Trading Systems and Methods (Wiley Trading) (Hardcover)

by Perry J. Kaufman (Author) "There will come a time when we no longer will know how to do the calculation for long division, because miniature voice-activated computers will be..." (more)
Key Phrases: detrending line, swing breakout, minimum swing value, New York, Technical Analysis of Stocks, John Wiley (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"An original and masterful approach that provides an in-depth analysis of the most popular trading techniques. The entire process for developing and testing trading strategies is put into a cohesive framework." -- David Krell, Chairman K-Squared Research, LLC

"Probably the most comprehensive guide to trading systems ever written from one of the foremost experts in the field. This is an invaluable reference work for anyone with an interest in trading systems." -- Jack D. Schwager, author, Technical Analysis and The New Market Wizards

"This is a remarkably insightful book about the ins and outs of the futures market. In his usual inimitable style, Perry does a wonderful job of showing the beginner and the experienced person what it takes to build and use a successful trading system. Whether you're an old pro or a beginner, this book is an excellent source for analyzing, evaluating, and forecasting price movements." -- Mark J. Powers, President Powers & Dubin Asset Allocation and Management Co.

"Trading Systems and Methods is a one-volume encyclopedia of technical analysis. There is enormous value in its concise-yet-thorough coverage of new and traditional subjects in the universe of technical analysis.Perry Kaufman, a longtime commodities trader who has been researching trading techniques since 1972 and who written widely on this subject, is the ideal encyclopedist. He has extensive practical experience in asset management to bolster his book of learning. Trading Systems and Methods could well be the single most useful book a trader can have." -- Desmond MacRae, TheStreet.com

"Probably the most comprehensive guide to trading systems ever written from one of the foremost experts in the field. This is an invaluable reference work for anyone with an interest in trading systems." —Jack D. Schwager, author Technical Analysis and The New Market Wizards

"This is a remarkably insightful book about the ins and outs of the futures market. In his usual inimitable style, Perry does a wonderful job of showing the beginner and the experienced person what it takes to build and use a successful trading system. Whether you're an old pro or a beginner, this book is an excellent source for analyzing, evaluating, and forecasting price movements." —Mark J. Powers, President, Powers & Dubin Asset Allocation and Management Co.

"An original and masterful approach that provides an in-depth analysis of the most popular trading techniques. The entire process for developing and testing trading strategies is put into a cohesive framework." —David Krell, Chairman, K-Squared Research, LLC

Product Description
For more than two decades, futures traders have turned to the classic Trading Systems and Methods for complete information about the latest, most successful indicators, programs, algorithms, and systems. Now, this newly revised and expanded Third Edition continues that tradition, including many new approaches and covering the latest developments in the continuously evolving equipment and techniques for trading futures markets.

Perry J. Kaufman, a leading futures expert highly respected for his years of experience in research and trading, has thoroughly rewritten and updated his bestselling guide, which remains the most comprehensive and instructional book on trading systems today. This detailed, hands-on manual offers a thorough analysis, using a systematic approach and including explanations of each method of calculation or operation. Kaufman explores both the good and bad features of each trading technique, explaining why a trading system or method works or doesn't work, how to select features that fit the trader's needs best, and how to test a system to achieve a sound trading program.

Since the early '70s, Kaufman has been devoted to futures research, with a particular emphasis on computer applications. He includes computer programs and spreadsheet code to implement each system and method, in addition to the mathematics involved. Where other books fall short, Kaufman's reference makes it possible for traders and analysts to program the systems themselves, changing the programs as they see fit and applying the techniques to their own styles and trading tools.

Trading Systems and Methods continues to be the single best resource for the trader or market analyst who wants to create or choose a successful trading system.

