Working With Charts

Region Data Line / Chart Header

The top data line on a chart is called the Region Data Line.

The Region Data Line can be customized by selecting Global Settings >> Customize Chart Header on the menu. You can Add, Remove, and Move Up/Down the displayed fields.

For studies on the chart, the particular fields of data displayed in the Region Data Lines can be controlled. Refer to Help topic 67: Hiding Study and Main Price Graph Names and Values from the Values Windows and Region Data Line.

If you do not want to display the Input settings from studies in the Region Data Lines, then enable Global Settings >> General Settings >> Charts >> Hide Study Inputs on Charts.

The Window >> Current Quote Window is another way to view the Daily quote data for the symbol of the active chart.

When an Alert Condition Formula defined in Chart >> Chart Settings >> Alerts is TRUE, then the Symbol on the Region Data Line at the top of the chart will be highlighted in red (the default). Refer to the image below.

Automatic Scrolling as New Bars are Added

When the last bar in the chart is visible, then as new bars are added to the chart during chart updating, the chart will automatically scroll and display those new bars.

To see if the chart is scrolled to the end and the last bar is visible in the chart, refer to the Scrolling the Chart section which describes the colored box at the lower right of the chart indicating whether the chart is scrolled to the end or not. By default this will be green when the last bar is visible.

To make sure you are scrolled to the end of the chart, select Chart >> Goto End of Chart .

There are two things to be conscious of which could inadvertently scroll the chart back from the end and prevent the last bar from being displayed. One of them is bumping the scroll wheel on your pointing device. This will scroll the chart if Scroll Wheel Scrolls Chart is selected in Global Settings >> General Settings >> GUI >> Scroll >> Scroll Wheel(List). You may want to set this to No Scroll Wheel Support.

The chart could be inadvertently scrolled back when using Tools >> Synchronize Charts.

Make sure to disable Chart >> Chart Settings >> Linking >> Chart Linking >> Scroll Position.

Chart Linking

Two or more charts and Trade DOMs within a Chartbook can be linked together.

Any of the following can be linked, so that when you make a change to any of these in one chart, the other charts will be updated to match.

• Symbol. Refer to Changing Symbol of Chart.
• Bar Period. Refer to Changing Chart Bars Period.
• Scroll Position (also adjusts the Fill Space to match)
• Session Times
• Studies
• Days to Load
• Bar Spacing
• Trade Window
• Vertical Scale

For complete details for these Chart Linking options, refer to the Chart Linking section on the Chart Settings page.

The Link Number is displayed on the title bar of the chart window and on the Region Data Line at the top of the chart. Example: L5 indicating Link number 5.

There are several methods to establish Chart Linking and they are documented below.

Chart Linking through Link Number Field on Region Data Line

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On the top Region Data Line of a chart it is possible to add a field that when clicked on with the left pointer button, a Chart Link window will display. To add this field, select Global Settings >> Customize Chart Header on the menu. In the list of the Available Header Fields, Add the Link Number field if it is not already added. Press OK.

Left click on the link number (L:#) on the Region Data Line at the top of a chart or click on NoLink if there is no link number set, to display the Chart Link window to set the Link Number and linking Type.

Changing the Chart Bars Timeframe

Changing the timeframe per chart bar is done by selecting Chart >> Chart Settings on the menu. For the documentation, refer to Chart Settings.

To quickly change the timeframe per chart bar, refer to the Changing the Period of the Chart Bars documentation page.

It is also supported to quickly change the timeframe per chart bar through standard and custom Control Bar buttons. The Control Bar is the series of buttons you see below the main window menu, this is the default location. For instructions to customize the Control Bar, refer to the Customize Control Bar section on the Global Settings Menu page.

Note: The Low and High for a bar in a chart is the Low and High for the entire time period of the bar. For example, a 10 minute Intraday bar that covers the time period 9:40 to 9:49, will show the Low and High for that time period.

Changing Bar Spacing

There are several ways to change spacing between the bars or columns in a chart. All of the available methods are explained below.

These methods also apply to TPO Profile Charts.

1. Use the Up and Down arrow keys on your keyboard to increase or decrease the chart bar spacing by 1 graphics pixel at a time, respectively.
2. Use the Page Up and Page Down keys on your keyboard to increase or decrease the chart bar spacing by a larger amount than 1 pixel, respectively.
3. Use the Control Bar buttons to increase and decrease bar spacing by 1 pixel or a larger amount. For more information about the Control Bars, refer to Customize Control Bars.
4. Use the scroll wheel on your pointing device. The setting which enables this is Global Settings >> General Settings >> GUI. Refer to the image below. Depending upon which option you select you may need to press and hold the Shift key on your keyboard before scrolling up or down to increase or decrease the bar spacing.
   
