Best Practice to Merge quanttrader.ini Data

[Stephen Ogborn]

I must be missing something basic.  When a new version of software is released, it can contain updated or new strategies in the quanttrader.ini file.  This is great!  The challenge I find is bringing together the latest updates with the customized symbols and strategies that exist in my current quanttrader.ini file.  I have tried to update symbols and export and import strategies, but the process seems kludgy and error prone.  Would greatly appreciated the recommended process (step by step please) to bring history and innovation together.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.  My apologies if this has been addressed previously, but I could not find the answer searching the forums.

[Dominick Brunone]

I agree with Stephen. In fact, I find the entire process of downloading QT and merging it quite confusing. I’d really like LI to develop a step-by-step Tutorial for how to use the product, along with some go-by strategies that take advantage of its capabilities. Without something like that, I’m not getting my moneys worth and will probably drop QT.

Dom

[Vangelis]

Dear Stephen & Dom,
Your remarks are noted. We should have something soon.

[Lanemc]

Same problem here. As a workaround I use a snapshot of the Strategy screen and then store it in Evernote. When the ini file is updated, if is fairly easy to recreate the strategies.

[Richard]

Thanks for articulating your (and our) frustration with that piece of the system. I’ve been thoroughly frustrated with the kludgy manual methods I find I need to use to migrate my work from QT(n) to QT(n+1). I’ll look forward to a “best practices” process.

[Frank Grossmann]

Most of the time it is easier to to recreate your strategy using the newest LI strategy file (QuantTrader.ini).
With the newest version you can perhaps also just use the new “consolidated Allocations” window to allocate your mix of strategies. You can now instantly see the backtest and performance parameters. This may be a good replacement for any self made meta strategy.
Most of the time it is easier to just update a changed strategy manually, because if these strategies are used in other strategies as sub-strategies, then you can not just delete and replace them. I normally put two QT windos side by side and open both strategies. Then I change the parameters so that they show exactly the same performance over 5 or 10 years.

Pls download the Zip file which contains also the latest QuantTrader.ini file
https://logical-invest.com/quanttrader/QuantTrader510S.zip

[Stephen Ogborn]

Frank, thank you for the response. What you describe will, in fact work, but in my case is not necessarily “easier”. Imagine how you would react if a word processor software vendor said that every time we update the software, all you have to do is re-type your documents and your all set. I suspect you would be incredulous. I am hoping for a more enduring solution.

My sense is that we have 3 data sets – “yours”, “mine”, and “ours”.

– For the sake of discussion “your” data is the out of the box strategies. I might argue that outside of optimizing, the strategies should be “locked down” and in LI control (in other words to tinker with a strategy one would need to duplicate it first and then edit the copy). Implementing such an requirement would eliminate overwriting a user-edited strategy when strategies are evolved.

– “My” data might be investments, like a retirement plan where the investment options are limited and outside of the LI Strategies.

– And finally, “our” data would consist of LI Strategies that have been edited or pivot off a slightly altered group of investment options.

It is the “mine” and “ours” where we seem to get hung up. It seems like there needs to be a “File > Save” or “Export > Import” capability that allows users to bring the all their local data over to the latest and greatest QuantTrader version. I am no software developer and have no perspective of what may be required to deliver such capabilities, but I hope it is something that can be considered.

Finally, I think QuantTrader is fantastic. The work that you and your team have done thus far is spectacular and is not diminished by a missing feature here or there. Please accept these thoughts as suggestions in the spirit of continuous improvement. Thanks again for responding.

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