programming language

[Scotty2Cues]

Happy new year!

Anyone know if people working in the trading/investing industry tend to know a programming language?

Its been a long time since ive done any and it was Fortran but C++ seems to be the popular choice.

Can anyone recommend some decent C++ books?

Thanks.

 

[Hotch]

What level? You after syntax etc? Or general rules to make it efficient etc.

 

[adamscj]

Having worked at both a hedge fund and investment bank I can say that most of the applications are written in Java, with C# increasingly used for GUIs

C++ does have its uses, especially in low level quant libraries and some high frequency applications which are performance sensitive but it's far easier to hire good Java programmers so this is the main focus

 

[Trader333]

Anyone know if people working in the trading/investing industry tend to know a programming language?

Not many that I have heard of. Specialists are normally employed in this type of role.

Can anyone recommend some decent C++ books?

You may wish to look at books by John Smiley as he makes quite complex issues clear (in my view). Here is a link to C++ books by him:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb...pbooks&field-keywords=C+++john+smiley&x=0&y=0


Paul

 

[HowardCohodas]

Its been a long time since ive done any and it was Fortran

Great to see there are some still around who know Fortran. I did a lot of work in engineering analysis and I've quite a fondness for Fortran.

For my own work I've used Fortran, Basic (most versions), VB (most versions) and PHP (I was on the QA team).

I currently use PHP for my server based work. It is fast and feature rich and I know it pretty well. Sounds like the syndrom "When the tool you know the best is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail"

 

[Scotty2Cues]

thanks for the replies!

Not after a particular level etc, just whatever one would be a good idea to learn for the industry even if its just so it looks good on an application form. I would be starting from scratch too.

I had it in my head that it is an advantage to know some programming (they ask on application forms?) and C++ is preferred but maybe Ive got that wrong and I should be looking at Java or even excel programming instead.

Thanks for C++ links too!

 

[wackypete2]

I also used fortran for government work. In banking I was using Cobol for mortgage processing applications although programming wasn't my actual job.

Peter

 

[wackypete2]

thanks for the replies!

Not after a particular level etc, just whatever one would be a good idea to learn for the industry even if its just so it looks good on an application form. I would be starting from scratch too.

I had it in my head that it is an advantage to know some programming (they ask on application forms?) and C++ is preferred but maybe Ive got that wrong and I should be looking at Java instead.

Thanks for C++ links too!

If you are not actually looking for a programming job but like it on a resume or maybe casual use, then either C++ or Java should be fine. Once you understand the basics of programming and know a language then learning another language isn't that difficult.

Peter

 

[Scotty2Cues]

Great to see there are some still around who know Fortran. I did a lot of work in engineering analysis and I've quite a fondness for Fortran.

For my own work I've used Fortran, Basic (most versions), VB (most versions) and PHP (I was on the QA team).

I currently use PHP for my server based work. It is fast and feature rich and I know it pretty well. Sounds like the syndrom "When the tool you know the best is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail"

Is it correct to say that Fortran is not really used outside of science/engineering circles?

 

[Trader333]

In banking I was using Cobol for mortgage processing applications

That must have been quite easy as all you would need is a line of code as follows:

If mortgage applier has more cash than needs to borrow then
Grant Mortgage
else
Reject
End if:

Paul

 

[Scotty2Cues]

If you are not actually looking for a programming job but like it on a resume or maybe casual use, then either C++ or Java should be fine. Once you understand the basics of programming and know a language then learning another language isn't that difficult.

Peter

yeah thats pretty much why Im looking to do it (apart from enjoying it).

 

[robster970]

Java. Very rich, lots of support, lots of documentation, robust free app servers (Tomcat, JBoss).

C++ only if you are creating a high performance application.

PHP if you're a structured language person that never got their head around OO.

Steer clear of anything Microsoft related IMO.

E2A - Fortran is not really used professionally in banking, telecommunications, etc unless it is legacy stuff. Java and C++ have been king for the last 10-20 years.

