How to Get Started in Electronic Day Trading: Everything You Need to Know to Play Wall Street's Hottest Game (Hardcover)

by David S. Nassar (Author) "Electronic direct access trading (E-DAT) means using your computer to trade directly with those people or entities that can buy stock from you or sell..." (more)
Key Phrases: professional trading community, electronic direct access trading, low offer price, Fair Value, Wall Street, Goldman Sachs (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Thanks to the ever-increasing real-time access that the public has to financial markets, it's now possible to play in the same league as the market makers who drive the daily price fluctuations of a stock. It's also possible--in fact it's certain--that you'll lose everything to these seasoned professionals unless you have some idea of what you're doing. Which is where David Nassar's How to Get Started in Electronic Day Trading comes in.

Unlike most books of this genre, How to Get Started in Electronic Day Trading really is a primer. Nassar, who runs his own trading firm, does not presume you have much knowledge about how markets work. Instead, the author provides an excellent overview of the dynamics that drive stock prices and the various kinds of electronic access, as well as the broad strategies employed by successful day traders. In addition to providing information about how to open an E-DAT account, Nassar stresses the importance of developing a focused trading strategy and recommends working with a simulator before risking your hard-earned cash.

Day trading is definitely not for everyone, and this book alone will not make you a successful day trader. But if you're the slightest bit interested, How to Get Started in Electronic Day Trading will satisfy your curiosity and may even help you launch a second career. --Harry C. Edwards

Review
"This book can be your key to success as an electronic trader of the future. It's the best book on stock trading I've ever seen!" -- Keith Weinman, Financial commentator, CBS TV, Author, Your First Million is Easier Than You Think

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (November 30, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071345663
• ISBN-13: 978-0071345668
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (135 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #100,350 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Don't quit your job to day-trade quite yet!, March 5, 1999

By A Customer

The information in this book is simplistic and (in my opinion) there does indeed seem to be a not-so-hidden agenda aiming readers toward the author's courses and his trading firm. On the other hand, if you don't know much about trading, it's a pretty good introduction to the basics.

Most of the strategies discussed would work equally well simply by using any of the reputable on-line brokerage firms such as Waterhouse or E*Trade for trade executions. In my experience, placing appropriate limit orders with a good online broker results in almost instantaneous executions and if you want to play the level II NASDAQ game, well, good luck! May I say from many years of trading: If you wish to "scalp" or do short term swing trading, or make money on 1/8 point moves at the speed of light, beware! (At least the author warns of the inherent dangers lurking to snag the day trader.)

It's OK to be optimistic, and this book certainly is. It's a little reminiscent of the now-infamous "Wall Street Money Machine" (by a former cab driver who will go un-named) but to be fair, it's not nearly as irresponsible. It IS a GREAT idea to simulate trades before you use real money and, to the author's credit, this rational approach is advocated. Then details get quite fuzzy and the clear message seems to be: For more details, take my course.

In the 1990's I have watched friends and aquaintances jump into the various "hot" and "exciting" arenas of OEX options, option writing and buying, commodity futures, short-term-day trading, and the like. These are not dumb or untrained people, but PhDs in engineering, business professionals and the like. Results have been, to put it kindly, mixed, and one of them got wiped out to the tune of $200K rather efficiently.

My wife was a financial analyst for a Fortune 500 company and I have been a trader for many years. Now that I am retired from my engineering career, I have lots of time to dedicate to the craft of trading...I choose the word "craft" deliberately...and my advice to those who "have a passion for trading" is: Take a cold bath for the passion, learn as much as you can as long as you can, and then start with teeny trades, one at a time. Maybe one day I'll actually meet somebody who was an instant success in this challenging area, but I haven't yet.

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good Springboard to Understand Better Texts, December 18, 1999

By	DT (Santa Monica, CA) - See all my reviews

I read The Electronic Day Trader and thought that was dumbed down for the layman until I read this book. A more appropriate title for this book is Electronic Day Trading for Dummies. Though incomplete and self-serving in the end, I think that this book helps the absolute neophyte dabble in day trading terms and dynamics. Start with this book to get a feel for day trading and then graduate up to The Electronic Day Trader to understand what tools are best for you. When you are proficient with the trading tools, take a look at Hit and Run Trading or Stock Trading Wizard to learn how to successfully apply those day trading tools.

30 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars response back after trading and reading the book, February 10, 2000

By	suzy (Alaska) - See all my reviews

I read the book, learned the basics and did some trading. level two and direct access especially enhanced my trading abilities, and one key reason was the ability to see ahead of the market price if the marketmakers are going lower or higher and the second is the ability to get your price because of the high speed of access. skill in trading go beyond these tools, however, I found experience and logic being your most important skills. The book was invaluable in learning to use level two and in providing content that would be of interest to a beginner trading. I found holding one stock til I get a decent return better than trading that same stock day after day though, but for entering and exiting a trade and the ability to watch a trade closely is best with level two and for a beginner this is a good book, but its not a free ticket to easy gains. the level two can get you into trouble just as quick as any other method. Having said that, for understanding the market and information on how to use level two, the book was great for a beginner. The gains come from using all your tools intelligently. I made dumb mistakes that cost me but I did learn from the mistakes and made it to positive steady gains now after 6 months. I found understanding the market will always be an ongoing learning experience everyday, there are no templates that last for long except good company fundamentals. My advice is practice paper trading or with a simulator for 6 months for the cheapest learning curve after reading the book and know your stock from watching it trade on level two. The book talks about styles of trading, I have found that just watching and papertrading one stock day after day with level two a great insight for eventually trading the stock for the first time while keeping in mind the macro environment of the market and how that particular stocks sector is doing for daytrading purposes. The book also has good references and links.