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Austin, TX
Experience: Intermediate
Platform: NinjaTrader
Trading: Currencies
Posts: 162 since Jun 2009
Thanks Given: 57
Thanks Received: 248
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I've played with this general idea myself but was unable to code it due to my lack of skill. But a few "easy" ideas are worth pursuing for an expert coder . . .
1] The Swing setting is critical. For example, a setting of 3 matches that of Trade Station. But you can play around with 4, 5, etc. until you see something you like.
2] One approach is to look for a breakout from consolidation. For example, "If SwingHigh - SwingLow =< 10", then you have a setup. Next, program it so the first bar that closes outside of that range tell you the direction of the breakout. It works most of the time.
3] Another approach is to somehow track the patterns of the High and Low dots. In a down trend, the High dots will remain in a straight line while the Low dots form a step-down pattern below it. So you would program the strategy to look for the step-down pattern of the Low dots, indicating a trend. Then wait for the High bars to break down and make your entry.
Both approaches, of course, will need some additional signals to verify a trade entry. By this I mean add something like MACD, RSI, CCI, etc. to your entry parameters.
Here's where it gets funky . . . 
Instead of Swing High/Low you might take a look at another indicator called StepMA71 located in the Ninja forum. It's the same general idea but from a different angle.
This indicator draws a continuous line across the chart and then steps up or down based upon your settings. Using multiple StepMA's on one chart is the best. So you might have a yellow "fast" line that steps at 3. Then a blue line that steps at 4 (slower). Then try adding others that step at 6 and 10 and you'll get some interesting results.
The next thing is for a programmer to create some type of variable that monitors the relationship of the lines. When in a chop market the lines are horizontal (not stepping) and the values between the lines are:
Step 3 to Step 4 = 10
Step 4 to Step 6 = 10
Step 6 to Step 10 = 20
The trick is calculating which lines are above or below the other lines. We can visually see this easily, but I'm unable to write the code for it myself. But a programmer could come up with a simply addition/subtraction method for doing so.
For example, after a recent uptrend but currently in chop, the fast line (3) would be above all the others. You could simply subtract the (4) line from the (3) line to get a value of 10. Then do the same with the other gaps between the lines and add up the resulting values. In this case the value would be 40 (10 + 10 + 20).
In a market that has consolidated, all gaps between the lines are very narrow. So the result of adding up the gaps would be a small number, say 6. If you are playing for a breakout after consolidation, then look for a gap total of 7 or less. Then a setup has occurred.
The problem I've been having is there is an endless number of gap relationships. And since I can't program a "gap tester" then I can't do anything with these basic ideas. Might be a fun project for a programmer to get us going on this. I think it may have value. 
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