Best Laptop for trading

I use several Window 10 machines. It seems that Tos updated something and I can't run both Tos and IB on an 8GB machine anymore. All my new machines have the following minimum configuration:

16gb ram, dedicated graphics card with 2gb min (my new machines are 4gb). I'm not particular about harddisk and did hear about SSD. However, my virtual memory is set to a low level. Core 7 CPU seems to be better for these applications. I tried core 5 and it did not work well.

I would be a interested in the moving to VPS /cloud computing.
 
tom said:
Where do you do VPS and how about offline access?
Click to expand...

There are lots of VPS providers. Mine is OVH: https://www.ovh.com/ca/en/
Not sure what you mean about offline access though. The VPS (outside regular maintenance) is like having a Windows server at home, i.e. it is connected 24/7 to the Internet backbone. I even have a much lower ping time to IB servers. In my situation I have to say that IB sometimes even disconnected me or rejected orders from South Africa due to high pings.
Note also that such a server can also be mutualised.
 
I have to say. I'm sick and tired of having to use two systems all day long. I need Windows for the Excel program and OptionVue, don't even get me started on the AAPL version of Excel (it doesn't perform properly with the stuff we options traders use) Since I'm on Parrallels most of the day and I switch back and forth to the AAPL side to use web browsers and stuff, maybe I should just bite the bullet and buy a super duper Windows laptop and be done with it. To understand further some of my frustrations ,I have been having trouble with TOS and Optionvue constantly, TOS gives error messages and is a constant pain in the ass. I need to use TOS on the Windows side because I run the RTD function on numerous Excel sheets all day long. I will say that LiveVol X seems to run fine on the Windows side and doesn't give me any problems at all. What do you guys think? Should I just switch over to a Windows machine? My feeling is that my performance considering what I need to do all day long would improve a lot. Of course I don't really know for sure as I gave up Windows machines about 7 or 8 years ago at least. Chime in folks if you have any input for me. Thanks

Posted by David Stewart
 
I think you'll be really impressed with Windows 10. It looks great, it's incredibly snappy, stable and very secure. Many individuals here at Microsoft believe it to be the best operating system we have ever released (I work for Microsoft).
 
upload_2016-6-23_8-44-45.png

This is what I get all day long now and keep in mind my Macbook Pro is 16 GB

Posted by David Stewart
 
That's what I am working with, I don't know enough to know whether any of those components are not up to par

Posted by David Stewart
 
Is there any way I can update the card? Or would I have to get a new computer (whether Apple or a Windows machine)?
Thanks for your help

Posted by David Stewart
 
Teddy, thanks again. Still, wouldn't that be a reasonable alternative? 400 bucks plus installation is small bucks compared to a brand new MacBook right? Otherwise I wonder when they will upgrade the whole line? MacBook's that is. Remember supposedly less virus problems with Apple products for what it's worth.

Posted by David Stewart
 
It really depends upon how much it costs to install it and how much you love the machine.

I hear you about the virus thing. My trading platforms only has Tos and IB on it.
I rely on Windows Defender for my virus protections (Free).
I use Open office (free).

Basically, I treat these units as terminals. If it dies due to software, I would just reinstall it with the recovery disk stored on a USB. That has never happened, though.
These machines are utilities and not investments. So if you use a utility model or rental mentality, the $400 is not worth it when new machines cost $1-1.2K. That is my personal opinion.

Having said that you might love your machine enough and feel that the configuration is good, with the exception with the graphics card which can be replaced. I just prefer more machines.
 
Running software in a virtualized environment such as Parallels will degrade performance. There's no way around it.
 
Thanks Ryan and Teddy. I'll let you if I find out more information. I'm going to call the local shop that sells and repairs apple products

Posted by David Stewart
 
Why I prefer more machines?

There are more CPUs and the bus is not as congested. It just seems to run better than a single powerful machine.
 
Finalizing my Surface Book order, and wanted some advice on which specs to go with:

Option 1: 256 GB, 8GB, I5 Processor
Option 2: 512 GB, 16GB, I7 Processor

The 2nd option costs about $700 more.

The only thing I will be running on this laptop is TOS and OV...so don't know how much firepower I need for those 2 programs. I will be new to OV, so no real experience to draw from.

Another option I could go with is run TOS on my current MacBook Pro, and just use the Surface Book for OV...in which case I would think I could go with the cheaper Option 1 above...
 
I think that the cheaper one would suffice as long as it's the model with the dGPU.
 
I got my Surface Book and love it! A few questions:
-How do you get TOS to have the right sizing/proportions? After installing it, all the print is tiny! Is there a certain setting that works best?
-I'm back new to the PC world...are there any apps or programs I need to download? Like security or virus stuff? What about things to delete or add to make Windows operate to its fullest potential?
 
When launching TOS at the login screen there's an option to change the size of the font.
 
Hmmm I am in a similar situation where I use Mac, I need it for work and like it so will not switch.

Still debating if I should use parallels but my work on Mac is so heavy duty that I do not want to burden it with parallels + windows + ms office. I do not want to carry 2 machines, so a VPS solution sounds like a decent compromise.

Now if I go for a Windows VPS, and then buy OV and / or MS Office, how easy is it to transport licenses across machines if tomorrow I decided to buy my own Windows anyways? When I was in India a few years back, I recall making a call to MS to get my Win7 license transferred via a live human - a bit painful process. Is something similar still needed?

Also, if all I want to do is to check the greeks and T+0 once per day and not do much heavy duty simulations anyways, and assuming I could allocate 2 GB (but no more) to parallels, would parallels and WinX actually be a more reasonable option?
 
Harry,
I am in your same boat, and I have sworn for a decade to never buy anything except Mac again...BUT, I gotta say this Microsoft Surface Book is amazing! I love it. Picture, build quality, all of it...just exceptional.
I will keep my mac for personal surfing, but I am very pleased with my decision to use this Surface Book for my options life!
 
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