Timespans and Periods

Timespan and Period icons in the toolbarFor analyzing stocks and securities, not only the navigational features of the chart but also other settings are important, like the period and timespan settings. Change them to:

• Analyze price movements and trends over various time resolutions
• Detect trends over longer time periods (days, months, years)
• Compare the performance of normalized timespans
• Optimize the chart display according to your preferences
• Change the signal generation frequency of a trading system
• Adapt the visible data to the analysis horizon

You can set the trading period not only in the chart but also in the Portfolio, the Scanner and the Watchlist. All paragraphs in this text apply analogously.

Change the Period

Button menu PeriodYou can change the period for all instruments in an active chart in two ways:

• Via the button Period in the Chart group in the Toolbar. Click on the button to open the button menu and select a period.
• Via the command line by entering certain shortcuts, for example "w" for week or "5h" for five hours. You can find the list of all shortcuts in the chapter Command Line.

If you want to change the period for all instruments in all charts press Ctrl while selecting a period.

To change the period of a single instrument in a chart, right-click on the chart legend of the instrument and change the Period for Object in the context menu.

A trading period is the unit that corresponds to a price in the plot. Trading periods are necessary for the financial market to be able to compare analysis methods, trading systems and price patterns independently of the actual value or day of time.

Kinds of Trading Periods

Trading periods come in three types:

• Periods based on price fixing - in this case, the price is plotted for a defined number of ticks. This kind of period results in a non-linear time scale in the chart. Three periods are available: 1, 10 or 25 ticks.

• Time-dependent period - In this case, time units are used, like hour, day, month and year. Several standard time units are offered as quick settings.

• Periods based on traded shares - In this case, a defined number of shares are accumulated to a trading period for this security. For example, you can set that for each 1000 shares, a price should be plotted. This kind of period results in a non-linear time scale in the chart. Several quick settings are available, from 1000 to 50000 shares.

Define Your Own Trading Period

You can define your own trading period by selecting the entry Other Period in the period button menu.

As a trading period, you can set every number divisible by 1 as a time and calendar unit, or set an arbitrary number for ticks and shares.

Change the Timespan

Button menu TimespanFor an active chart, you can find the timespan button in the Chart group in the Toolbar. Click on the small arrow to open the timespan menu. Select a setting.

If you want to change the timespan for all instruments in all charts press Ctrl while selecting a timespan.

The timespan is the span visible in the chart history without scrolling. You can use given settings or define your own timespans.

Kinds of Timespans

Several settings are available for the timespan:

Current (Minute, Hour...) - Display only the current minute, hour etc.

Recent History (F8, default) - In all chart types in which trading periods are linear with time, the "Recent History" is a length of 63 past trading periods and 7 empty periods of free space to the right of the current period. In charts types with a non-linear time axes, the view is adapted to what viewers might perceive as optimal arrangement.

Full History (Ctrl + F8) - Show the data as set in History Length in the property inspector (default 1000, maximum 500000).

Define Your Own Timespans

To set exact timespans, call up Fixed Date Range or Sliding Date Range in the timespan button menu.

Fixed Date Range - Here you can define a start point for a timespan of a fixed length. Pre-set values are the current time and date. Click the arrow next to the Date from field to open a calendar to choose a date from. For the timespan, any number divisible by 1 is possible. By default, the timespan is displayed from the start point into the future. Select Span backwards from specified date to display the timespan from the start point into the past.

Sliding Date Range - Here you can define a timespan of a fixed length that constantly begins with the last price of the current trading period. For the timespan, any number divisible by 1 is possible.

With the key F8 or a click on the axes symbol on the lower right of the chart you return to the standard setting Recent History.