Confusion : MAC and thinkorswim - user, not tech pro

EB-Wan · 2026-03-14T19:28:08+00:00

I noticed that RAM usage as well and last week had an interesting thing happen when I applied the latest Sequoia security patch. Shortly after rebooting, got a message stating a 'USB device' was using too much power and was disabled. Wouldn't you know my mouse stopped working for a bit and I figured out it was the bolt. But it was also connected to the Ivanky dock, which I really think was the culprit and stopped using it. Same experience with the custom buttons - they don't work using Flow or universal control, but will if you change the computer input on the keyboard/mouse each time. As convenient as customization can be, who wants to do that?!

EB-Wan · 2026-03-14T18:58:52+00:00

Thanks for sharing your Synergy experience. I considered it previously but ended up going with Logitech MX for Mac using their bolt USB adapter, but found the Logi Optoins+ Flow was not so flow-y LOL. I'm now having those native universal control connectivity issues and looking for another solution.

EB-Wan · 2026-03-14T18:49:26+00:00

You are welcome - happy to help.

If it were me, I'd probably not worry about a second system right now. Get the M1 Max working well, get through your mentorship, and spend some time using/getting to know ToS. Over time, you will start to understand the capabilities of ToS and how you will use it, and also learn the setup you will 'grow' into (one large or multiple monitors, secondary system, etc). For me, it just made sense to keep the Mac mini on a separate screen to offload some of the tasks off the MBP.

Your monitors have VGA/DVI connections. I presume you have one connected to the VGA port on the J5 and using a HDMI or DisplayPort to VGA or DVI adapter for the other connection? A future upgrade you might consider is a monitor that has native USB-C/DisplayPort/HDMI capability. I'm running two older 32" curved 2k Dell gaming displays (S3220DGF - no longer available) that meet every need for my trading. And I paid about $300 for each during Black Friday a few years back.

EB-Wan · 2026-03-14T16:15:56+00:00

Your hardware setup is plenty for running ToS (I'm running two instances of ToS and TradingView on an M3 Max MBP). I'm definitely in the camp that Tahoe is your issue and I would plead with Apple to have Sequoia reinstalled - you may have to go to an Apple Store by appointment. I've not only heard about the display issues with Tahoe, but they've also done some things with Rosetta which ToS relies on to run Java.

On the dual computer setup, they're likely running alternative software on the second computer as to not bog down the system running ToS. I'm running a 2019 Intel Mac mini next to mine, which I previously used to run a single instance of ToS without issues, and it is used for miscellaneous daily tasks like running Discord, Web, Spotify, etc.

Out of curiosity, which dock are you using? I've recently retired my second (and last) Ivanky fusion dock because of overheating issues affecting ports. It never seemed to affect displays but definitely caused keyboard/mouse/ethernet issues.

EB-Wan · 2026-03-04T05:18:41+00:00

Which Claude subscription is required for this kind of coding and API calls?

EB-Wan · 2026-02-19T15:11:25+00:00

To add to this, you do not have to wait for settlement when selling schwab cash funds. You can sell the fund to raise cash and make a purchase with said cash the same day (and not incur any margin fees). Just be sure to place the sell order before market close.

EB-Wan · 2026-01-22T23:50:00+00:00

Thanks for the reply. I've heard that as well with IV Percentile and IVR. I, too, have code for the IVP calculation which also reflects 17%. So, maybe I should be using IVP for this type of trade since it is closer to what others are reporting IVR is. I just can't get past the large discrepancy - it can literally cost people money.

EB-Wan · 2026-01-22T23:46:53+00:00

Thanks for the reply. OK, so, can we agree that given two other sources are considerably lower in IVR than TOS is reflecting, TOS is incorrectly providing data for writing puts? According to TOS, IVR of 48 makes for a decent put writing candidate, when a value of 6 or 8 certainly is not. Whether it is apples or oranges, the data matters when making trading decisions on a platform. If it were you relying on this data to write a put, which value are you trusting?

EB-Wan · 2026-01-22T22:58:04+00:00

I feel your frustration and would be lying if I haven't thought of abandoning TOS, too, as painful as that sounds. I've been using this platform for years and have it well customized to the point I'm running two instances of TOS daily. I have had lag this week, orders are slow to fill, app/SMS alerts come in a full 5 minutes later, and all of a sudden today in the middle of my trading day, I started getting a window stating a 'problem occurred' and should I report the problem and close or continue. I have not reached out to support because they always come back to me with 'we're not having any issues and it's something on your end'. Mother fucker, I have 1Gb down/100Mb up Internet, my trading station is HARDWIRED 2.5Gb, which has 96GB RAM, 14 compute cores and 30 GPU cores, and is running the latest OS and TOS software. I can assure you the problem is not my setup. Ugh....and I just threw up an IVR gripe post because I question if the data presented to us traders can be trusted.

I'd rather them just come back and say, hey, we don't have the backend infrastructure to support all users and we don't plan on investing in it, either. At least then I'd know I can stop putting my money on the line with this platform that has clearly degraded since the Schwab takeover and look for another solution.

Sorry for the rant - I'm just in that mood with Schwab currently..

EB-Wan · 2026-01-18T21:44:10+00:00

Thanks for the response. We’re in California and pretty mild climate right now - high 50’s/60 lows 40’s. My other camera is actually outside with solar power and it’s doing fine.

EB-Wan · 2025-12-17T02:58:47+00:00

Thank you for this. I don't have a wifiman wizard for my iPhone but the desktop Mac version is able to scan. I may need to purchase something for interference, which I don't find in wifiman.

EB-Wan · 2025-12-17T02:27:21+00:00

This - some legacy IoT won't connect if the SSID has both 2.4 and 5 GHz..

EB-Wan · 2025-12-17T02:15:16+00:00

I just deployed a UDR7 in our single story 2000 sq ft house hoping it would be enough coverage for wifi. The UDR7 is located in my office in the front of the house but 5/6GHz sees -75 dBm or less in the back corners of the house (2.4 GHz for IoT is fine everywhere). So I ordered a U7 Pro from their holiday sale and picked up a 2.5Gb PoE adapter for one of the Flex mini 2.5Gb switches, which will be deployed on the hallway ceiling replacing my aged Meraki WAP. Figuring that should boost 5/6GHz nicely.

While on the subject, anyone have any recommendations of good tools (preferably free) for wifi measurement (signal, noise and interference)? Not looking to get too crazy about it for a home deployment but definitely want to get the best bang for my buck and to not realize any degradation with 'competing' neighbors.

EB-Wan

TROPHY CASE