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Non-Tech : Datek Brokerage $9.95 a trade -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: LEVEL7 who wrote (9668)	9/13/1998 2:34:00 PM
From: INFO_DART	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 16892

The Datek executions should be the equal to the tradestations, but usually they are not even close. AND Hoping you take this post towards improving your product rather than arguing its validity, it would be refreshing. LEVEL7, Thank you for your excellent post, you are indeed a humanitarian. My big question is WHY doesn't Datek management allow their people to produce the kind of quality systems that you are talking about? Those other companies have shown it can be done AND most don't have one-tenth the financial resources as Datek. Upon reflection, I've come up with only two possibilities. One, they are incompetent. Two, it somehow serves Datek's own best interest. Although there is substantial and credible information in support of the first, it stretches credulity for one to assert that it the entire explanation. Does anyone have any ideas on how this serves Datek's own best interest to have their systems operate as they do? If so, post here. Message 5520034

To: LEVEL7 who wrote (9668)	9/14/1998 11:59:00 PM
From: Esteban	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 16892

Claim to offer? I speak from experience regarding Datek, I've never used one of the trade stations, so I don't as you say "know it." Do these companies make good on any trades that do not execute that are marketable? If so, marketable for how long? 3 seconds, 10 seconds, 30 seconds, 5 minutes?? My comment that seemed to rub you the wrong way was based on comparing a brokerage that charges 9.99 per trade to one that charges 20 or 25 per 1000 shares. This is not apples to apples. Say I trade in the 1500 share range per trade. I make about 20 trades a week, round it off to 1000 per year. Commissions at Datek for one year at that frequency total $10,000. At 20 per 1000 shares, that's $31,200. Superior execution has got to save me $20,000 to break even with the Datek, a tall order. Especially since I almost always get very fast execution on marketable limit orders at Datek. Sure, I've missed a few trades here and there from which I would have profited. Of course I've also missed a few that would have hurt me. Assuming that Datek is the problem with every one of these missed opportunities or bad executions, which I doubt, the total doesn't even begin to approach $20,000. In order to turn this deficit into a gain, one has to be improving on Datek results on a regular, consistent basis. Maybe this is possible if one is trading with level II trying to scalp eights and 2 seconds is the difference between hitting the bid and missing it. For me, I seriously doubt I could even approach the commission savings I get with Datek. And what about limit orders that seek price improvement? I know I'm represented quickly at Datek, and that I often get fills in these situations. Speed of fill is not the issue here, so a trade station advantage is questionable in this case. Hoping you take this post towards improving your product rather than arguing its validity, it would be refreshing. Believe me, I'm all for improvement, and I agree that there's room for some. When I see the same people continually bashing Datek for problems that I've only experienced in a few isolated cases, and then attempt to steer potential clients away makes me want to present my positive experiences. Of course personally, not being affiliated to Datek in any way except as a brokerage client, I don't have any more pull than anyone else.