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Log of Changes and Improvements to Sierra Chart

This list contains major items of development, and changes and additions which users need to be informed about.

This is not a comprehensive changes and additions log. And it should never be relied upon for such. It only represents a very small percentage of the actual development being performed every day. The vast majority of development is not documented here. Or receives, one small comment after it is all complete. There are not version notes for each version. The main Sierra Chart documentation is updated as needed relating to the changes and additions.

The maintenance of this page has mostly been abandoned by Sierra Chart development for many years due to the difficulty of maintaining it and because users can be incorrectly misled by or misinterpret notes that are made here. This does not change, the development of Sierra Chart which is very active every day and new releases are made nearly weekly or several times a week. The Sierra Chart project is still very active, with extensive development and it remains a very high quality software in the world. The engineering is at the very top of the world.

• 298

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  • Improved the speed of Spreadsheet Study processing.
  • Corrected a bug from one revision of 297, where when adding a new instance of a Spreadsheet study it would cause Sierra Chart to freeze and add an excessive number of Sheets to a Spreadsheet window, or cause other unusual problems.
  • This version and version 297 now support 24 subgraphs per study. Advanced Custom Studies can now use up to 24 subgraphs. This would be indexes 0 to 23. Example: sc.Subgraph[23].
  • This version and version 297 now support 64 inputs per study. These would be indexes 0 through 63. Example: sc.Input[63]
  • A new menu, named CB, has been added. This menu will list all of your open chartbooks and allow easy navigation between them.

• 297

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  • When you right-click over the text data line above a chart region, you will see a menu that lists the studies in that region. You can select one of those studies to modify it's settings. This provides a very fast way to change a study's settings.
  • We have completely upgraded the Sierra Chart Spreadsheet component. It supports all of the Excel functions. The 3 Spreadsheet studies have also been extensively updated. Below is a summary of the improvements:
    • New Input: Alert Only Once Per Bar: When this input is set to Yes, then when a formula is true in a system/alert column, it will only cause one alert even if it goes between true and false conditions repeatedly during the building of the bar.
    • New Input: Signal Only On Bar Close (Columns L, N-Z): When this input is set to Yes, a condition formula that returns a non-zero value at row 3 in the columns L or N through Z is ignored until the bar closes. The way this is determined is when a new bar is added. In other words when a formula is true at row 4 in column L or N through Z, an alert will be given at that time.
    • New Input: Support All Subgraphs: When this input is set to Yes (the default for newly added instances of the Spreadsheet studies), then studies that are outputted beginning at column AA will have all of their subgraphs outputted. Previously there was a limitation of 4 subgraphs per study. Now up to 24 subgraphs can be outputted. There will be a blank column between studies.
    • New Inputs: Column [K, L, M, N, ...] Alert: Selects the Alert Sound Number for a specific column. Alert sounds are now specified for each individual column independently. You can select from 1 of 50 alert sounds for any of the 16 available formula columns. The Alert Sound setting in the study settings window is no longer relevant for the Spreadsheet studies. If you are upgrading it will be necessary to specify an Alert Sound Number for each of the Spreadsheet columns that you require a sound from. These new Inputs control the alert sound for each Spreadsheet column.
    • Columns k through z can now all contain formulas. This brings the total number of formula columns to 16.
    • When you open an older Spreadsheet file (.vts extension), it will be converted to the new Spreadsheet object format (.scwbf). The first 200 rows of all columns will be copied to a new Spreadsheet. Only formulas and values will be copied. Formatting will not be. The original file will still be left intact. The process of converting it may take a while depending upon the speed of your computer. If you are manually opening up an old Spreadsheet file, then you will be given a message box saying the conversion will take place. When the Spreadsheet file is being opened by a Spreadsheet Study, then there will be no message box. However, the upgrading will take place. It will take a while to convert, so please be patient. If you need to downgrade to a prior version, then that is no problem.
  • The most important thing to be aware of with this version is that it requires the Microsoft .net framework version 2. We added support for this framework to support many new components and services which use the framework. However, Sierra Chart itself is still a native high-performance application as always. Is not based on the .net framework.
  • The Spreadsheet studies interface to Excel has been improved and some issues have been corrected. Improved error handling when Excel is shut down and the Spreadsheet Study is still using Excel.
  • Added sc.NumberOfBarsSinceHighestValue() and sc.NumberOfBarsSinceLowestValue() to ACSIL.
  • This version no longer has support for the Dial Data database from myTrack. There is no longer a need for us to support this because the exact same data is available directly from the main myTrack system. We also have our own complete historical data service available. If you have been using Dial Data and need to know how to access historical data direct from the primary myTrack database, let us know. Or if you have some other problem relating to this, let us know. However, the Dial Data database is old and we don't want to add support for it back. Instead we want to find an alternative for the few if any users who are using it. And there are sufficient alternatives.