The bestselling guide to trading systems—completely revised and updated

"Probably the most comprehensive guide to trading systems ever written from one of the foremost experts in the field. This is an invaluable reference work for anyone with an interest in trading systems." —Jack D. Schwager, author Technical Analysis and The New Market Wizards

"Perry Kaufman has no peer in the field of trading system design. In this authoritative new edition, Perry adds rich material to a remarkable body of indicators and timing methods." —Nelson Freeburg, Editor, Formula Research

"A carefully thought out revision. The new added content is impressive . . . and useful. Kaufman is to be commended for carefully choosing and annotating that content. Years of questioning and reasoning the validity of both new and classical technical analysis studies has prepared the author to be a most knowledgeable 'final filter'. In this book he has selected the best. Thanks!" —Tim Slater, Managing Director, Telerate Seminars, Bridge/Telerate

"This is a remarkably insightful book about the ins and outs of the futures market. In his usual inimitable style, Perry does a wonderful job of showing the beginner and the experienced person what it takes to build and use a successful trading system. Whether you're an old pro or a beginner, this book is an excellent source for analyzing, evaluating, and forecasting price movements." —Mark J. Powers, President, Powers & Dubin Asset Allocation and Management Co.

"An original and masterful approach that provides an in-depth analysis of the most popular trading techniques. The entire process for developing and testing trading strategies is put into a cohesive framework." —David Krell, Chairman, K-Squared Research, LLC

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 720 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 3 edition (November 16, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471148792
• ISBN-13: 978-0471148791
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.4 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #519,970 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best - but a great book for Tradestation users, December 28, 1999

By	A beginning trader (Seattle) - See all my reviews

My bookshelf now has about 50 books on options, daytrading, TA, bonds, futures, fundamental analysis, and the psychology of trading. This book is one of the best on TA. Though I do not have Tradestation this book should come with the program. Many of the trading systems that it talks about are laid out in easy language (the way to input into Tradestation). Since I use WOW it would be nice if it laid out the programming for WOW so that I did not have to translate it. But now Omega owns WOW so let's hope the best of each come out of the merger and not the worst (like easy language).

For TA it is up there with Murphy's and Schwager's and perhaps goes a bit beyond in how to take the indicators and put them together into a system. Also it explains many of the systems that various market Gurus expound. Where most of the books on the market try to explain it all like beginning addition and subtraction this book is many steps beyond the first grade and does take some serious study, which I appreciate.

In short, if you are interested in TA and how it combines to form a system of trading this book will be worth you money.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One of the better books in the WTA series., October 14, 2000

By	Martian Bachelor (Feminacentric America) - See all my reviews

This is not so much an encyclopedia as it is a fairly complete compendium of various trading tools and strategies. Almost all such research focuses on the futures markets; the closest these get to the stock market is the S&P 500 index. This is true of technical analysis in general, so if you're interested in the stock market you will generally have to extrapolate.

Kaufman is a pretty able and knowledgeable reporter on the research results of others, but I have to say that in places the transcriptions are confusing, unclear and ambiguous. Even though the book is nearly 700 pages long, some of the coverage is too sparse -- while in other areas it seems too wordy. This 3rd edition could benefit from a start-to-finish re-organization/re-write, as some ideas are explained multiple times in various places and other ideas which are introduced early and deemed important are then ignored throughout the rest of the book. I'm thinking primarily of the basics of statistics and tests for significance; much of what might work at times is superfluous. My impression is that while Kaufman is very experienced in the markets and with trading systems in general, that he's a dilettante so far as really rigorous mathematics is concerned. Pick and choose among the many clever ideas here carefully. 3 1/2 stars.

51 of 60 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Be aware, March 5, 2004

By	Hui (New York, New York, United States) - See all my reviews

Don't get me wrong, the author doesn't seem stupid - he developed his own adaptive trend following method. But he has completely no idea how the market works and what can possibly work in the market. This book is a compilation of many technical trading methods, but most of them are stale and some ridiculously insane. Page 376-377 he has a chart and program to compute the moon's phase, because we should buy at full moon and sell at new moon? The selling point of the book is it contains some source code, but most of them are naive. Page 640 betrayed that the author only wrote the programs over twenty years ago when there was no graphics output. In regression he had to use many "*"s to draw the line. And why would any reader need the Fortran source code in the appendix to do regression? Remind you that those ten pages would cost you a buck.

In short, the book has no value for professionals. For individual investors, be aware - the book could actually be harmful because it gives you false confidence. In the investment world half bottle may be worse than you know you have nothing in the bottle.