Frequently Asked Questions
Can you make a binary package for Qtstalker ?
Nope. Binary packages are so problematic now that they are a
nightmare for maintainers. I will leave it up to the distributions to
provide binaries and support them. Besides, learning how to compile
from source makes you a better person, brings world peace and makes you
more attractive to women.
Qtstalker is now included in the Debian distribution thanks to the
efforts of Marco van Zwetselaar. Marco is the maintainer for the binary
package.
What platforms are supported ?
Currently, Linux compatible and FreeBSD systems are supported. Some
people have tried
with some success on Solaris, IRIX and most unices. I'm afraid I cannot
support any other platforms other than Linux compatible systems simply
because I
do not have the time or resources to maintain other operating systems.
So,
if you want to port it, I can help as much as I am able. Due to ethical
and political feelings, I will not help or support anyone trying to do
a win32 port. The goal of this project is not to provide win32 users
more gold bars for their prisons. So endith the lesson...
My favorite indicator(s) are not included in Qtstalker, what can I
do ?
Beer and cash tend to work best, but you might also try asking me.
I'd be glad to create a plugin for you provided you supply me with a
formula and you agree to include it into Qtstalker under the GPL.
Another option
is if you don't want to GPL your formula, you may contract me to write
a
proprietary plugin for you for a fee.
Of course, you can always develop the new indicator yourself. Just
copy
the code from an existing indicator that does similar things. Please
consider
contributing the new indicator back to this project. Everyone benefits.
I'm a day trader, how come there is no intraday charting functions ?
There is currently basic support for tick data limited to a HH:MM:SS
resolution. However, there are currently no quote plugins that download
free tick data. It is left up to the user to provide quotes from a data
service on an individual basis. You may use the CSV quote plugin to
import ascii files with tick data.
Does Qtstalker handle stock splits ?
Nope. To keep things simple, there is an easy way to handle splits.
Just delete the chart that had a split, create the chart with the yahoo
plugin and then update the data. This will pull in all the new
corrected data. Nice and simple. Yes, a little more work for the user
but reduces overhead and keeps things nice and snappy. NOTE: the yahoo
quote plugin allows the user to use the 'adjusted' price, however this
is not the actual trading price but an adjusted one for chart sanity.
Where does the name Qtstalker come from ?
Well if you really must know...The Qt part comes from the GNU/Linux
tradition of prefixing an X app with the GUI toolkit used. The stalker
part is just cheesy word play stemming from the idea of "stock search"
or "stalking stocks". I also just like the word "stalker".
Why don't you make this into a KDE app ?
I want to keep things as simple, efficient and portable as possible. Qt
does everything I need.
There are alot of plugins I don't use taking up space. How do I get
rid
of them ?
If you are sure there are plugins you don't need, then all you have to
do
is delete them from the /usr/lib/qtstalker/* directory. Simple as that.
Be sure you don't delete the directory itself, just the plugin *.so
file.
Why don't you use SQL for data storage?
Two reasons, speed and simplicty. Once again I cite the KISS (keep it
simple, stupid!) philosophy. You can't beat Db btree functions for ease
of use and speed. Using SQL would just add another layer of
requirements and major speed penalties. It also means more
administration hassles for the user to set up accounts, tables, logs
etc. Why complicate things? Each chart is it's own compact, flexible,
dynamic, self-contained db. Blows SQL away in this respect.
Why is the Db 2.7.7 source included ?
To avoid binary format changes in each major revision, I have made this
version the stable standard and include the source to keep things as
simple as possible for the user. No need to hunt around for packages
etc. Just compile and go.
How about a Mac OS X port?
An attempt was made for version 0.22 before its release, but soon
realized it won't happen. There are some major issues with the plugins
and GUI flexibility. Firstly, the plugins are unable to be refreshed
due
to not having an unload option for dynamic libraries. Secondly, GUI
flexibility. There are future GUI enhancements that has no
counterpart in the mac world. Anyway, they are a corporation that make
proprietary products and therefore untrustworthy. SCO to hell...SCO
directly to hell...do not pass go.