One day I went inside a bank's trading room. They had specially designed desks to hold trading screens. They had special telephone systems and direct data feeds. Everything was designed to make it as easy as possible for the traders to work.



You don't need to go to the same extent, but your equipment and working environment shouldn't hold you back either. It is difficult to trade properly if your computer struggles with the data, or constantly crashes, or your connection keeps dropping out, or if your work area is hot, cold or dusty.

Ideally you should have an area set aside specifically for trading. It may be a study or home office. It shouldn't be a children's play area or in a busy passageway. It needs to be comfortable and well lit and equipped with power sockets to keep all wires neat and orderly, not all tangled.

You need a comfortable ergonomic chair, and plenty of desk space, with all the equipment you need to hand. There should be storage areas so that you can put away items that you are not using to keep it uncluttered.

A computer is essential for trading. You need a system that is as fast and new as possible. The cut down budget computer won't be enough. You need a lot of memory, a big hard drive to store historical data, a fast CPU to help with your backtesting, and a large display screen. You should consider dual monitors to extend your on screen work area.

The current generation of notebook computers are a good option, provided you buy one with enough power. The benefit is that if you want to travel, you can take your trading platform with you. You'll need to setup your trading platform, together with other packages you may need such MetaTrader or Excel.

You don't need to buy a Windows PC. A Mac can run all Windows trading software using virtualisation. Just remember to install plenty of memory. A Mac can also run any web based or Java based trading platforms.

The computer should ideally be kept for trading. If you have other people playing games on it, installing and uninstalling software, it will make your trading platform less stable. If other people are using your trading computer, you will be concerned about your trades, especially if you are relying on automated trading software on the computer.

You'll need a fast Internet connection. It should be reliable and stable. If possible, you should have a backup connection, such as wireless broadband, which you can also use if you are traveling. If you have power issues in your area, you should have a UPS for both your computer and the Internet connection.

Every great trader has a trading library - you can include it in your trading room.

Good luck in your trading and with setting up your trading room.