The Forex Factory Blog

When we launched the Trade Explorer there were 60 graph combinations available. With the overlay graph feature added today, there are now more than 600 possible combinations! Here’s just a few of the insightful graphs you can now produce:

Overlay graphs replace the single y-axis with two y-axis scales, one on the left of the graph and one on the right. Both axes can be adjusted with the options below the graph, giving you the flexibility to analyze your trading performance however you want. After some practice with the graph you’ll be able to quickly find answers to questions about your performance, and you’ll begin to understand your strengths and weaknesses from a visual perspective.

Oh, and now you can modify the graph colors too.

Posted by Michael, Forex Factory Product Developer

It just got a lot easier to access your Trade Explorer! Today we launched the ‘Expand’ functionality — a link at the top right of your Explorer which expands it to a full-page view. It’s like having the Trade Explorer’s four tabs open all at once, and the expanded URL can be bookmarked for quick future reference.

Speaking of bookmarks, we’ve implemented a number of “permalinks” into the Trade Explorer. Most of the links within your Explorer will now update the browser URL, which can then be bookmarked or sent to a friend. For example, all of the following links work for aediaz1′s Trade Explorer:

- Overview tab: forexfactory.com/aediaz1#22
- Trade Report tab: forexfactory.com/aediaz1#22-report
- Trade Graph tab: forexfactory.com/aediaz1#22-graph
- Trade List tab: forexfactory.com/aediaz1#22-list
- Trade List page 2: forexfactory.com/aediaz1#22-list+pg2
- All expanded: forexfactory.com/aediaz1/22

Please contact us if you find any issues or have a request. I handle all Trade Explorer support, and I can tell you the product wouldn’t be nearly as good without all the feedback from you guys!

Posted by Danny, Trade Explorer Product Manager

Forex Factory is pleased to announce that the Trade Explorer now connects with OANDA’s fxTrade platform! The legions of fxTrade users finally have a compatible performance analyzer.

fxTrade users: Get your Trade Explorer started here!

While fxTrade-based Explorers look identical to those based on MT4, they connect to trading accounts using different authorization methods. Instead of using an Investor Password, like MT4, OANDA developed a page on the fxTrade interface where traders can grant the Explorer read-only access to their trading history. It’s a secure, modern setup that gives you complete control over access to your trading data. We’re proud to have been chosen to beta-test for OANDA, and we think the final product turned out fantastic.

Please contact us if you have any problems getting your Explorer set up, or if you have any requests. I’m always glad to hear from you guys!

Posted by Danny, Trade Explorer Product Manager

After working out the kinks and solidifying the infrastructure, the Trade Explorer is now out of beta and we’ve started adding features. The first set of features give you great flexibility in where you can place your Explorers around the FF website, making it almost effortless to keep track of your performance.

Page placement
Now you can view your Explorers on the FF homepage, Calendar page, News page, or Market page — it’s up to you. Click Options in the top right of your Explorer to modify its placement.

Thread linking
Any public Explorer can now be linked to any Forum thread. Once linked, the Explorer will be displayed at the top of the thread, making it easy to discuss your Explorer with others, or discuss another member’s Explorer. To link an Explorer, click Thread Tools > Thread Options on any thread you’ve started.

Display order
If you have more than one Explorer, you can now specify the order in which they stack on the page. This control lets you align your Explorers in a way that works with your trading habits. Click Options in the top right of your Explorer to modify its order. Remember, this option will only appear if you have more than one Explorer.

If you have feedback or ideas for improvement, please contact us!

Posted by Michael, Forex Factory Product Developer

Broker platforms leave much to be desired in regard to analyzing your trading performance. Most traders don’t know basic performance statistics about their trading, such as average trade return, Sharpe ratio, and maximum drawdown, and it’s rare that a trader even knows what their equity curve looks like. It’s hard to improve if you don’t know where you stand.

The Trade Explorer is Forex Factory’s answer to this problem. It’s an online interface that connects with your MT4-based brokerage account to put hundreds of metrics and over 60 graphs at your fingertips. Explorer not only helps you evaluate your historic trading performance, but it automatically synchronizes with your brokerage account to give you real-time analytical capabilities. View a sample Explorer or create your own. Operational details can be found in the user guide.

We didn’t invent the concept of a performance analyzer, but we have taken it into new territory. Here are a few features that set Explorer apart:

• Auto sync
  Automatically synchronizes with your brokerage account, even with the platform closed, allowing you to monitor your performance from anywhere with an Internet connection.
• Equity|Balance toggle
  Allows you to display performance metrics based on either equity or balance.
• Time zone control
  Can be set to reflect any time zone, allowing you to match your broker’s time zone or adjust when the day begins.
• Gap
  Pending orders display a metric we call ‘Gap,’ which shows how many pips away the order is from the market.
• Open leverage
  Displays leverage of open positions in the familiar “XX:1″ format, helping you easily identify how far from a margin call you are. Look for the ‘Lev’ column on the ‘Open Trades’ table.
• Help icons
  There are help icons () for every metric to tell you precisely how the calculation is made. Hover on the icon to expand the help caption, or click it to hold the caption open.
• Interactive graph
  Flexible design allows you to set the X and Y axis to your preference, giving you a high degree of control. Over 60 combinations available.
• Industry stats
  Reports statistics in the same industry standard format used by CTAs and hedge funds.
• No fake results
  Direct connection to brokerage accounts makes it impossible to fake trading performance. No need for a verification system — all Explorers are connected to a legitimate brokerage account and the live/demo distinction cannot be faked.

Currently Explorer is only compatible with MetaTrader4-based brokerage accounts. We plan to incorporate other platforms in the future. We’re still in early stages of development so your feedback is really important at this time. Let us know what you think via the contact form.

For more details on Explorer, please read the user guide.

PS, a huge “Thank You” to the beta-testers who helped us with this project!

Posted by Michael, Forex Factory Product Developer