User Interface in a Nutshell

When you start Tradesignal, the user interface may look like this:

• In the very top area of the window, there is a header bar. It contains information about the current window, the file menu, the Command Line, and back/forward, refresh, help and toggle buttons.
• In the top area, there is the Toolbar. It offers access to basic functionalities (Edit, Insert, Search...) and further functions depending on the document type that is open in the workspace.
• On the right, you can find the Toolbox. It offers access to symbols, properties, indicators, strategies, functions, templates, (saved) workspaces and help. Above the button area, the details are displayed, like symbol lists or the property manager for the selected elements.
• In the middle, you can find the Workspaces. This is where document types like charts, portfolios, watchlists, scanners, indicators, strategies, and other information are displayed.
• Below the workspaces, there is the output window which contains tabs for the alerts generated by strategies.
• At the very bottom of the window, to the right, you can see the status of the connection to the data provider. A green icon shows that the connection is available, and a red icon signals a failed connection. To reconnect a failed connection, double-click the icon to open the Primary Data Feed (Online Data) Settings in the Tradesignal Options.
  To the right of the status icon, the time (depending on the time zone) is displayed. When scheduled print jobs are active, an icon is displayed to the left of the status icon.
  When you move the mouse pointer onto the status icon, a status pop-up opens. Here you can find information about
  • the used data provider
  • the current connection status
  • the connected server (depending on the used data provider)
  • possibly active print jobs
  • the set timezone

Using Mouse and Keyboard

Mouse Handling

The user interface is operated with the mouse.

• Elements and buttons are activated or selected by clicking on them with the left mouse button (default). Typical activities are clicking on buttons to start activities, clicking on menu entries, or clicking on a drawing object to select it. When chart objects are selected, their properties become available in the property inspector in the toolbox.
• To open the context menu of an element, click on it with the right mouse button (also called right-click). The context menu opens, and you can select entries in the menu by clicking the default (left) mouse button. Context menus are available almost everywhere, e.g. for documents, indicators etc.
• Some elements or menus open with a double click. This means clicking two times in fast succession with the left mouse button. (If you click too slowly, you may simply open and close an element. In this case, try double-clicking again.) Typical double-click activities are opening symbol lists (instead of clicking on the plus symbol), or opening a symbol in a chart (instead of selecting Open in Chart from the context menu).
• You can move elements around with the mouse. To do so, you need to drag&drop the elements. Click on the element with the left mouse button and keep the button pressed while moving the pointer to a new position (drag). Once there, release the mouse button (drop). Typical drag&drop activities in Tradesignal are applying indicators to symbol charts by dragging them into the chart, or drawing lines, squares etc. with the chart tools.

Keyboard Handling

Many elements can be opened/closed, or actions can be started, by pressing a certain keyboard shortcut. These shortcuts are notated in a special way, for example:

• Ctrl + S means "press the Crtl key and the S key at the same time".
• Ctrl + Shift + F4 means "press the Crtl key, the Shift key and the F4 function key all at the same time". (Function keys are usually in the top area of a keyboard.)

You can find a comprehensive list of all shortcuts in the chapter Keyboard Shortcuts.

Hiding User Interface Elements

You can hide the toolbar, the toolbox and the alert area.

• To hide the Toolbar, click on the icon with the vertical double-arrow at the top right in the header bar. To display the hidden Toolbar temporarily, right-click into a free area of the header bar.
• To hide the Toolbox, click on the thin dotted vertical stripe (grip bar) between the workspace and the toolbox. The toolbox is hidden to the very right, under a long blue button labeled Toolbox. Click on this button to open the toolbox again.
• To hide the alert area (which is situated in the lower area of the workspace), click on the similar thin dotted horizontal grip bar between the workspace and the alert area. The alert area is hidden at the very bottom of the window, only the thin dotted grip bar is still visible. Click on this bar to open the alert area again. You can find more information on alerts in the chapter Alerts.