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Step-by-step lessons and plain-English deep dives to help you build, test, and run strategies. Prefer a dictionary? Browse all 104 glossary terms.
- Lesson 015 min readWhat Is Algorithmic Trading? A Plain-English GuideWhat algorithmic trading actually is, how it differs from manual trading, and what you need to get started. No code, no jargon.BasicsNew to tradingManual trader
- Lesson 025 min readHow to Backtest a Trading StrategyA practical guide to backtesting, which metrics matter, and the traps like overfitting and look-ahead bias that make good backtests lie.BacktestingBasicsNew to tradingManual trader
- Lesson 035 min readRisk Management for Algorithmic TradingPosition sizing, stop losses, drawdown limits, and portfolio rules that keep an automated strategy alive long enough for its edge to matter.Risk managementNew to tradingManual traderExperienced quant
- Lesson 045 min readHow to Automate a Trading StrategyThe path from tested rules to a strategy trading live, including paper trading, broker connections, monitoring, and knowing when to switch off.Live tradingNew to tradingManual trader
- Lesson 055 min read7 Common Algorithmic Trading Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)The failure patterns that end most algo trading attempts, from overfitting and oversizing to overriding your own system, with practical fixes.BasicsBacktestingRisk managementNew to tradingManual trader
- Lesson 065 min readPaper Trading vs Live Trading, and When to SwitchWhat paper trading catches, what it hides, and the objective test that tells you when a strategy has earned real money.Live tradingNew to tradingManual trader
- Lesson 075 min readDo Trading Bots Actually Work? An Honest AnswerWhat trading bots genuinely do well, where the marketing lies, and how to tell a legitimate automated strategy from an expensive coin flip.BasicsLive tradingNew to trading
- Lesson 085 min readHow to Read Backtest Results Like a ProfessionalA working tour of the backtest report, from CAGR and max drawdown to profit factor, and the cross-checks that expose results too good to trust.BacktestingMetricsManual traderExperienced quant
- Lesson 095 min readPosition Sizing, the Math That Decides Your ResultsHow to calculate position size from account risk and stop distance, why the formula beats intuition, and the sizing mistakes that end accounts.Risk managementStrategy designManual traderExperienced quant
- Lesson 105 min readHow to Build a Trading Strategy With AI in Plain EnglishA practical walkthrough of turning a plain-English trading idea into a tested strategy with AI, and what the AI can and cannot do for you.Strategy designBasicsNew to tradingManual trader
- Deep dive3 min readWhat is a backtest?What a backtest is, what a trustworthy one includes, the three classic ways backtests lie, and how to read one before risking real money.BacktestingNew to tradingManual trader
- Deep dive3 min readWhat is drawdown in trading?Drawdown measures the fall from an equity peak to the following trough. Why it matters more than returns, and how strategies keep it survivable.MetricsRisk managementNew to tradingManual trader
- Deep dive3 min readWhat is mean reversion?Mean reversion strategies bet that stretched prices snap back toward an average. How they work, the tools they use, and where they break.Strategy designManual traderExperienced quant
- Deep dive3 min readWhat is overfitting in trading?Overfitting is tuning a strategy until it memorizes the past. How to spot the too-perfect backtest and the defenses that keep results honest.BacktestingStrategy designManual traderExperienced quant
- Deep dive3 min readWhat is paper trading?Paper trading runs a strategy on live prices with no real money. What it validates, what it cannot, and how long to run it before going live.Live tradingNew to tradingManual trader
- Deep dive3 min readWhat is position sizing?Position sizing is the rule deciding how much capital each trade gets. The main methods, and why sizing decides survival more than entries do.Risk managementNew to tradingManual trader
- Deep dive3 min readWhat is slippage in trading?Slippage is the gap between the expected price and the actual fill. Where it comes from, how to model it in backtests, and how to reduce it.BacktestingLive tradingManual traderExperienced quant
- Deep dive3 min readWhat is the Sharpe ratio?The Sharpe ratio measures return per unit of risk. How it is calculated, what counts as good, and where the number misleads.MetricsManual traderExperienced quant
- Deep dive3 min readWhat is trend following?Trend following buys strength and sells weakness, betting moves persist. The classic rules, the uncomfortable win rate, and why it endures.Strategy designNew to tradingManual trader
- Deep dive3 min readWhat is walk-forward testing?Walk-forward testing tunes a strategy on one slice of history and tests on the next, rolling forward. Why it beats a single split, and how to read it.BacktestingManual traderExperienced quant
Put it into practice
Reading about backtesting is one thing. Describing an idea in plain English and watching it become a tested strategy is another. Both are free to try.
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