Interview with Eugeni Neumoin (nen)

Eugeni Neumoin known as nen uses functions provided by MQL4 to develop his indicator named ZUP. In this indicator, he utilizes various methods. The indicator is based on many graphical tools. Eugeni sees advantages of such tools in their plainness, accuracy, good ability to predict things. .

Hello Eugeni. You develop custom indicator ZUP that impresses with its functions. Let us try to get into details of it. The first question is: When did you start developing of this indicator and what is its current version?

The development started in March 2006. Version 68 is the latest one as for now. There have been 83 versions of the indicator developed. I mean including its Beta-versions and versions written for specific builds of MetaTrader 4 Client Terminal.

What did you make your mission when you started developing?

• To make it possible to show Pesavento Patterns in MetaTrader,

• Since Pesavento Patterns are built between market extremums, it became clear immediately that many other graphical tools can be built between the same extremums automatically. So automated construction of Fibo levels between extremums was immediately realized.

However, the main objective was to create a trading system.

So, the initial purpose of the development was to make it possible to show Pesavento Patterns. Why did the necessity of doing this occur? Why are those patterns so attractive?

I will answer this question only partially for a number of reasons. Pesavento Patterns are almost the same thing as Fibo levels. They allow us to see the value of correction between different extremums at the same time. I first got myself familiar with Pesavento Patterns in Ensign trading terminal. There is plenty of trading strategies developed for this trading platform. In the most of those strategies, Pesavento Patterns are used. It means that this analytical tool bears a great potential. In Ensign, Pesavento Patterns are not built on indicator ZigZag, but on a trend indicator that resembles ZigZag. In ZUP, this trend indicator is realized in two modes. What is important, Pesavento Patterns are built on all ZigZags in the ZUP.

You published an article devoted to ZUP (in 2 parts) on the website of MQL4.Community. Will you continue this publishing?

I don’t know. It is rather time-consuming to prepare articles. I have little free time at the moment. Besides, writing articles draws me away from developing.

In your first article. you described 6 ZigZags used in ZUP. How many of them are now in use?

The question about the amount of ZigZags used is rather difficult. Thus, there are 8 embedded ZigZags. 4 of them are external aimed at working with timeframes larger than that being currently analyzed. This is the so-called DT mode. There is also a mode intended for search for Gartley patterns. In this mode, parameters of the three-pass ZigZag are searched in in order to detect extremums to be used for construction of Gartley pattern. In this mode, the ZigZag is built like calibrated by the Gartley pattern. In version 48, there is also a ZigZag constructed on RSI data.

You provided many traders with a very interesting tool. Did the open-source approach prove its value? The majority got it without giving anything in return. How did you benefit from the development?

I would not agree that nothing was given in return.

First, many shared their strategies and developments. Participant Putnik’s participation in discussions alone enabled realization of the full set of Andrews’ Pitchfork .

Somewhere about early 2006, one of “wave followers” uploaded a screenshot with the Putnik’s wave analysis in it on the Alpari forum. I saved that picture at that time. I conceived to realize it somehow. After I had started ZUP developing, Putnik himself “brought” me his ideas and helped in their realization. Or, for example, let’s take his fundamental approach to what he does. Such an approach should be adopted.

Second, the indicator was tested and diagnosed collectively.

Third, I met many interesting people having wide experience. The list can be continued. It is interesting to create something new and see that it is really needed.

You studied a great variety of methods when creating your indicator. What of them were used in ZUP? Was it necessary? After all, there is a saying: A profitable system must fit into a matchbox.

It so happed. I realized a great amount of functions. It was easy to do it. Some tasks seeming to be difficult were solved within a few minutes, without trying hard. This is on the one hand.

On the other hand, many interesting methods described in literature are not often programmatically realized, or their programmatic realizations are unavailable for some reasons. So a trader has to build graphs manually. When one draws charts manually, one may omit some hidden agendas. Implementation of, for instance, Gartley patterns in the ZUP helped to lose illusions. A pattern has been built. However, it is not clear whether it will be processed or not and, if yes, then when this processing will start and how long it will last. At present, considering the acquired experience, I can create my own system. Well, perhaps a profitable system fits into a matchbox. I started developing my ZUP with analysis of how such systems work. However, such a system is often accompanied by its developer’s experiences. The experience cannot fit into a matchbox. It is often difficult to adopt.

What methods underlie the indicator? Well, all methods of working with Fibo tools. There are so many tools, I even find difficulties in listing them. I collected them from various sources. Indicator builds practically all Fibo tools (excluding Fibo Ellipses) automatically. Andrews’ Pitchfork. Gartley patterns.

Plus some original methods found within the ZUP development and suggested by others.

Are there any indicators similar to yours? As its author, you must have been informed about such tools.

I don’t know about any similar ones. There are some specific approaches to building similar tools. For example, Igor Kim wrote on a forum about creating indicators of universal blocks. This idea is realized in ZUP in its own way. However, I have not known about any similar tools yet. I would not find it interesting to copy somebody’s developments. It is much more interesting to synthesize the known ideas in something new.

Is your indicator universal in market terms or does each symbol need special settings? What approach is more proper, to your opinion?

It’s hard to say. It is rather universal, yes. However, I did not test it on different markets. This is ZigZag and its parameters that must be set up. The indicator was tested by Putnik. He uploaded a universal template on the Onix forum. Many traders use it. And, by the way, there are many tools in the ZUP. It’s hard to say how one tool or another will conduct in different markets.

