NinjaTrader 8.1.1.0

[WHICKED]

Whereas this may seem like a huge step forward - it is a rather larger step back.

First issue:
You require a login to even be able to launch NinjaTrader. What if your login servers are down? or there is no connection to your servers for whatever reason, how would you launch the NinjaTrader app?

Second:
You rate limit logins attempts -- really? Again leading to point 1 - if someone can't access their account - then how would they be able to use the platform?

Third:
Connection Configuration - what .... did you do? I dont seem to have the ability to add or remove or configure connections in this new version. It 'automatically' finds my info and uses that? What about those that have multiple connections or multiple logins - multi broker etc?

Fourth:
Did you fix your chart rendering issues? How about performance issues when handling multiple charts on a single instrument during high volatility times? or are we still locked to a single thread in that case?

I am still testing out all the other features to see what else has been dropped on the floor - hopefully there are answers to the above perceived issues.

[NinjaTrader_RyanS]

Hello Whicked,

1. Disruptions to the login servers should be infrequent and any scheduled maintenance will be done over the weekend when the market is closed. As noted in other posts though I have relayed the want to be able to launch NinjaTrader Desktop while offline, so stay tuned to release notes for this in the future.

2. I can't go into too much detail here, but this is part of a system to prevent certain security concerns and other factors that could impact the functionality of certain systems. We hope this is a rare occurrence for users.

3. Make sure you have 'multi provider' mode enabled under Tools>Options>General. This will allow you to create to multiple connections and 3rd party brokers/data feeds similar to what you are used to in NinjaTrader 8.

4. Chart rendering issues are typically isolated to 3rd party add-ons and how they interact with the software, so no major 'fix' was or could be implemented here. In general we usually recommend opening the NInjascript Utilization monitor to isolate what scripts may be causing a rendering delay and reaching out to the vendor of that script for possible fixes.


I hope this addresses some of your concerns, but please let me know if I can elaborate on anything further!

[jeronymite]

NinjaTrader_RyanS says:

Chart rendering issues are typically isolated to 3rd party add-ons and how they interact with the software, so no major 'fix' was or could be implemented here. In general we usually recommend opening the NInjascript Utilization monitor to isolate what scripts may be causing a rendering delay and reaching out to the vendor of that script for possible fixes.

Given the vast number of posts in the Forum about poor rendering performance, chart lag, etc, it is rather bold to suggest that it is all good in the platform, and that these issues are the fault of 3rd party products or inadequate system performance or some other side-step. Certainly, some issues will be caused by these "outside" elements in some circumstances. But wholesale dismissal of the issues as "not our problem" is, frankly, a disrespectful "head in the sand" response.

Frequently, those who identify these types of issues respond to NinjaTrader that they are using a modern well-configured system with no 3rd party products, and yet they still experience disruptive matters of this type. A full internal performance review of the Desktop platform is long overdue.

Here's just one example from my own experience: https://ninjatrader.com/support/foru...ormance-issues

The Forum could easily be scanned to find dozens more.

Please take these issues seriously from a platform perspective.

Thanks.

[NinjaTrader_RyanS]

Hello jeronymite

It should be noted there are two common scenarios a rendering delay may occur. I mentioned inefficient 3rd party scripts as the most common cause, but it's also possible to overload a thread of your CPU if running multiple charts of the same instrument on your workspace, since each instrument cannot run on multiple threads. So if running a very intensive set of charts all set to NQ, its possible to simply overload that thread which can lead to performance issues. It takes quite a load to do this, which will also depend on the PC's capabilities which can vary drastically. I will check with our Dev team to see if there are any ongoing discussions regarding this performance limitation within NT Desktop.

It may be worth noting that rendering delays caused by a 3rd party add on is often a fixable issue that the vendor/developer can work with our Engineering Support on to fix or improve the performance. I am not a programming expert, but I believe there are usually slight tweaks that can be made to the script's code that can vastly improve the efficiency it renders within the chart. For this reason we highly encourage reaching out to this team to see what can be done here.

Let me know if I can help further.

[jeronymite]

Thanks, NinjaTrader_RyanS. I agree with the general nature of your comments. And again, there are certainly cases where "outside" elements cause issues. And working with the NinjaTrader team to address those identified issues is always a good and useful thing, for which credit and thanks are indeed due.

But there is still an underlying assumption that "it's almost certainly the user's fault/problem", when so many Forum posts are clear in stating things like "brand-new high-spec system, high-speed network, no 3rd party apps, running just a single chart (nothing else) ... it's not loading/lagging badly".