5. Change the bar spacing in the chart by dragging the time scale at the bottom of the chart using your pointing device. To do this, left click and drag left or right along the time scale at the bottom of the chart. This will increase or decrease the spacing.
   

If after reducing the bar spacing zero (0) pixels, you still are not able to view the time range that you require, the next step is to increase the timeframe per chart bar. Refer to Changing Time Period of Chart Bars for instructions.

When changing the bar spacing in a chart, you are actually changing the number of pixels between all of the bars. There must be a consistent amount of spacing between bars. When there are a large number of bars currently displayed in the chart, and you increase or decrease the spacing between the chart bars, this will cause a significant change to the number of bars displayed. It is inherently impossible, to change the bar spacing in such a way to add or remove single or a small amount of chart bars, when there is already a large amount of bars displayed.

Zooming In and Out

Selecting Charts or Navigating Among Charts

There are various methods to switch among the chart windows that are currently open within the active Chartbook. These methods are documented below.

• Using the MDI (multiple document interface) window tabs at the top or bottom of the main Sierra Chart window. If the MDI Window tabs are not enabled, then enable them in the Global Settings >> General Settings >> Windows tab.
  
  
  
  For additional information, refer to General Settings >> Windows
• Selecting a Chart or Spreadsheet window from the CW menu.
• Selecting a chart from the Window >> Windows and Chartbooks list.
• Arranging windows with the Tile commands on the Window menu and then clicking on a chart window with your Pointer.
• Using the Window >> Previous Chart (F4 Key) and Window >> Next Chart (F9 Key) commands.
• Detaching a chart and selecting it from the Windows taskbar.
• Within the main Sierra Chart window, select Window >> Restore. Once a window is in a restored state, its position can be adjusted by left clicking and dragging the title bar of the window. The size of the window can be adjusted by left clicking and dragging any edge of the window.

Working with Tabs

Double-clicking with your Pointer on an MDI tab, will maximize or restore the chart or Spreadsheet window associated with that tab.

Reordering the Chart (MDI) Tabs

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To reorder the Chart tabs through the Windows and Chartbooks window, select Window >> Windows and Chartbooks. Use the Move Up and Move Down to change the order of the windows, which affects the order of the tabs for the windows.

To reorder the Chart tabs by dragging, simply click and drag a tab to its new location. See image for further clarification.

The Spreadsheet windows, will always be on the right side of the MDI tabs bar. It is not possible to reorder those Spreadsheet tabs. It is not possible to move Chart window tabs between Spreadsheet window tabs or after them.

Creating an Inset Chart

It is possible to create a chart that can be displayed in the corner of a monitor to enable quick viewing of a particular symbol. This can be viewed as an Inset chart, even though it actually will be separate from the main instance. Use the following instructions to create this kind of chart:

• Open the chart with the desired symbol as normal and have this chart as the active chart.
• Select Window >> Detach/Attach Window to detach this chart from the main Sierra Chart program.
• Resize the detached chart to the desired size and place it in the desired placement on the monitor.
• On this detached chart select Window >> Always on Top. This will keep this detached window in view when working with other charts within the same Chartbook.

The following instructions are for additional changes that can be made to the Inset window based on personal display preferences:

• To keep this inset window visible even when changing between Chartbooks: on the Inset window select Window >> Window Always Visible.
• To remove the display of the Title Bar: on the Inset window select Chart >> Show Title Bar to remove the check next to this feature.
• To remove the display of the scrollbar: on the Inset window select Chart >> Show Scrollbar to remove the check next to this feature.
• To remove the display of the menu bar: on the Inset window select Chart >> Show Menu to remove the check next to this feature. To access the menu when it is not displayed, refer to the documentation for Show Menu.

Chart Data Files

For detailed information about chart data files, refer to the Chart Data Files documentation page.

Using Chart Tools

Sierra Chart provides a large set of professional drawing tools to draw various types of objects and lines on charts to perform analysis. To use a chart drawing tool, select Tools on the menu and select a tool from the menu. Refer to the Chart Drawing Tools documentation page for complete instructions for all of the available Tools and to learn about configuring tools.

Displaying Current Price Line

To display a line on a chart, at the price level of the current price, that displays across the entire visible chart, use the Current Price Line study.

Overlaying Multiple Symbols in a Single Chart Window

Sierra Chart supports overlaying graphs for multiple symbols, within a single chart.

There are two ways this can be done. They are both documented below.

