Adds Value
What is it?
Jigsaw Trading tools are plug in indicators for Ninjatrader 7. There are 2 products specifically - reconstructed tape and summary tape.
Reconstructed tape - this uses an algorithm to collect together trades that are likely done in the same order but appear in loads and loads of 1 and 2 lots. There is a description on the website of what it does exactly, it is not the product I use most.
Summary Tape - bow this, IMHO, is a great tool fr anyone who wants to learn about tape reading. For every pair of prices in a market (bid and offer), it shows how many contracts have traded at each price; how many contracts are currently bid/offered; and the net market delta. It scrolls down much like time and sales every time the market ticks up or down.
What is the benefit?
Speaking about the summary tape, it allows you to see the raw action in a condenced - but in now way smplified - form. For example, if at a particular price, 50 lots are traded at the bid (sold), and 1000 trade at the offer (bought), but the market ticks DOWN, that is indicative of someone, somewhere, manipulating the price. Summary tape lets you see this while, and after, it has happened. Likewise, if in a downtrend, a particular price is reached and is always lifted when it gets to a price (i.e. no contracts trade at the bid on several attempts), that is also indicative of someone trying to work an order.
Summary tape makes it easier to see in real time, and also retains the record for you to review if you missed it. There is nothing else like it on the market as far as I know.
What are the bad parts?
Jigsaw Trading products - so far at least - are limited to running in NinjaTrader 7, which has its problems.
Anything else I need to know?
disclaimer: I was involved in the beta testing of these products, and so I got a 30% discount off the retail price
If you haven't used Ninjatrader, there is also a package of "Gomi" indicators which you can download for a small contribution. These two tools combined provide an excellent (and cheap) environment for anyone who would like to explore market profile / market delta / tape reading techniques together.
Presently, the software is very much a "does exactly what it says on the tin" affair. I understand that upgrades and new releases will follow that, technology permitting, will expand on the present functionality at no extra cost to the user.
So....???
If you fancy giving tape reading a go, Jigsaw Trading could well be the crutch that gets you beyond the point of exasperation and gets you on the upward sloping part of the J-curve. It genuinly is the unique solution to a popular set of problems. Highly Recommended.