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  • Corrected a problem where if you are using the Sierra Chart Historical Data service, you would not be able to get updates for your Intraday charts using this service if you are on level 10 or 7. To get the Intraday updates you need to connect to the data feed.

• 295

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  • Corrected a memory leak problem that affected custom studies that draw text to the chart. This affected the SC Woodies Panel study.

• 294

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  • Improvements to the time and sales window. Improved automatic scrolling. Total market depth is now displayed when bid and ask records are displayed.
  • Added support for the updated OpenECry simulation system. You need to install the latest OEC client software here.

• 293

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  • Correction to documentation: Some of our code examples that used extra arrays, in the documentation for the custom study interface members, were incorrect.
    For example, this line shows an incorrect usage of an extra array:
    float FastD = sc.Subgraph[0][sc.Index].Arrays[0];
    The correct usage is:
    float FastD = sc.Subgraph[0].Arrays[0][sc.Index];
  • Corrected a problem with the downloading of historical data from the Sierra Chart Historical Data service for certain symbols such as index symbols where no data would be processed.
  • Updated the interface to the Sierra Chart Historical Data service. It is a good idea to upgrade to this version or higher soon to ensure proper compatibility if you are using the Sierra Chart Historical Data service.

• 292

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  • Version 292 has significant improvements with our network communication functions. This affects data processing for many of our supported services.
    
    A problem in prior versions has been detected that would cause higher CPU usage under certain conditions when data is received from the data feed. CPU usage could go higher and longer than it should have been. Under normal conditions when CPU usage is low, there would not be a problem. When CPU usage would go high then it could potentially go higher than normal when data is received by Sierra Chart. However, not necessarily.
    
    This problem arose about a year ago when we attempted to work around a network connection bug, which was external to Sierra Chart (not a Sierra Chart bug), that affected a very small number of users connecting to IB. The changes did not resolve the problem but no problems were detected from them. Other than what is described above which usually does not cause a problem. This is something we were not aware of until just now because it generally does not cause any noticeable issue. The IB network connection problem has no longer been reported and is believed to have been corrected in whatever external software component that was creating a problem for those limited number of users.
  • We have also made additional improvements which greatly increases the speed of downloaded data by many times. This is especially noticeable with DTN IQ Feed backfill data and Sierra Chart backfill data for Transact and OpenECry. Data is downloaded at least four times faster. This is a dramatic improvement.
  • It is recommended that you upgrade to this version or higher.
  • For the TransAct trading service, the Average Price field for orders is now filled in. It is the same as the Filled Price. The average price is used by the Internal Position which is very important for Spreadsheet trading and chart trading. Since it provides an Average Price.
  • You can now quickly access the settings for a study directly from the chart. Right click on a chart, and in the lower-right select Studies Settings and the study you want to change.

• 290

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  • Improved the performance of downloading backfill data from the Sierra Chart server. This applies to services that use our backfill data. Such as Transact, OEC and the SC Forex service. This may have also solved the problem that some users had with failed downloading of backfill data.
  • For the TransAct service, by default now, positions and working orders will be shown in Sierra Chart. If chart trading is active (Trade >> Chart Trade Mode On), then orders will be displayed on the chart. To send orders from Sierra Chart, your Sierra Chart account has to be activated for this. Contact Sierra Chart to activate your account. This will require broker approval. To disable automatic display of the Completed orders window, select Trade >> Global Trade Settings and disable the corresponding options.

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  • Added the VOL Value Area Lines study. It is the same as the TPO Value Area Lines study. However, it plots the lines using volume data instead. This study is essentially the same except it does not use "Time Increments" but only "Time Periods" since Volume Value Area doesn't need a time increment to calculate.
  • Low level improvements to the Attached Orders trading feature.
  • The Sierra Chart Forex service now uses port 443.

• 288

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  • Added Delete and Refresh Data and Delete and Refresh Data for All Charts to the right-click/shortcut menu for charts. Delete and Refresh Data will delete and delete and refresh the data in an Intraday chart from the point you right click at. Delete and Refresh Data for All Charts is identical, except that it does it for all open charts in all open chartbooks.
  • Minor changes and improvements to the Color Bar study.
  • Added the following new Graph Types under Chart >> Chart settings: HLC Bar, Line on Open, Line on HL Avg, Stair Step on Close.
  • Updated the Woodies studies. For everything to display correctly it is necessary for you to reapply the Woodies For Range Charts - New study collection.
  • Updated the interface to the Sierra Chart Historical Data Service.

