LONG ANSWER
T2W is a fantastic community and a great resource for new and established traders alike. The 10 mini-FAQs below offer an insight into how you can get the most from the site - and contribute the most to it . . .
1. What is T2W and what are its objectives?
Trade2Win (T2W) is a leading community web site for active traders who aim to profit from the world’s financial markets in the short term; ranging from a few minutes through to a few months. Investors who aim to profit from the markets over the longer term, i.e. anything from many months to years - are very welcome, but please be aware that this is not the focus of this site or that of its members.
The aim of T2W is simple, we want to unite and support active traders across the globe. To this end we provide a range of facilities that enable our members to communicate with one another, share their knowledge and express their views. Furthermore, we seek to provide educational and thought provoking content to help better educate our members in their trading lives.
You’re welcome to e-mail or phone us via the contact details found on the
About T2W page. Alternatively, go to the
Contact Us page.
2. What are the main areas of the site? (Home, Forums and Articles etc.)
No matter where you are on the site, you'll always be able to see the main red header panel where, if you click on 'Settings', you’ll be able to access your ‘User Control Panel’ (User CP). There, you can see all the threads you’re subscribed to and the latest post recommendations, both received and given. Also from here, you can update your profile, add or change your avatar and signature, manage your private messages, along with a host of other things. Don’t worry if you don’t know what all these things are – all will be explained!
New Posts
Just beneath the red header panel is a very useful link entitled 'New Posts' that takes you to the latest unread posts.
Quick Links
Next to New Posts is another link entitled 'Quick Links' which, as the name suggests, directs you to useful places such as our search engine and to Trade2Win FAQs where you can learn all about the site features and tools.
Notices
From time to time, we may alert you to important information about the site, such as maintenance or site upgrades etc. At the top of the page you'll see a beige panel entitled 'Notices' which contains a short message. On the right hand side of it there is a red
X which you can click to banish the notice for good. An example notice is shown in the graphic, below.
There are five key areas of the site, all of which may be accessed via the links running along the bottom of the main red header panel at the top of every page. They are:
Home
This will take you to the T2W homepage from where you can see ‘at a glance’ - and link to - the most recently added content, including:
• One of the articles published in the Articles section of the site. (See ‘Articles’, below)
• 'In the Forums' - the latest forum discussions.
• The latest reviews of books, brokers, software and websites etc. (See ‘Reviews’, below)
• The T2W ‘Term of the Day’.
Forums
The forums page will give you a complete overview of the forum categories (in blue) and the forums that populate them. This is the ideal place to see how the heart of the site is laid out and, if you want to start a thread of your own, which forum would be the most appropriate one to do it in.
IMPORTANT: Before starting a new thread, please take time to ensure that you do it in the forum that is most appropriate for the topic of the thread. Additionally, to avoid repetition of very similar threads, please make full use of the 'Advanced Search' facility (found under 'Quick Links') to see if there is a thread already in existence that would be suitable for your intended post.
Articles
While the public forums are the engine of T2W, the Articles section is the jewel in its crown. It is a comprehensive library of articles written by – and interviews with – some of the best know people in the industry, including: Steve Nison, Dr Alexander Elder, Linda Bradford Raschke, Larry Williams, Martin Pring, John Bollinger and William O’Neil – to name but a few. Every aspect of trading is covered, with articles written specifically for complete beginners through to more complex discussions on trading systems and psychology - aimed at more seasoned traders.
:idea: Why not submit an article yourself? :idea:
Seriously, many of the best and highest rated articles are written by T2W members! We are very keen to promote 'home grown' content - so please do get in touch. Even if you've only got a vague idea at this stage, why not talk it through with
Trader333 or
timsk - both of whom are T2W staff.
Reviews
Please see '5. Are there any guidelines about writing reviews?', below.
