Rating: 
- The Classic Text on Chart Reading
Triangles. Gaps. Reversals.
Do these terms sound interesting to you? Might these be secrets to surefire trading profits? Not really. These are just some of the chart phenomena found in the theory of technical analysis. If you find you have a hard time making money short-term trading using fundamental analysis, there's a good reason - by the time you take your position the fundamental information has already been priced in. So give technical analysis a try instead.
This book, originally published in 1948, is absolutely one of the classics on technical trading (i.e., using price action, volume and time). The authors of this book claim that all a trader really needs to know is found in the charts. Fundamentals can be tossed aside. You just need to know how to interpret what the chart is saying and then act by taking a position. Of course, this means putting your capital at risk based on your chart reading.
But does this approach work? This will depend on the individual's actions. For example, you and I can trade the same stock for 3 years applying technical analysis but the end result can very well be that one of us ends up with a big profit and the other a big loss. The reason is due to the following factors: which patterns to take and which to skip, the spot where you get into a position, how far to let a position move against you, and where to take a profit. And let us not forget the very important variable - the size of the positions. All these factors will combine to produce our final results. There are no hard and fast rules here.
Unless you are a novice, you probably know that there are no guarantees in the trading game. And chart formations are NOT infallible. All the stuff taught in this book will short circuit one time or another causing a loss. You could even fall into a nasty losing streak. Ouch.
No matter what method you use, active trading is always risky. Remember it's very difficult to lose money when you hold a position in the Dow for 30 years; it's much easier to lose money by holding the position for 30 days. This book is one of the very best places to learn the theory of technical analysis of charts. I recommend going with the 4th or 5th edition, that is all you really need to capture the essence of the material, plus, you'll save yourself a few bucks.
Rating: - Comprehensive Book on Chart Pattern Analysis
Technical Analysis of Stock Trends is considered to be the Bible of Technical Analysis. I would revise that to say that it's the Bible of chart pattern analysis, because it doesn't go into modern technical analysis methods (indicators etc.). At any rate, it's a comprehensive book on classical technical analysis (that being chart patterns).
The main down sides to this book are that it's a dry read and it lacks an evidence-based approach. What I mean by that last part is that many times the authors simply say "in our opinion this is so" or "in our experience we find that this happens." That really equates to a focus group of one and can be a recipe for causality errors/confusion. You're essentially left with having to take the authors word for it.
At any rate, it's an in-depth, detailed review of chart patterns, thus a valuable resource for those interested in an in-depth study of TA. But, I wouldn't base my investment decisions based solely on this book and it's not the only book that I would use to study TA.
Rating:
- too many annoying garbage by the 3rd author in 9th ed.
Very hard to read. Bassetti's writings are B.S.
It maybe the best TA book in 1950. But right now I can not see why we need to read this one when we have the other two books (Technical Analysis of the financial markets, How technical analysis works), which are written by truely outstanding authors.
Rating: - The lone resident of the Tabernacle
Outstanding!!
The 9th edition's BASING POINTS could win the Nobel Prize for converting Anal-ysis into Analysis.
It answers the following questions:
(1) Why your investing/trading engine could only hum -- (answer: it never knew the words & never had a ruler).
(2) What to do about Robert Prechter?
(3) With BASING POINTS it is now almost certain that the author has not yet fired 6 shots, i.e. this field is so deep in terms of conceptual understanding, that more is sure to follow. See STAIRSTOPS (a separate pdf file) to dig what I'm talking about.
(4) Is the editor the person whose coming was foretold or are we to expect another?
:)
Rating: - Old classic (5th edition) is much better!
Most of the information presented in this book comes from the old classic 1948 version from the original authors John Magee and Robert D Edwards.
Technical Analysis of Stock Trends
You get more "bang for your buck" if you buy the used (Revised) 5th edition and still have some money left in your pocket.