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  • Updated the interface to the Sierra Chart Historical Data service. It is a good idea to upgrade to this version or higher soon to ensure proper compatibility if you are using the Sierra Chart Historical Data service.
  • When drawing trendlines, you can press the Ctrl key to force the line to either a vertical or a horizontal angle.
  • Added the EMA Angle to the Woodies panel.

• 286

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  • Updated the Woodies For Range Charts-New studies and study collection. It needs to be re-applied to the chart to see the changes.
  • Added support for a new historical data provider for the Sierra Chart Historical Data service. For the updated instructions, please use the preceding link. We are still in the process of updating that page for our updated service.

• 284

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  • Updated the Woodies For Range Charts-New studies and study collection. It needs to be re-applied to the chart to see the changes.

• 283 Release Date: 2008-05-11

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  • Woodies For Range Charts-New study collection has been revised. You need to download version 283 again to access the revision. This study collection needs to be reapplied to the charts to take advantage of the changes. One of the revisions is a new Woodies CCI Trend study which is 100% compliant with the current specifications.
  • We have developed a new Woodies Panel and study collection. This can be accessed on the Analysis menu and is named Woodies For Range Charts-New. There is also a sample chartbook named Woodies-New. More study configurations will be added. The data panel you see on the right side is a study named SC Woodies Panel. It has various Input and Subgraph settings. It has a study Input named Show Descriptive Labels to show/hide the text labels on the right side of the numbers. To hide a particular data line, go to the Subgraphs tab and set the corresponding subgraph to Ignore. Additionally, both the font size and color of a data line on the panel on the right side can be controlled through the corresponding Subgraph settings. Use the Color button to control the color and the Size setting to control the size of the font.
    
    Next, we plan to work on the pattern studies like ZLR. We are also still completing work on a new Woodies CCI Trend study which is 100% compliant with the latest specifications.
    
    Some of the new Woodies studies in the Study Collection require a software software service package with Advanced Features.
  • Added a new Double Stochastic study that is based on the typical formula used.
  • Added support for the Open E Cry client software which is compatible with both the production and simulation environment. This client software finally solves an occasional problem where the first historical data request would time out. We also plan to increase the amount of tick data downloaded from OEC. The new client software can be downloaded on the Open E Cry page.
  • It is now possible to share chart images in our Image Gallery. There was a problem with this previously and it has been corrected. You can share any image you upload by selecting Help >> Account Management on the menu. Click on Manage Images. And click on the Share... button by the image you want to share.

• 282

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  • Added a Go To Date/Time command to the Chart menu, that lets you jump to a specific date/time on the chart.
  • Added scroll wheel support to scroll the chart in the same way as the scrollbar does.
  • Added error filtering for IB True Data (-TD) symbols.

• 281

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  • Corrected a problem where a position would not show zero after it was flattened with the TD Ameritrade service.
  • Add Net Change processing for the TD Ameritrade service.
  • Enhanced the new Countdown Timer study to show a continuous real-time countdown for Time based bars. This can be enabled through an input setting with the study. Added a new input to display the remaining range in ticks. The source for this study is in studies2.cpp and the function name is scsf_CountDownTimer. It serves as a good example of how to do text on charts.
  • The Attached Orders Trading feature has been improved to split orders into multiple OCA groups when more then one target and/or stop is used. For more info see this message. The attached orders tab on the Trade Window is easier to use. As always please be sure to use these improved trading features on a simulation account, until you are comfortable they are working correctly for you. If there are any problems contact support.
  • Added the sc.GetExactMatchForSCDateTime(), sc.GetOHLCForDate() and sc.FormatGraphValue() functions to ACSIL.
  • Two variables have been renamed in the ACSIL: sc.NumberOfTicks to sc.TicksPerBar. sc.volumePerBar to sc.VolumePerBar.
  • Added the (int)ReplayStatus, (float) YestClose, (int) BaseGraphValueFormat, (unsigned long) ChartBackgroundColor and (int) UseGlobalChartBackgroundColor variables to ACSIL.
  • Several low-level improvements have been made relating to charting, trading and studies.
  • Downloading of historical Intraday data from myTrack has been made faster as compared with versions 277 through 280.
  • Added a Scroll Multiplier setting to Global Settings >> General Settings. When this is set to 1, scrolling is at normal speed. It can be increased or decreased to affect the scrolling speed.
  • Email alerts now support multiple email addresses. You can use either a , or a ; as a delimiter. The email address is set under Global Settings >> General Settings.