Book
Published by T2W, the Trading FAQ e-book has 50 of the most commonly asked questions about trading - all answered by experienced market veterans. It includes contributions from some famous traders such as Timothy Sykes and Brett Steenbarger, as well as some well respected T2W members including Richard Joyson (aka 'Mr. Charts') and Phil Newton (aka 'Newtron Bomb'). Given that it's an e-book, the rumour that only 89 copies remain is completely without foundation.
3. What are ‘Essentials’ and ‘Best Threads’ stickies?
‘Essentials’ Stickies are threads that are ‘stuck’ to the top of a forum index. This means they will always be there for you to view them at any time. They contain information about the forum you’re in that is of critical or ongoing value - hence the ‘Essentials’ name. If there’s anything missing from any of the Stickies that you hoped or expected to find, please contact
timsk and, if at all possible, it will be added.
Similar to the ‘Essentials’ Stickies, the idea behind the ‘Best Threads’ Stickies is to have a thread pinned permanently at the top of every forum which contains links to some of the best threads in that forum. Because of the sheer size of T2W, threads that haven’t been active for a while tend to get lost under a sea of newer threads. The links in the ‘Best Threads’ Stickies will save you the hassle of wading through the forum yourself, hoping to find the one thread that’s filled with pearls of wisdom!
4. Is there a reputation system and how does it work?
We don't have a reputation system as such. However, If you like someone's post, you can 'recommend' it and leave that person a short message. The graphic below shows you how to do this.
5. Are there any guidelines about writing reviews?
Yes!
When writing reviews, members are requested to follow the simple set of 3 DOs and 3 DON'Ts listed below. Please note that members who post a review that T2W suspects may not be bona fide could be asked to provide evidence to show that it's genuine. Additionally, T2W reserves the right to remove any review that it believes not to be bona fide.
DOs
1. Only review something that you have firsthand experience of and have used yourself.
2. Put yourself in the shoes of the person reading your review. Try to answer the types of questions most people want answers to, e.g. write about: A) Quality, performance and reliability. B) Ease of use. C) Novel features and benefits. D) Client support. E) Value for money etc.
3. Make your review fair and objective. Just because the product or service didn’t turn you into a star trader overnight, it doesn’t mean necessarily that it's of poor quality or has no value.
DON’Ts
1. Don’t post positive reviews for products or services in which you, your friends or family have a vested interest. Conversely, don’t post negative reviews about a company, product or service if you’re a competitor, a disgruntled employee or harbour some other grievance.
2. Only post a review if your experiences are reasonably current. In other words, writing a review about a spread betting company you used five years ago that had wide spreads at the time is unlikely to be relevant and useful today.
3. Normal T2W Site Guidelines apply when writing reviews which include standard ‘netiquette’. Please don’t use abusive language, shout (i.e. type in ALL CAPS) and only post original material based on your own experiences etc.
Please go to the
Reviews section to write or read reviews of books, brokers, software, data feeds, events, films, magazines, newspapers, TV Channels and websites. You can list reviews in 3 ways: highest rated, most reviewed and new additions. Be sure to click on 'yes' or 'no' at the end of the review that you read to indicate whether it was helpful to you - or not. If you find a product or service not listed which you'd like to review, contact
timsk and it will be added. But be sure to include an URL!
6. What forum tools are there and how do I use them?
A short guide is being prepared highlighting the key tools and will be added to the 'New to Trade2Win' forum in due course. In the meantime, check out our
Trade2Win FAQs page. If you're still stuck, contact a member of staff on the
About Us page.
7. How can I contact other T2W members?
For all sorts of reasons, members may wish to contact one another and there are various safe and secure ways of doing this which avoid posting private e-mail addresses on the public forums. If you click on a member’s username in the top left hand corner of their post, a drop down menu will appear with a list of options. In their ‘User Control Panel’ settings, each member can enable or disable options to allow other members to contact them via e-mail or Private Message (PM). If they’re enabled (either or both of them) they will be listed in the drop down menu. If they’re not, you can click on ‘View Public Profile’ at the top of the list, where you’ll be directed to that member’s profile page. There, you’ll have the option of leaving a ‘Visitor Message’. However, unlike the e-mail and PM facility, this is NOT private and your message may be viewed by other members who visit the profile page. If you wish to communicate privately with a member who has disabled both their e-mail and PM options, we suggest you leave a visitor message requesting that they contact you instead. However, if you do this, make sure your own e-mail and/or PM options are enabled!