The first method is by using the Add Additional Symbol study and requires no additional charts. To add this study to the chart, refer to For further details, refer to Adding/Modifying Studies.

The second method is to use the Overlay (Bar) study and is documented below.

1. Open a chart for each of the symbols that you want to view. Open the charts through File >> Find Symbol.
2. Go to one of the charts where you want to contain graphs for all of the symbols.
3. Select Analysis >> Studies on the menu.
4. Add either the Overlay (Bar) or the Overlay (Single Line) study to the chart. For further details, refer to Adding/Modifying Studies.
5. Open the Study Settings window for the added study by selecting the study in the Studies to Graph list and pressing the Settings button on the Chart Studies window.
6. Select the Settings and Inputs tab, set the Chart Number to Overlay input, to the particular chart that you want to overlay the main price graph of, on the destination chart.
7. Set the Chart Region setting to the particular Chart Region where you want to the overlay graph to be displayed.
8. Select the Subgraphs tab and change the Graph Draw Type setting and the Subgraph related settings to what you require.
9. Repeat the prior five steps for each symbol that you want to overlay a graph of on the chart.

Resolving Chart Issues

If you have data errors in a chart or a chart is not updating when it should be, then refer to the Help Topics page.

Charts Unexpectedly Scroll Back and Change Fill Space Amount

When using the Chart Values tool on a chart, you then switch to another chart and you find that the chart you switched to has scrolled back from the end and the fill space on the right side of the chart also may have changed, then this is the result of using the Tools >> Synchronize Charts feature.

You will need to uncheck the Tools >> Synchronize Charts option to prevent this.

Another potential reason why a chart could unexpectedly scroll, is if you have set the Scroll Wheel Setting to scroll the chart. The scrolling could possibly happen if your scroll wheel is inadvertently giving signals.

A chart can also scroll back from the end of the chart when using Chart Linking and linking the Scroll Position. When any other chart is scrolled back from the end that is also using the same Link Number and the other chart which has unexpectedly scrolled back, has Linking >> Scroll Position enabled in the Chart >> Chart Settings, then it also will be scrolled back.

To go back to the end of the chart, go to the chart and make sure it is active and select Chart >> Go to End of Chart.

Zooming into Bar by Decreasing Time Period per Bar

Follow the instructions below to zoom into a bar by decreasing the time period / timeframe per bar in the chart.

1. Scroll the chart to 1 bar after the last bar you want to zoom into, by using the scroll bar at the bottom of the chart.
2. Decrease the timeframe per bar in the chart to 1 Minute or whatever detail that you require. Refer to Changing Chart Bars Period.
3. The bars displayed, will be bars which are contained in the bar that you wanted to zoom in to.
4. Increase or decrease the Bar Spacing as required.

Hiding Main Price Graph

Follow the instructions below to hide the main price graph.

1. Select Chart >> Graph Draw Types >> Blank. This can also be set through Chart >> Chart Settings >> Graph Draw Type.
2. Reduce the height of Chart Region 1 to a minimum by using the Adjust Regions function. Assuming there are other Chart Regions being used which contain studies. For instructions, refer to Chart Window and Regions.
3. Select Chart >> Chart Settings >> Advanced Settings 2. Set the Region Data Lines >> Region Number >> Region 1 >> State to Hidden .
4. Press OK.

Out of Memory Condition

A message like the following:

Means that the memory available to Sierra Chart from the operating system, has run out. When this condition occurs the chart will go completely blank. A similar error can occur in relation to the chart itself and not to a particular study.

The first step is to reduce the amount of memory used by Sierra Chart if possible. The next step is to run the 64-bit version of Sierra Chart.

Go to each of your charts in each open Chartbook and select Chart >> Chart Settings. Set the Days to Load setting to 10 days or less. This should at least bring the problem under control for the time being for you. You may have to set Days to Load to an even smaller value if there are a large number of bars per day in the chart.

Generally the cause of this condition is loading too many days of data in a chart and having a very short timeframe per bar.

Another setting to check is Global Settings >> Data/Trade Service Settings >> Number of Stored Time and Sales Records. This should not be higher than 10000 to 15000 usually. Otherwise, using too high of a setting will use a lot of memory.

Another good solution to the problem is to reduce the number of charts you have open in an instance of Sierra Chart and use additional instances of Sierra Chart through the File >> New Instance feature. Refer to the Using DTC Server for Data and Trading in Another Sierra Chart Instance page for instructions.

If a chart is completely blank due to an out of memory condition and more memory is later available, you can try reloading the chart with Chart >> Reload and Recalculate.

Finally, computers these days running the Windows operating system really should have 16 GB of memory minimum. This is what we recommend.

