NEUROSHELL TRADER: Normalized Average True Range (N-ATR) The normalized average true range indicator described by John Forman in his article in this issue can be easily implemented in NeuroShell Trader by combining a few of NeuroShell Trader's 800+ indicators. To implement the indicator, select "New Indicator ..." from the Insert menu and use the Indicator Wizard to create the following indicator:

Multiply( Divide( AvgTrueRange( High, Low, Close, 14), Close), 100)

NeuroShell Trader

Christian Fries's elastic moving average (eVWMA), described in his article in this issue, can be easily implemented in NeuroShell Trader by using the NeuroShell Trader's ability to call external Dynamic Linked Libraries. Dynamic Linked Libraries can be written in C, C++, Power Basic (also Visual Basic using one of our add-on packages), and Delphi (Figure 1).

FIGURE 1: NEUROSHELL TRADER. Here's the Power Basic source code for the elastic volume-weighted moving average to create the DDL for the NeuroShell Trader.

We've recreated the elastic volume-weighted moving average (eVWMA) for NeuroShell Trader and posted it for Standard Deviation Bands download at the NeuroShell Trader free technical support website. We also provide the code at the website so that if you want to make any modifications to it you will be able to do so.

After downloading the custom indicator, you can easily insert it (Figure 2) or combine it with any of our more than 800 built-in indicators into a chart, prediction, or trading strategy.

FIGURE 2: NEUROSHELL TRADER. A NeuroShell Trader chart displays the elastic volume-weighted moving average.

Users of NeuroShell Trader can go to the STOCKS & COMMODITIES section of the NeuroShell Trader free technical support website to download a copy of these or past Traders' Tips for NeuroShell Trader.

For more information on NeuroShell Trader, visit

--Marge Sherald, Ward Systems Group, Inc.
301 662-7950,

GO BACK

NeuroShell Trader

In "Which Volatility Measure?" in this issue, Gordon Gustafson compares standard deviation and true range bands as measures of volatility. To create each band in NeuroShell Trader (Figure 3), select "New Indicator ..." from the Insert menu and create each of the following indicators using the Indicator Wizard:

Standard Deviation Bands:

STDH: Add2(ExpAvg(Close,20), Mult(StndDev(Close,20),2))

STDL: Sub(ExpAvg(Close,20), Mult(StndDev(Close,20),2))

AverageTrueRange Bands:

STDHA: Add2(ExpAvg(Close,20), Mult(AverageTrueRange(Close),20),2))

STDLA: Sub(ExpAvg(Close,20), Mult(AverageTrueRange(Close),20),2))

Note that the true range indicator is included in the NeuroShell Trader Advanced Indicator Set add-on and is also available for free download from the Ward Systems Group free technical support website.

To test the standard deviation and average true range indicators in NeuroShell Trader as Gustafson does in the last half of his article, you can create the three trading strategies shown below. Since NeuroShell Trader is not limited to only one trading strategy per chart, you can create and display all three trading strategies on a single chart. To create a trading strategy, select "New Trading Strategy ..." from the Insert menu and enter the entry and exit conditions in the appropriate locations of the Trading Strategy Wizard:

Standard Deviation Band Trading Strategy:

Generate a buy long MARKET order if ALL of the following are true:

A<B(Close, STDL)

Generate a sell long MARKET CLOSE if ALL the following are true:

BarsSinceActivated(TradingStrategy,5)

AverageTrueRange Trading Strategy:

Generate a buy long MARKET order if ALL of the following are true:

A<B(Close, STDLA )

Generate a sell long MARKET CLOSE if ALL the following are true:

BarsSinceActivated(TradingStrategy,5)

ExclusiveAverageTrueRange Trading Strategy:

Generate a buy long MARKET order if ALL of the following are true:

A<B(Close, STDLA)

A>B(Close, STDL)

Generate a sell long MARKET CLOSE if ALL the following are true:

BarsSinceActivated(TradingStrategy,5)

If you own NeuroShell Trader Professional, you can also choose whether or not the system parameters should be optimized. To set up the trading strategy to trade a fixed $510,000 of S&P contracts, simply press the "Modify Trading Strategy Parameters ..." button, choose the "Buy a fixed dollar amount of contracts" option, set the desired dollar amount to $510,000, and then set the point value for futures contracts to 250. After backtesting each trading strategy, use the "Detailed Analysis ..." button to view the backtest and trade-by-trade statistics for the system.

Users of NeuroShell Trader can go to the STOCKS & COMMODITIES section of the NeuroShell Trader free technical support website to download a sample StndDev and Atr bands chart containing the average true range indicator.

For more information on NeuroShell Trader, visit

--Marge Sherald, Ward Systems Group, Inc.
301 662-7950,