 

[Hotch]

I dislike java, since they stole smalltalk. As you're after beginner level I am not of much use I'm afraid. I would guess that any would do really. Writing code is the best way to learn really.

Also, http://www.cplusplus.com/doc/tutorial/

My best advice is to disregard anyone who likes boost, it's a pile of crap.

 

[new_trader]

Happy new year!

Anyone know if people working in the trading/investing industry tend to know a programming language?

Its been a long time since ive done any and it was Fortran but C++ seems to be the popular choice.

Can anyone recommend some decent C++ books?

Thanks.

Look into C# (C-sharp), as far as I know it is Microsoft's language of choice and they have a great support site and documentation. My Broker's application is written in C# and it didn't take me long to figure out how to write proprietary applications to interface with it.

 

[adamscj]

Look into C# (C-sharp), as far as I know it is Microsoft's language of choice and they have a great support site and documentation. My Broker's application is written in C# and it didn't take me long to figure out how to write proprietary applications to interface with it.

C# front ends are much more slick and professional feeling than you can do in Java Swing. Personally my recommendation would be to learn Java, it will go down much better on a CV and once you've mastered it then picking up C# will be a breeze. Also the amount and quality of free support software available for Java far outweighs C# or C++ (e.g. compare intelliJ or eclipse to Visual Studio....)

A word of warning - a bit like trading, learning to program (Java, C# whatever) is straightforward but learning to do it well is an art form

 

[new_trader]

C# front ends are much more slick and professional feeling than you can do in Java Swing. Personally my recommendation would be to learn Java, it will go down much better on a CV and once you've mastered it then picking up C# will be a breeze. Also the amount and quality of free support software available for Java far outweighs C# or C++ (e.g. compare intelliJ or eclipse to Visual Studio....)

A word of warning - a bit like trading, learning to program (Java, C# whatever) is straightforward but learning to do it well is an art form

I don't know enough about the industry to say which language is best. I needed to write some proprietary add-ins for my brokers application and they advised me C# was the best language. C# is their language of choice and all of their example programs and support documentation are written in C#.

 

[adamscj]

I don't know enough about the industry to say which language is best. I needed to write some proprietary add-ins for my brokers application and they advised me C# was the best language. C# is their language of choice and all of their example programs and support documentation are written in C#.

Well in that case you'd better stick to C#...

 

[HowardCohodas]

Is it correct to say that Fortran is not really used outside of science/engineering circles?

That is certainly my experience. Although I did do some financial analysis in Fortran when that was all that was handy.

 

[DionysusToast]

Is it correct to say that Fortran is not really used outside of science/engineering circles?

Tradestations EasyLanguage is actually based on Fortran. It seems like a fairly straightforward though.

In this day and age, I'd personally avoid Java - it's old & tired and not moving forward in the leaps that C# is.

C# is simply amazing, although old programmers like me do have a bit of a time learning OO concepts if they haven't used them before. C# is the most complete language I have ever seen in terms of having all the supporting tools pretty much built in (debugger, IDE, source control, multilingual, UI controls etc).

I've done large projects with both Java and C# and C# wins hands down in terms of getting through the project life cycle on large projoects.

As for C/C++ - I've used it only for developing higher level programming languages, I led teams doing this but didn't program C myself. The C++ programmers I spoke to basically put me off learning it.

Stuff like Javascript & some of the server side scripting tools such as PHP are lacking in the supporting tools - so the part of a project when you are keying in lines of code is fine but what about good walthrough debuggers, source control, multilingual, distribution tools ? these have a serious impact on delivery time in my opinion.

I have to say the nastiesr language I worked on was PL/1 - a mainframe programming language which we used with a hierarchical database called DL/1 and you needed to write 'job cards' to execute any program - a royal pain in the ass.

C# wins it for me hands down.

 

[HowardCohodas]

I have to say the nastiesr language I worked on was PL/1 - a mainframe programming language which we used with a hierarchical database called DL/1 and you needed to write 'job cards' to execute any program - a royal pain in the ass.

APL ranks up their for me. I could never make friends with it.