Hmmm... What's up with these systems?

(Was about to post this on one of the System threads but decided that singling out one was not really fair, when there are SO MANY bad ones to choose from.)

Just some comments, regarding a SYSTEM WHICH SHALL REMAIN NAMELESS, but seems to represent much of the automation being showcased around here...

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I'll be honest -- I don't understand the fascination with this kind of automation.

It looks like the demo has been running since the end of January and it is something like -1200 pips net in about two months. I could be mistaken, but it looks like the only reason that the account is not currently in loss is due to the small size of those heavily drawn down positions.

??

From what I can see the recommended investment with this system is $5,000 to $10,000 to start. At -600 pips per month one's account should last for at least a few months, depending on order sizing.

???

That being said, despite these obvious issues, it looks like there are SCORES of people tracking and discussing the system. Hmmm...

???

I hate to state the obvious, but in order to evaluate the quality of a system I generally look at a few key indicators:

1. Does the system have large and old FLOATING LOSS TRADES? If yes, I disregard it.

2. Does the system have a substantial LOWER EQUITY THAN BALANCE? If yes, I disregard it.

3. Is the system running WITHOUT ANY CLOSED LOSSES? If yes, I look very very carefully at why. Chances are it's using martingale techniques. You WILL get burned -- it's not a matter of IF, it's a matter of WHEN.

4. Is the system running on a DEMO account? Generally I disregard it. It's too easy to hide the losers and show-off the winners. Running on a real money account makes the results meaningful, otherwise it's all just theoretical.

That being said, I'm still waiting for MyFXBook to implement better reporting of systems.

As much as I like MyFXBook and applaud the service that is being offered (thank-you, MyFXBook), I have to say that by not showing FRONT and CENTRE the *EQUITY* (not *BALANCE*), MyFXBook is weakening the quality of the site. The SYSTEMS page filtering should be upgraded with DEFAULT filtering of MAXIMUM OPEN ORDER AGE and also filtering based on MAXIMUM EQUITY/BALANCE DISPARITY.

My $0.02.

hi there, do you encounter any good system that you would recommend?

Surprised there is so little response to this thread given that implementing some of these suggestions just might save a newbie from blowing account funds on a dodgy system. Equity will ALWAYS be a better measure of performance than account balance because it reveals those hidden, and often long standing, losing trades.

It's already on the charts as the yellow equity line. But I suppose you mean to have it as the primary line?