Platform Tutorial

After opening a demo practice trading account the next thing a trader requires to do is to learn how to navigate the trading software.

The software interface resembles the illustration below, the various components of the platform interface are explained below.

Informative Course for Learn Trading Platform Course for Beginner Traders - Install Trading Software PDF

The first thing you'll need to know and learn about is the main navigation menu that is illustrated and illustrated below. Just like this website has a main navigation menu at the top where traders can go to various sections of this website, the index software also has got a main navigation menu that traders can use to navigate the MT4 software.

Main navigation menu on this trade software has the following sub menu items:

File

View

Insert

Charts

Tools

Window

Help

These are the main sub menu items that you'll use to navigate this platform. Let us look at each one of them so that as you'll have the basic idea of how to navigate this index software.

File Menu

Once you click the "File" menu the following drop down menu items will be displayed & can be used for doing different tasks.

New Chart - New chart button is used to open a new chart, for our tutorial using the demo account that you opened you may choose to open Group 6 instruments where you'll find all the Indices instruments that are available for trading.

Open Offline - Used to open an offline chart.

Open Deleted - Used to open a trading chart which had been deleted.

Profiles - Profiles is used to save a work-space, this way you as a Stock Index trader can load the same work space at another time, or you may save 2 work spaces & can choose to switch between these 2 work spaces by loading the particular workspace that you want at any given time.

Close - Used to close-out an open chart

Save As - Used to save a chart

Save As Picture - Used to save chart as a picture

Open Data Folder - Opens data folder which is used to store automated programs that are known as Expert Advisors.

Open an Account - For Opening Demo Accounts

Login to MQL5.community - Login to MQL5 community where a trader can buy Expert Advisors as well as subscribe to trading signals.

Print Setup, Print Preview and Print - For printing trade charts.

Exit - For closing platform.

View Menu

The "View" menu is the next navigation menu after "File" & it is used to show items on the platform and also on the charts.

On the view menu a indices trader can do the following tasks:

Languages - a indices trader can use this option to change the platform language to another language.

Tool-Bars - tool bars are used to perform and carry out various tasks on the platform, the various toolbars are:

1. Standard

2. Charts

3. Line Studies

4. Periodicity

These tool-bars will be presented at the bottom of this tutorial course.

Status Bar - this is the bar that shows internet connection & a trader can use this to button to show and illustrate the internet status bar.

Charts Bar - This is the charts navigation bar that is shown below the chart window and it has got a list of all open charts & traders can go to various open charts using this bar.

Symbols - This is used to show all instruments available for trading based on their grouping, a trader can open this symbols tab & get access to all financial instruments provided within this trade software.

Market-Watch - displays a list of all financial instruments available for trading

Data Panel - used to show information about a particular object

Navigator - used to display navigator window, navigator panel shows accounts the trading accounts whose sign in information have been saved within the trading platform, this window also shows the indicators list from which a trader can choose an indicator & place it on a trade chart. This window also shows a listing of the available EAs.

Terminal - this window shows the account balance, the account profit & loss summary, free margin and also a statement of all opened & closed trades for a particular account.

Strategy Tester - this is a programming environment used by EA coders to back test the results of their Automated Expert Advisors.

Full Screen - used to maximize the screen to full screen

Insert Menu

The insert menu has the following options & it is used to place various tools & indicators on the trade charts.

The insert menu can be used to place trading indicators, line studies, channels, Gann studies, Fibonacci studies, Shapes, arrows & Text labels on trade charts.

Charts Menu

The charts menu is shown below:

The charts menu can be used to illustrate a list of indicators on any particular chart.

The charts menu can be used to change the chart from bar chart to line chart to candlesticks chart.

This menu can be used to change the chart periodicity - the time frames that are used in trading for example 5 minute time frame or 1 Hour timeframe.

The template button is used to save a system & this template button is also used to load the same system on another chart.

Grid is used to place and add or remove a grid on the chart, volume is used to show and illustrate the tick volume, Auto Scroll will shift the chart to the most recent price bar mechanically, Chart shift will be used to move a chart towards the center so that as the chart leaves some margin space to its right side.

Zoom in & Zoom out are self explanatory, Step-by-Step is used to move the chart step-by-step usually for purpose of back testing systems.

Properties button is used to adjust various chart settings such as the color of the chart.

Tools Menu

The tools menu has few options; it's used to show and illustrate the history center of price data, there is also the language editor where traders can use for programming Expert Advisors & the last button is the "Options" button key where traders can adjust different options like server settings, chart settings, trade settings, Expert Advisors settings & also access to the MQL5 community of traders & programmers.

Window Menu

Window menu is used to arrange panels vertically, horizontally, cascaded or as icons. The open trading charts windows are also accessible on this window menu appearing and showing up as a list.

Help Menu

The help menu is can be used by traders so that to get help topics about the MetaTrader 4 software.

You can practice navigating the platform using the above tutorials & with a few hour of practice you'll have known how to navigate this trade software.

Platform Tool Bars

The most often used buttons that are discussed above can be found in the toolbars at the top of the platform as illustrated below, as a trader you as a stock indices trader can use these tool bars to get quick access to the various tools, just hover your mouse over any button key to get an explanation of what that button does.

Informative PDF for Learn Platform Course for Beginner Traders - Install Trading Software Example

Toolbars on trade software - Shortcut to quickly access the most frequent used buttons on the platform.

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