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Strategies & Market Trends : MDA - Market Direction Analysis -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Gary E who wrote (6730)	2/20/1999 1:45:00 AM
From: Lee Lichterman III	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 99985

OT >>I'm looking to switch.<< Well don't get the impression that I am all happy with Waterhouse. They give great service But my recent experience since getting back in the market after a couple years out of it has only been with 2 brokers, DLJ and Waterhouse. DLJ had a great web trading setup that was easy to navigate, execute and was fairly reliable as far as being up when you needed it. However, they were so conservative on option strategies that I had to leave them quickly. (if you have a call, you weren't allowed to buy a put on the same company, wouldn't allow selling of puts etc). Also, if you ever needed to talk to someone, you better plan on being on hold for years. With Waterhouse, other than the open and the close, they usually answer the phone quickly. Their executions are WAAAAY better than DLJ who regularly would ream me on trades if they were the MM. However, Waterhouse's web trading is ancient technology. Click on what account you want, click on if it is a put or a call, type in the security symbol (sometimes they mean the option symbol, sometimes they mean the stock's symbol, scary), click on if opening position or closing, buying or selling, type in strike, click on which expiration month, type in phone number, type in limit price or click market order, I probably left a few out. By now the price of the option has doubled and you have to decide if you still want to trade it. Then you go to the confirmation screen, then click to send the order out. ( I keep two windows up all the time, one with the pending order in it and the other one I use for normal quote tracking etc) Then wait, then check your order status that once you look at it will look the same even if you refresh so you have to go to another screen, dump your history and temp files then go back and check again. They also have a time out if you don't use a screen after a VERY Short amount of time. There is more but hopefully you get the idea. They also are having problems occasionally with option quote feed from their provider. I know a few of us that have told them if they don't either get the provider to shape up or else find a new one, we will move. I am a part time trader so I can't justify a full service quote feed and depend on them for quotes with only one other backup. I have seen one option screen( I can't remember if it was dreyfus or yamner) where the same page you are getting quotes on, you just click the symbol you are watching and you are in the trading menu and all you need to do is tell it if your opening closing and what price you want and your done. Of course their fees may be a lot higher. I like Waterhouse and will stick with them until they prove they aren't going to change their web trading or fix their quote problems. Over all they are much better than DLJ for the important things. Good Luck, Lee