The New T2W Guides to Trading!

Sharky

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T2W Guides to Trading!

The next big addition to the site will be the authoring of T2W Guides on all aspects of trading.

I think everyone would agree that there is a wealth of information to be found on these forums. The way we've structured the forums has hopefully helped members find the information they want on a given subject, and the ability to search the forums makes it incredibly easy to pinpoint more specific information.

However what has been lacking is a reference point on any topic that would act as a digest of information that could be easily and quickly absorbed by old and new members alike.

The idea of T2W Guides is to resolve this deficit.

The proposal for how this will work is given below. I'd invite all members to read the proposal and add your thoughts and suggestions to this thread.

The Basics

We've already broken down the aspects of trading into a number of forums so we already have our framework in place. The proposal is to create a 'sticky thread' in each forum that will be entitled "T2W Guide to ......", so for example the Forex forum will have a thread called "T2W Guide to Forex". When I say a 'sticky thread' I mean that that thread will always appear at the top of the forum, so any new member viewing the forum for the first time will be able to read it right away, and existing members will know exactly where to find it. We'll even add a thin separator to give it additional prominence.

The Editors

The task of maintaining and updating the guides will be the responsibility of a new 'Forum Editor' role within the site. Each forum will be assigned at least one editor (possibly more, if the task requires it). The editor role would be a voluntary one and open to any member of the site who feels they would be up to the challenge. I envisage that person will have a particular interest in that topic of trading, whether it be Forex, Commodities, Psychology or taking the First Steps - and so hopefully will not consider a chore, but a way to help them to progress in their given topic.

As well as moderating the guide the Editor will also have the ability to moderate the forum as a whole which will help to ease the burden of the existing site moderators, particularly as the site membership grows ever larger.

The Guide Itself

The Guide will not be a closed thread, members will be encouraged to post amendments and updates to it, as new posts on the threads. And the editor in addition to adding their own input, would have the task of merging the members posts within the Guide itself. Once the post has been merged or the editor has decided not to merge it because of duplication or whatever reason, the post will be removed. In this way I envisage there will only ever be a few posts to the thread - the main post, ie. the Guide itself, and then ammendments/updates that have not yet been incorporated into the guide.

What's in the Guide?

When the Guide is first added to the forum it will be in a template that T2W will provide. The template will be split into sections and look something like this (I've used Forex as an example):

a) The Body of the Guide (This will be written as a guide to the topic, with an ever growing body of information

- Introduction to Forex (The Basics)
- Topic 1 (eg. The Markets)
- Topic 2 (eg. The Brokers)
- Topic 3 (eg. Basic Strategies)
- etc...

Each topic will have original content, and end with a list of web links to further information (for example relevant articles)

b) FAQs

c) Glossary

- List of common terminology

d) Recommended Forum Topics

- List of recommended forum topics to read with a description about each.

e) Recommended Resources (with descriptions)

- Books
- Websites
- Brokers
- Software
- Seminars

--------

It will then be the job of the editor to slowly build up this body of information that hopefully one day become an extremely useful digest of information - wh

The Benefits

There will be a number benefits to the site, here are the ones that initially come to mind.

1. There are a lot of new members joining the site all the time, and inevitably they will post basics question that have been asked before a number of times. Rather than duplicate existing information, when they enter a forum the first thread they read will be the Guide containing all the information they need to get going, thereby raising the general standard of threads across the site.

2. Even for existing members, and more experienced traders, the Guides will provide a quick and concise road-map to the resources available to them, both on and off the T2W website.

3. With an ever-growing membership, this is a unique opportunity for T2W to harness the collective knowledge of all its members and channel it into a single place in each forum.

4. Eventually the Guides can be spun off to a separate section of the site to become a unique guide to the broad topics of trading.

Where do we go from here?

Well firstly I'd like to hear feedback about the above proposal whether you like the idea, whether you would make changes to the proposal and any other suggestions or comments you can think of.

Once the proposal has been approved I'll invite members to volunteer for the editor roles in the various forums. After consultation with the existing site moderators, the editors will then be chosen - and each Guide will then be created.

To help get the project off the ground I'll initially be editing one or more forums myself, with the intention of spending a couple of hours each day updating them.
 
Great stuff. There's a lot of people come here looking where to start. This will set them in the right direction.
 
Great idea Sharky, as I've said.

Cant think what else might need to go in the guides, sounds to me like you've pretty much got it covered there in terms of what you'd need for start-up info.

Only thing i'd have to say is that they would need to have a common "pattern" to each guide - you know, a "seen one, and you've seen em all" ;) approach.
 
brilliant idea....from a newcomers viewpoint (to trading & this board), the focused & structured content will not only save time searching the various threads, but direct folk to the info they require with much greater ease!!.....and a 'public' thanks to Rosso, who helped me with some link info earlier.......
 
Great idea Sharky!

I think it's the natural progression for this site, which is growing at an exponential rate.

My own interest is in the "first Steps" forum and this will hopefully stem the tide of repeated questions by newbies, which is understandable (I've done so myself): however pulling all the relevant info into one place will, hopefully UP the quality of the board.

Look forward to this welcome addition to T2W.
 
Paul...

What a star you are!! Since launching this site from your very own resources, and subsequently giving up employment to concentrate on the site, and I sincerely hope, make a few ££££'s both in your trading and from the site, it just gets better, and the number of subscribers just keep growing.