• 280

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  • Corrected a problem with the image uploading service due to server reconfiguration.

• 279

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  • Corrected a problem with TD Ameritrade data processing, that was ignoring trade data that did not have volume data. For example, this affected the symbol $SPX.X.
  • Corrected some problems with data downloading arising from changes made in a recent pre-release.
  • Added a Countdown Timer study which lets you place the countdown timer anywhere on the chart window. This study is still being improved upon.
  • When searching for a date/time in the Intraday Editor, it is much faster.
  • Some additional improvements with GMT Time stamping for IB and MyTrack.

• 278

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  • Added an input named Round Off to Tick Size to the Pivot Points study.
  • Corrected a problem where under certain conditions a chart may perform an update even if there was no trading activity. This was not a problem, but it may have raised CPU usage. This issue arose in a recent release.

• 277

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  • Corrected a problem with compilation of ACSIL functions.
  • Corrected a problem with sc.RSI() and Stochastic RSI.
  • For the IB and MyTrack Services all data is time stamped to GMT Time now. The advantage of this is that Data files for myTrack and IB are now time-stamp wise compatible with all the other supported services, and vice versa. Under Global Settings >> Data/Trade Service Settings you can now use the new Time Zone control to set the Time Zone to display Times in. This is set automatically for you. You will also find the Old Intraday Data Offset control, which is also automatically set for you. The Old Intraday data offset should be set to the amount of time that needs to be added to adjust your old data timestamps (data stored before upgrading to 277) to the GMT/UTC time zone. Note: When you upgrade to this version and you are using IB or MyTrack, you cannot downgrade without causing time stamping issues in your Intraday charts, unless you delete and refresh the Intraday data collected with this version.

• 276

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  • Added sc.TEMA(), sc.BollingerBands() and sc.GetMainGraphVisibleHighAndLow() functions to ACSIL.
  • The Spreadsheet System/Alert for Trading study now has more open support to write trade signals to a text file. This is configured through the ExternalTrading.ini file located in your Sierra Chart program folder. To write signals to the text file set the Write Signals to Text File input to Yes, and the Send Orders to Trade Service input to No.
  • sc.Subgraph[].ExtraArrays in the ACSIL has been renamed to sc.Subgraph[].Arrays . ExtraArrays can still be used as well.
  • Corrected a problem with the TPO study, where the # character would show for all time increments instead of the TPO letters until one of the letter code options was selected. It is normal for the # sign to show for time increments that do not have a letter defined.
  • The Chart Background color can be specified independently under Chart >> Chart Settings.
  • The file size for the automatic moving out of data from Intraday data files can be set under Global Settings >> Data/Trade Service Settings >> Large Data File Settings.
  • The File >> Find Symbol And Open Chart command is now supported for the SC Forex Data Service.
  • Corrected a problem with IB symbols that have a high number of decimal places which caused trading order prices to be rounded off to the incorrect decimal place. This also caused a problem with the modification of attached orders when they are based on the number of Ticks from the parent order. The reason for this problem is because IB sends the tick size in Scientific notation (1.0e-5)for small tick sizes.
  • Improved the request of streamer data from TD Ameritrade to avoid cancellation errors.

• 275

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  • Added sc.MACD() and sc.Summation() functions to ACSIL.
  • Internally updated the sc.HullMovingAverage(), sc.TriangularMovingAverage() and sc.SmoothedMovingAverage() functions in ACSIL. If your custom study uses these functions you will need to rebuild your DLL.
  • For the Attached Orders advanced trading feature, when the parent order is filled the attached orders are adjusted if necessary to maintain the specified relationship to the parent if the parent fills at an unexpected price.

• 273

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  • Added support for downloading of tick data from opentick in addition to minute data that is already supported.
  • The Chart Region Headers can now be set to: Visible, Overlapped or Hidden.
  • The number of chart regions has been expanded from 5 to 8.
  • For the IB trading service it is now possible to attach orders to a parent order. This lets you place stops and targets with an order. These are managed by IB. The quantities will be adjusted and the orders will be maintained even if Sierra Chart is shut down. This is controlled under Trade >> Open Trade Window for Chart >> Advanced >> Attached Orders. This feature is still new, and should only be used on a simulation account until you are comfortable that it works correctly for you. If you have any problems please let us know.
  • Study subgraph auto-coloring now supports coloring lines based on +/- values in addition to slope.
  • For Studies that support the Moving Average Type input, Smoothed moving average is now an available choice.
  • sc.SmoothedMovingAverage() in the ACSIL has been updated, if you are using it in Custom Study functions, be sure to recompile your DLLs.
  • ACSIL functions that required passing of arrays for internal use, now no longer require those arrays. The documentation has been updated to reflect this. Existing custom studies will still work. However you can update your code to use fewer arrays.