This is why I emphasise the need to take these reports seriously and not be generally dismissive of them as "users don't understand it's almost certainly their issue". The platform has performance issues, of that there really can be no doubt. The cause of such issues needs to be addressed holistically to see where such issues might be found, and be very "forensic" in investigation. It's a case of "presume a problem is in the platform and try to validate that assumption". That's a very "tactically sensible" way to drill into areas that are potential performance problem areas, and does not violate any sense of confidence in the platform's correctness. On the contrary, it challenges that to be proven. If it is proven there's no platform issue in a particular area, great. If an issue is found, it's still a win-win for everyone -- platform improves, users much happier.

Thanks.

[NinjaTrader_RyanS]

jeronymite Understood, I certainly don't want to brush this off as a user issue, but there are simply scenarios where the only fix that can be done it to remove or improve a script causing the issue. That said, as you mentioned, there are performance limitations that users can hit at no 'fault' of their own (as with any software) and we will take reports of instances of this very seriously to see if there is anything we can address. Usually this requires a detailed report from a user as well as full diagnostic files which can be hard to get sometimes, so I encourage anyone reading this who is experiencing issues like this to write into our support team so we can attempt to document any specific issues.

Regarding ongoing projects to improve that, I was able to find a couple of ongoing reports, but they mostly focus around some specific programming functions I can't speak to fully. If you have any specific performance questions though regarding how scripts operate or how NT handles certain processes I would encourage you to write to our support team so we can get the best qualified person to address your specific questions/issue.

Thanks again!

[WHICKED]

More things observed -

Offline mode is a MUST - it is not a nice to have. If your systems are down then there is NO WAY to login to your platform. End of story. That is a breaking 'functionality'.

You have made statements that you will not be providing license keys to new account holders - from what time frame forward? What if those individuals want to use your prior version of NinjaTrader 8.0.27.1? What then? You will deny them? Refund their money?

Will you be providing login details for the CQG connection that WE pay for? at this time it looks like it gets pulled from your backend server and there is no mention or email of the login details as per prior implementations. That may seem all good and fine, but if your platform is down - unable to launch it etc. Then a user SHOULD have a backup app such as the CQG app to be able to login and close postiions if necessary. Relying on calling the front desk to manange their trades is a bit old and outdated method.

The login to your platform on the new version - there is no ability to Remember the login details? Yes - because us traders love to take the time to type in our details to launch an app that we DID not have to remember those details.

Like I said - a large step backwards in functionality.

[torento]

I 100% agree with WHICKED that Offline mode is a must!!!

And the CQG connection issues must be addressed as there has already been multiple occasions where traders cannot access there accounts & the trade desk goes to voicemail leaving traders with no way to manage positions

I see on your website Scheduled Maintenance will be performed Friday Evenings 9:30pm - 3:00 am ET & have attached a screenshot

What's going to happen now when NT does this maintenance? We'll be completely Locked Out of the platform I and many other traders live in the Asian time zone & this is a BIG INCONVENIENCE
Now when the Continuum server goes down at least we can still connect to the platform to do weekend analysis & connect an external data feed like Esignal or Kinetick to download data but obviously with the new login process we'll be completely locked out.

Revert back to the original license key for the Platform with login for web & mobile, probably a logistics issue for NT but a much better option for us users.

Right now I can login to NT 8.0.27.1 with Continuum connected & the Browser platform simultaneously why can't you implement this going forward

I think I speak for all traders here that trading is a challenging profession to start with without having to deal with all of the issues that NT continually throws in the mix.

We would love a platform that we can believe in, one that we can rely on to be available at all times, one that doesn't throw troubleshooting at us on every new update or release, a customer service response that is not consistently blaming user platform configuration, user PC configuration etc without taking the time to address users issues with the platform & just pushing onto us things like this new login & scheduled downtime on the weekend which has obviously already hurt traders multiple times

[WHICKED]

As well,

making the blanket statement of: "you can just upgrade to the latest platform and it will pull down the login credentials for you" is not a stop gap or a fix all.

We are paying for the connection to the data -- why would you NOT provide the details on username/password login?

goes back to my prior point of people with multiple data connections

[NinjaTrader_RyanS]

Hello all,

The logins you use to access the platform will the same credentials you are already using to login to the account dashboard at https://account.ninjatrader.com/

For most users, their data credentials will be the same as their dashboard credentials. Some accounts may still be using your CQG login credentials to connect, in which case you would need to use these. If you have any questions on which you should be using please reach out to our support team so they may assist you with your account.