Whilst there is obviously a lot of the same questions asked by the newbies, that is inevitable, for the thirst for knowledge will always be there. It follows then your proposed changes will help both the newbies, and hopefully not irritate the experienced.

Congratulations once more

John
 
Thank Uncle, and everyone else for their initial feedback which has been universally positive. I'm going to be working today on the template, and a more detailed outline of the editors role. Then tomorrow I'll invite members to volunteer for the various posts, and start work on the first guide which will hopefully act as a model guide for others to follow.
 
Well somewhat later that promised (apologies for that), we have the launch of the first guide - The T2W Guide to Trading: Forex

As you'll see the framework template for the guides is now in place. I think it should make a good starting point although I fully expect it to evolve over the next few weeks/months as we get more feedback, contributions and suggestions.

Since we have some 23 forums covering most aspects of trading, we'll need 23 forum editors to manage the guide in each forum. Once someone volunteers to edit a guide, we'll then set it up in that forum with an empty template based on the Forex one above.

So, let me take this opportunity to quickly summarise..

1) What the role of forum editor entails
2) Qualities we are looking for,
3) Why we think you should get involved
4) How to go about becoming a forum editor.
and 5) What support you'll get.

1. The Role

The primary role will be to maintain and update the forum guide through their own knowledge and research, and by integrating the suggestions and text posted on the Guide by other members.

The secondary role will be to assist in the moderation of the forum, and to help encourage further participation in the forum.

2. The Qualities

Ideally the sorts of qualities we are looking for include the following:
  • Natural enthusiasm to participate.
  • Specific interest in the forum topic.
  • Experience in the topic is desirable but not essential. For example you might really want to learn about a particular topic, and think this would be a good way to do it.
  • Enjoys researching a topic, surfing the web, reading books etc.
  • Willingness to spend a few hours a week in fulfilling the roles described above.
  • Friendly, level headed, patient and a sense of fairness
  • Good writing style, articulate and ability to communicate well.
Now if that hasn't scared you off..

3. Why Get Involved?

Although we can't offer any renumeration for this role, if you have a passion for trading, and a desire to learn more - then we hope becoming a forum editor may help you in this learning process. Developing a guide should not only benefit you but everyone who participates on the site. There's plenty to receive on these forums, so why not give a little bit back!

4. How to go about becoming a forum editor.

If you'd like to volunteer as a particular forum editor please email us at [email protected] with a description of your trading experience and the reasons why you think you'd make a good editor.

5. What support do I get as a forum editor?

We'll send you a more detailed document about what's required from the role, along with guidelines about how to manage your responsibilities as a forum editor and moderator.

You'll also have access to a private forum for editors that will allow us to discuss in more detail how best to organise and improve the guides and forums in general.

Finally, I'll also be on hand to help initially getting the forum guide up and running - by doing research myself which I'll contribute to the guide.

------------------

I hope you consider volunteering for this new role on the site and look forward to hearing from anyone who would be interested in participating.

Many thanks,
 
Great idea Sharky.

I've said it before and I'll say it again - this is the best site for trading i've ever come across - have learnt so much in the past year or so.

Cheers
 
Thanks Mombasa! :cheesy:

I'm very pleased to announce our first appointed forum editor will be rossored, who will shortly be editing the new "First Steps Guide".

Special thanks to Matt for being the first member to volunteer for the role. It's particularly helpful in these early days when its so important to build up the momentum needed to make the guides a great success.
 
Well, that has a round sense of completeness about given RRs parallel efforts on this score.

Good choice and thanks RR for picking up the role.
 
I'm pleased to announce the imminent arrival of a new T2W Guide to Trading. Our next guide will be edited by RogerM and cover Options Trading.

Many thanks to Roger for volunteering to edit this guide. Many people will already know Roger from the recent Traders Day event where he made a short presentation about Options trading.

Since we currently have a combined Futures, Options and Warrants forum - we will be splitting this up and creating a single forum to discuss Options trading.
 
Thanks this time to Rognvald who has agreed to become the forum editor for not one but two forums, namely Software and Data Feeds. Two topics that are in many ways closely related.

As you can tell, we've so far had a great response from people willing to help. I'm really pleased how well the new guides have been received - and I'm looking forward to seeing them develop over the coming months. If you'd like to be a part of it, then please do drop me an email at [email protected]
 
I'm once again pleased to announce the immenient arrival of two more T2W guides to trading.

Quercus has very kindly agreed to edit the Indices Guide, and Rossored was not content with editing just the First Steps Guide, he's also volunteered to edit a new Techies Guide.

Many thanks to all our volunteers forum editors - already the guides have got off to a great start with some really good information contained within them, and the prospect of developing over the next few months into invaluable resources of information for anyone researching the area of topic they cover.

As always we are constantly on the look out for new editors. So if you think you can spare a little time to help give back something to your fellow traders - then please don't hesitate to contact me.

The following forums still remain without an editor:

UK & Euro Shares
US Stocks
Commodities
Bonds
Trading Strategies
Trading Systems (Free & Commercial)
Position & Swing Trading
Trading for a Living
Technical Analysis & System Trading
Level II
Economic & Fundamental Analysis
Money & Risk Management
Trading Psychology
CFDs, Spread & Fixed-Odds Betting
Direct Access & Stock Brokers
Futures
Warrants
Trading Resources
 
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