Did you try to create an Expert Advisor based on ZUP? Did you experience any difficulties with that? Do you or any third parties have any examples of such Expert Advisors?

No, I did not try myself. But I have got another person’s EA based on ZUP. I also know that there are some other Expert Advisors based on ZUP. Expert Advisor’s development stage has not come for me yet.

What technical analysis tool in ZUP do you use yourself and why? What is its advantage as compared to others, to your opinion?

I use Pesavento Patterns and dynamic and static Fibo levels. Gartley patterns and DT mode help to know the ropes, too. The DT mode is something like Elder’s three screen method though used on only one screen. I use only graphical methods of analysis. These are graphical tools, basically, that I realized in the ZUP. I don’t use any computational indicators, various averages, digital filters or the like. Kravchuk’s ideas of digital filters are interesting, but complicated and they don’t provide advantages as compared to graphical methods, being developed subjectively to some extend (selection window to calculate filter parameters).

The advantage of graphical tools is in their plainness, accuracy, good ability to predict things. I mean one can predict further behavior of the market with higher probability. However, this requires experience.

ZUP is an unusual indicator. It actively uses graphical objects, not only draws normal lines. Are there any limitations on the amount of such objects within it? Are any other standard tools of MetaTrader 4 Client Terminal used in it?

There are no limitations on the amount of graphical objects to be used. There are no limitations in the indicator either. As to standard tools, the ZUP has embedded Fibo levels, Fibo Channels, Fibo Arcs, triangles, rectangles, trend lines, text objects, Andrews’ Pitchfork, Fibo Time Zones, Fibo Extensions, and Fibo Fans.

Traders aspire to have such tools (indicators and Expert Advisors) that would eliminate their bias in estimation of the market. Does the ZUP give such an opportunity?

I think it does.

Did anybody retry your indicator using other programs of technical analysis? Do you know anything about this?

There were some talks about it. However, I know nothing about real trials. Gordago seems to have an embedded ZigZag. Anyway, I don’t know whether somebody realized my indicator fully or partially. I suppose this would be a task beyond their strengths. There are many example of that people normally trade using other trading platforms, but install MetaTrader specifically to make analysis using ZUP.

Your indicator is so comprehensive that newbies get lost in its settings at the beginning. Did not you think of writing a book or a guidance manual that would explain the theory for each embedded tool and how to use it properly?

On Onix forum, one can get into more details of what and in what way was created and how it can be used. There are many links and references there. The first thing to do is to give oneself the trouble to read all that. There is something that may provide some difficulties. I mean that operational, “on-again-off-again” ideas, even misthoughts were sometimes suggested. Errors and mistakes were not removed from the forum by design. This is like in a creative laboratory: the entire creation can be observed. If desired, of course. I hope this will be helpful for many visitors.

It is rather difficult to write a book or a guidance manual for lack of time. However, I do my best to answer all questions.

Some grounding in theory is provided by authors describing the embedded tools in their books. For example, I would recommend books by, for example, Robert Fisher, Joe DiNapoli, Scott Carney, Larry Pesavento, Bruce Gilmore, Harold Hartley, James Cain and others.

What directions for the development of ZUP do you plan for the future?

There are some ideas. I would not make them public too early.

It is now high time for us to sit aside and look around in order to know where we are. I’m going to orientate myself in the new space and continue to gain experience of using the universal indicator. Life will reveal what it has in store for us.

Could you describe some methods of working with your universal indicator that have not been shown in your articles?

Many things have not been described in the articles. These were methods of working with it that were not described. Many of them are given on Onix forums. If interesting developments appeared on other forums, their authors placed them in Onix, too, by my request. The forum participants continue search for new possibilities of the indicator. Many upload their interesting ideas. Many were encouraged by the ZUP to search for their own methods of working with graphical tools, to develop their own, rather interesting indicators based on them.

You wrote in your articles that every trader will find something special for him or her in the ZUP. How will traders benefit from ZUP, to your opinion?

Difficult questions, I must say. It’s hard to answer them straight off.

Basic benefits. Well, I think it is its universality, the possibility to draw large amount of graphical tools from the same extremums precisely and automatically and, for more experienced ones, to analyze the market quickly using various methods. It is also momentary readjustment of the indicator. And it is time saving due to eliminated routine of manual drawing.

Are you going to participate in the Automated Trading Championship 2007?

No, I’m not. I don’t have any automated trading system. It was a task to develop a universal graphical indicator. To develop an automated trading system, it is necessary to create a strategy with positive mathematical expectation. To create such a strategy, it is necessary to collect statistical data. And so on. I have not had an opportunity to do it. However, I know about some developed automated trading systems based on ZUP. The ZUP source code is open. Everybody may base his or her robot on it.

Do you have any requests for our new programming language MQL5 на основании опыта, полученного при создании такого универсального индикатора?

Yes, I would like something to be changed as follows:

• Add a feature that would allow users to create custom graphical tools having the same functionality as those embedded in MetaTrader. In this case, there won’t be any questions to you (as developers of the terminal) concerning incorrect behavior of one tool or another,

• As an alternative, add a feature that would allow one to “code” using “buttons”, like in Ensign. This could be useful for those who are not professional programmers, and

• Try to avoid at designing stage such internal constructions that would further impose some limitations or other.

Thank you, Eugeni, for the interview. We wish you further success.

Created: 2007.09.04 Author: MetaQuotes