8. How do I report a post?
The panel to the left of each post contains a number of icons, including one of a red flag. (See graphic, below.) If you click on this, a new window will open in which you can leave a brief message saying why you’re reporting the post. Please note that the report post facility should only be used to report posts that breach the
Community Constitution. The guidelines are all numbered, so you could simply list the guideline you believe the post breaches. This is useful in cases where the interpretation of the post is subjective. For example, if (in your opinion) a post adds little or no value to the discussion in hand and/or is unconstructive or misleading, you could simply put, ‘In breach of guideline #1.10’. The moderators will then decide whether or not to uphold your objection and, if so, what action to take. The important thing is to make your reason(s) for reporting the post crystal clear, so that the moderators are able to quickly and easily understand your objection to it.
9. Does T2W endorse any vendors?
No - absolutely not!
Besides the obvious display ads, there are quite a few T2W members who are also vendors and can be identified as such by the market stall icon at the bottom of the profile panel to the left of every post. It looks like this (circled in red):
Please note that the icon merely identifies them as vendors, it’s NOT an endorsement of their product or service. T2W does not have the resources to check them out and, as the site is free to join, they could be rogue vendors. If you’re considering buying something from a T2W vendor, you would be wise to conduct due diligence. Start by checking out these two FAQs:
How Can I Distinguish Between Scams and Reputable Vendors?
Can You Recommend a Mentor, Coach or Trading Course?
10. How does one spot experienced, knowledgeable and profitable traders on T2W?
There is no sure way to do this. Furthermore, there are many knowledgeable and experienced traders who don’t enjoy a great track record of profitability. Some members worry about this, but it really isn't a big issue. A football analogy illustrates the reasons why . . .
There are hundreds of thousands of football fans who don’t amount to much on the field of play but, nonetheless, many of them can explain the off-side rule every bit as well as David Beckham can. Possibly better in some cases! Similarly, it doesn’t require football knowledge to suggest ways in which FIFA could determine whether the ball has crossed the goal line and a goal should be allowed to stand – or not. By the same token, unprofitable traders can offer sound advice and inexperienced traders can have good ideas!
Rather than becoming too fixated on seeking out and only listening to traders who are experienced and profitable, you’ll learn more and enjoy the site more by shifting your focus to being open minded to the ideas and views expressed by all members. It’s what they contribute and how it benefits you and your style of trading that matters, regardless of whether they’re an experienced hedge fund manager or a spotty faced unemployed teenager merely posing as one!
As you spend time on the site, you’ll soon get a feel for the members who talk sense and those that don’t. If you take everything with a pinch of salt and only accept an idea or comment once you’ve verified it for yourself, you shouldn't ever have a problem. For more suggestions on how to evaluate other members of T2W, go to the
Essentials of New to Trading Sticky and read the section entitled: ‘SORTING THE WHEAT FROM THE CHAFF ON T2W’ in post #2.
Disclaimer!
Please note that it is not necessary for T2W Staff and Moderators to be experienced and active traders in order to perform thoroughly and competently their duties and responsibilities. That said, many of them are indeed both experienced and active traders. All of them are appointed according to their suitability to perform their particular role and not according to their experience or profitability as traders.
Just like all other members, T2W Staff and Moderators and are free to post their own personal views on any forum. Their views are theirs alone and not the ‘official’ views of the site or its owner. Please note that their personal views have no greater validity, authority or gravitas than any other member. The exception to this rule is when they are acting in an official capacity with their T2W hat on - which will be self evident 99% of the time.
And Finally . . .
If there is anything in this sticky that is unclear or that you require assistance with, please contact
timsk and he'll do his best to help you. We hope you enjoy the site!
