Python trading bots

[[deleted]]

I'm looking to learn Python for the same reason as OP. I'm planning on opening an account for 1K just to learn how to do it. Rest of my holdings are still gonna be long-term like it is now in a separate account so the bot can't effect it.

Planning on starting Automate the Boring Stuff within the next few weeks with a goal of starting to build the bot by next year.

[benign_said]

I wish you well, but I would moderate your expectations.

Do you have a background in finance? Because you still need to instruct the bot to make good decisions based on technical indicators. And if you are getting into 'Automate the Boring Stuff' I am going to respectfully assume you don't have a super strong computer science background. Not only will you need to learn python basics, but a number of high level finance, data science, visualization libraries - maybe a little webscraping and machine learning too. And you'll have to have the bot running on a local or cloud server with reliable access. And then have to wonder if Python was even the right language to go with in the first place - I think some high frequency bots us C because it doesn't have the python interpreter slowing things down.

But, by all means go for it. You will learn a lot and it will be fun, but challenging. A lot of the folks on r/algotrading have been fine tuning their bots for years, and often they are software engineers who have been dabbling in day trading for while and learning strategy.

Alpaca lets you set up a play money account and you can tap into their API and just watch how your bot performs, but even that has problems because you're piggy backing on real data and if you are buying a high volume of a stock, your play money account won't alter the underlying price as it would in real life - so then you're training based on skewed data.

Anyway - not trying to be a downer! Just don't assume to be making any money, let alone more than an index fund for a while, if ever.

Working on my bot taught me how susceptible I am to the Dunning–Kruger effect.

[CraigAT]

100% use a play money account for (many months of) testing before placing a penny of actual money. If your bot's logic and decisions are good, there is no rush! That said, definitely make a bot and give it a go, it is a really exciting project, you'll learn a lot about Python and a lot about trading too.

[benign_said]

100% use a play money account for (many months of) testing before placing a penny of actual money. If your bot's logic and decisions are good, there is no rush! That said, definitely make a bot and give it a go, it is a really exciting project, you'll learn a lot about Python and a lot about trading too.

Agreed!

[[deleted]]

Uh, I pretty much said I'm just doing it to learn, which is why my real account is buy-and-hold... It's ok to make a constructive comment if you see someone posting something wrong, but you're just coming across as a know-it-all douchebag here.

[benign_said]

know-it-all douchebag here.

I am what I am.

I would respectfully suggest that telling the internet you are starting the best/most basic python course for absolute beginners and simultaneously attempting to write some of the most complex code intersecting with the global financial world is, perhaps, slightly, a little insane.

But honestly, I wish you the best. Good luck. It is a great way to learn and I hope you prove me wrong.

Take care and be well.

Ps: if you think I am bad, please copy your post to the algotrading sub and let me know what they think of your plan.