• 272

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  • Corrected some issues with the Trading interface to Transact as described here.
  • Corrected a problem with the information displayed on a modify order confirmation. Modifications were handled correctly, but the confirmation did not display the Modify word.
  • Increased the speed of loading Intraday data. (Revision 2 of 272)

• 271

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  • Improvements to the Trade Window. The Internal Position is now shown. The price list boxes have been improved.
  • Corrected an issue with Internal Positions relating to the new TWS version.
  • The following ACSIL functions have been added: sc.HullMovingAverage, sc.TriangularMovingAverage, sc.VolumeWeightedMovingAverage and sc.SmoothedMovingAverage. Documentation will follow.
  • The following ACSIL functions have been updated and require less parameters: sc.CCI, sc.RSI, sc.DMI, sc.ADXR, sc.DMIDiff, and sc.ADX. Documentation will follow.

• 270

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  • Sierra Chart has a much improved Chart Replay feature. There is a new floating replay control panel with buttons to control the replay. You can Start, Pause, jump Back and Forward, and Stop a replay. The jump time is user controllable. You have the ability as always to replay multiple charts. Unlike the prior replay, the starting date and time of the replay is controlled by the chart scroll bar. You simply scroll the chart back to your beginning time and when starting the replay, it will begin with the last bar displayed. When resuming a replay or jumping back or forward, keep in mind that the chart needs to be reloaded and therefore it's important that you load the minimum number of days possible under Chart >> Chart Settings.

• 269

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  • Corrected some minor issues with range bars.
  • Corrected an issue with the new ACSIL Subgraph Extra Arrays.
  • For the Spreadsheet System/Alert for Trading, some internal improvements to supporting reversals have been made and a new input, named Reset Condition On New Bar, has been added.
  • Corrected a problem with Upload Chart with Overlays.

• 268

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  • Corrected issues from the prior pre-release with Woodies and the Extra Arrays. Also corrected a problem where there may have been an abnormal shutdown with certain types of order entry.

• 265

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  • Corrected some issues with the new studies and the revised studies in the prior release.
  • Due to changes to the Woodies studies, it is necessary to reapply the Woodies Built-in study collection. For the Chop Zone study, the seven colors can now be set individually and this requires that you remove and re-add the study or modify the Subgraph color settings in order to get the correct colors. If you reapply the Woodies Built-in collection the colors will be correct.
  • Woodies studies that require a tick size are now based on the Tick Size setting under Chart >> Chart Settings. If they do not display correctly after upgrading check your Tick Size. You may also need to go to the input settings for Chop Zone and Sidewinder and make sure the Tick size setting there is 0.

• 264

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  • For the Spreadsheet studies, added the fields Open, High, Low, Net Change, and Daily Volume, in the I and J columns. This has caused the limit price inputs cells for the Spreadsheet System for Trading study to have been shifted down. You will need to update your Spreadsheet if you are specifying limit prices. The limit price specification was recently added.
  • Fixed a bug with sc.Subgraph[].ExtraArrays[] in ACSIL that prevented them from being allocated on use. If you have any problems with these, please let us know. A working example can be found in the scsf_ExtraArraysExample function in the studies.cpp file.
  • The woodies collection source code is now available in woodies.cpp in the ACS_Source folder.
  • Woodies studies that require a tick size are now based on the Tick Size setting under Chart >> Chart Settings. If they do not display correctly after upgrading check your Tick Size.
  • Made changes to reduce memory usage. It is also now possible to add up to 127 chart studies per chart.
  • With the Spreadsheet System/Alert for Trading study, reversals (When the Support Reversals input is set to Yes) do not occur unless there is a position which is opposite of the entry column direction. This is in addition to the existing rules for reversals. For example, if Sell Entry is triggered and you are flat or short the market, a reversal cannot occur. The default quantity will be used and not doubled. Testing of the reversal functionality is being done now, and the reversal feature should still be considered in the testing phase in this release. When using reversals please first test on a simulation account.
  • Added the Ichimoku Kinko Hyo studies and study collection.
  • Added the Zero Lag EMA study.
  • Modified Range bars to not move the last price to the high or low, unless it is outside the high/low range.