Resolving Differences of Chart Bars Between Charts

Follow the instructions below to resolve differences between chart bars on two different charts.

These charts can be within the same installation of Sierra Chart or different installations of Sierra Chart.

If this issue involves differences with studies between charts, then refer to Resolving Study Differences instead.

1. One way to ensure consistency between chart bars between two different charts of the same symbol in the same installation of Sierra Chart, is to duplicate one of the charts. After duplicating one of the charts, reload the data in the original chart with Chart >> Reload and Recalculate. Both the original chart and the duplicated chart will now be identical.
   
   At least in most cases. But there could be a difference if basic symbol settings like the Tick Size has changed in the duplicated chart. Since it will be set back to its default value in the duplicated chart.
   
   The information below has more detailed information.
2. Ensure there is complete and consistent data for the charts. If you are comparing charts between different instances of Sierra Chart, check the Intraday Data Storage Time Unit setting. It needs to be set the same between instances.
   
   Re-download the data by going to the chart and selecting Edit >> Delete All Data and Download. If the charts are within the same instance of Sierra Chart, this only needs to be done for one of the charts.
   
   If the charts are in different instances of Sierra Chart, then this procedure needs to be followed for each instance.
   
   If you are using sub instances (File >> New Instance), perform this procedure first in the main/server instance of Sierra Chart and then in the sub instance.
3. The next step in order to make sure that you remove any data that has been loaded in the chart earlier than the Days to Load setting in Chart >> Chart Settings, which occurs over time, is to select Chart >> Reload and Recalculate for each of the charts being compared.
   
   This step will make a difference if the first Date-Time in the chart is different between the two charts you are comparing. You can see what this is by going to each chart and selecting Chart >> Goto Beginning of Chart and looking at the Date-Time of the first bar.
4. Go to one of the charts you are comparing, and examine all of the settings in Chart >> Chart Settings and compare them to the Chart Settings to the other chart being compared to see where the difference is with these settings.
   
   The settings on the following tabs can change chart bars: Symbol, Data Limiting, Bar Period, Session Times, Chart Data
   
   Also the following settings will cause differences and need to be the same between the charts:
   • Days to Load
   • New Bar at Session Start
   • Combine Trades into Original Summary Trade
5. In the two charts being compared which have different chart bars compared to each other, select Chart >> Go to Beginning of Chart and ensure the Date-Time of the first bar in the chart, matches between the charts you are comparing. This may not always be necessary but could be necessary.
   
   If they do not match between the charts being compared, then ensure the Chart >> Chart Settings >> Use Number of Days to Load >> Days to Load matches between the charts and reload each chart by going to the chart and selecting Chart >> Reload and Recalculate.
   
   Select Chart >> Go to End of Chart to go to the end of the chart.
6. The difference could also be with the configuration of studies in Analysis >> Studies. Check the Inputs settings for each study and make sure they match between the charts.
7. Make sure the Use Monday as Start of Week instead of Sunday setting is set the same between each Sierra Chart installation when comparing charts between installations. After changing this setting you will need to reload the charts with Chart >> Reload and Recalculate.
8. If the charts are within different instances of Sierra Chart, then follow the Sharing a Chart with Another User procedure to save that single chart as a Chartbook and share it with the other instance of Sierra Chart and open that Chartbook. The charts should be identical because the settings now are guaranteed to be the same.
   
   If there is a difference, then this would mean there is a difference in the underlying data between the charts if the charts are within different instances.

Error Creating Chart Windows and Trade Windows

If you receive messages like the following in the Window >> Message Log when opening a Chartbook or creating a new chart or opening a Trade Window, then this means you are running out of resources in your Windows operating system for the creation of chart windows.

The first solution to this problem is to enable Destroy Chart Windows When Hidden and then close all of the Chartbooks with File >> Close All Chartbooks and reopen them.

The next solution is going to be to use sub instances of Sierra Chart to distribute your Chartbooks among multiple instances of Sierra Chart.

Sierra Chart places no restrictions on the number of Chart or Trade windows you can have and are open simultaneously. It is the operating system running into a problem if you encounter these errors. We must make this clear, this is a Windows operating system limitation and problem.

Stopping Chart Data Loading/Calculations

If you look at the chart, that is loading you can left click where it says "Click to cancel" to stop the loading process.

If that does not work and the entire program is in a frozen state, the frozen state must be relating to study calculations being performed, which can be due to a large number of bars in the chart which can be the case, if a very short timeframe has been set for each bar. In this Case you need to wait until the study calculations complete. For more information, refer to High CPU Usage/Long Time to Load Chart Data.