.

Someone successfully importing an encrypted file still won't be able to see the trading rules, etc (if it's a trading system, and alerts and custom indicators can also be obfuscated like this). The person will be able to backtest and trade with that encrypted system / alert / custom indicator. But they won't be able to see how it works. As in, you can sell your fantastic trading system, other people can trade using that system, but your methods are kept secret.
 

Statuses of trading systems and alerts

All imported trading systems and alerts have their status set to "Disabled". Check all details are correct before enabling.
 

An account with sub-accounts has a structure like this:
- Main Account
   - Sub-Account #1
   - Sub-Account #2

ATM's account structure is like this:
- Account #1
- Account #2
- Account #3

So how do you set up such accounts in ATM?

Each account or sub-account has a different account number. You just disregard the hierarchy and create one ATM account for each account or sub-account.

E.g. you have an account with username "Bob" and #12345678. That account has a sub-account #87654321.

In ATM, create your user "Bob". Then create one ATM account, with user "Bob" and account number #12345678. Then create another ATM account, with user "Bob" and account number #87654321.

In summary, 1 main account with 1 sub-account equals 2 accounts with the same User but different account numbers in ATM.
 

When you create an account in ATM you have to enter an account number. Read below for what to enter, as it differs by broker.
 

FXCM

To find the account number, first log in to the FXCM trading platform. You should be able to see an "Accounts" section, with all your accounts listed there. For a demo account, there's probably only one account listed. Anyway, in that "Accounts" section, there should be an "Account" column. The value in that field is close to, but not the value you want to type into ATM.

First, if the account number has letters at the start, don't type them.

Second, if the account number has zeroes at the start, don't type them.

Third, if the number is longer than 8 digits, only type the last 8 digits.

So an account number like:

• 0012346 would be entered into ATM as 123456
• ABC000123456789 would be entered as 23456789
   

Oanda

To find the account number, first log in to the Oanda trading platform. Then from the main menu of that trading platform, click "Account", then choose "Change Account". You should now be able to see a list of your accounts. The number to enter in this field is the number in brackets. E.g. if it says something like "Primary (1234567)", then enter 1234567 in this field in ATM.
 

Gain Capital

Doesn't give out account numbers, so just enter 0 (zero).