I remember paying just $12.50 for 4th edition in the early 60's. I don't think the supplements(upgrade) to the text to bring in modern stocks is worth the extra bucks. Why spend the extra bucks and get hoodwinked? Charts are always open to interpretation but a master trader who trades everyday can eyeball charts and interpreted them a lot better. Haven't you noticed in everyday life the most skillful people who have the most knowledge come from family generations who did the same business.
You need to work at it to be just as skillful in any business since making profits in a stockmarket does not come easy at first.
What you see is the same type of stock patterns that your Grandpa would have seen if he traded stocks. These price patterns are like road signs you should be able to visualize them on any chart regardless what time-frame. Not knowing stock patterns when they are completed is like driving through stop signs. After you have read this book you should be very skillful in drawing trend lines,channel lines, and identifying trends on any chart. Even today using a newer stock symbol you see the same old basic chart patterns occur as the old fashioned charts a century ago. No oscillators or momentum-based indicators are needed on your chart. Experience is your best teacher when you look at chart patterns and there are many more to identify that you discover on your own. In the market you must look at what is happening now then predict what is going to happen, not what has already happened to make money. The market always looks through the front windshield not through the rear view mirror like the news media, just after the fact.
- The Classic Text on Chart ReadingTriangles. Gaps. Reversals.
Do these terms sound interesting to you? Might these be secrets to surefire trading profits? Not really. These are just some of the chart phenomena found in the theory of technical analysis. If you find you have a hard time making money short-term trading using fundamental analysis, there's a good reason - by the time you take your position the fundamental information has already been priced in. So give technical analysis a try instead.
This book, originally published in 1948, is absolutely one of the classics on technical trading (i.e., using price action, volume and time). The authors of this book claim that all a trader really needs to know is found in the charts. Fundamentals can be tossed aside. You just need to know how to interpret what the chart is saying and then act by taking a position. Of course, this means putting your capital at risk based on your chart reading.
But does this approach work? This will depend on the individual's actions. For example, you and I can trade the same stock for 3 years applying technical analysis but the end result can very well be that one of us ends up with a big profit and the other a big loss. The reason is due to the following factors: which patterns to take and which to skip, the spot where you get into a position, how far to let a position move against you, and where to take a profit. And let us not forget the very important variable - the size of the positions. All these factors will combine to produce our final results. There are no hard and fast rules here.
Unless you are a novice, you probably know that there are no guarantees in the trading game. And chart formations are NOT infallible. All the stuff taught in this book will short circuit one time or another causing a loss. You could even fall into a nasty losing streak. Ouch.
No matter what method you use, active trading is always risky. Remember it's very difficult to lose money when you hold a position in the Dow for 30 years; it's much easier to lose money by holding the position for 30 days. This book is one of the very best places to learn the theory of technical analysis of charts. I recommend going with the 4th or 5th edition, that is all you really need to capture the essence of the material, plus, you'll save yourself a few bucks.
Rating:
- Comprehensive Book on Chart Pattern AnalysisTechnical Analysis of Stock Trends is considered to be the Bible of Technical Analysis. I would revise that to say that it's the Bible of chart pattern analysis, because it doesn't go into modern technical analysis methods (indicators etc.). At any rate, it's a comprehensive book on classical technical analysis (that being chart patterns).
The main down sides to this book are that it's a dry read and it lacks an evidence-based approach. What I mean by that last part is that many times the authors simply say "in our opinion this is so" or "in our experience we find that this happens." That really equates to a focus group of one and can be a recipe for causality errors/confusion. You're essentially left with having to take the authors word for it.
At any rate, it's an in-depth, detailed review of chart patterns, thus a valuable resource for those interested in an in-depth study of TA. But, I wouldn't base my investment decisions based solely on this book and it's not the only book that I would use to study TA.
Rating:
- too many annoying garbage by the 3rd author in 9th ed.Very hard to read. Bassetti's writings are B.S.
It maybe the best TA book in 1950. But right now I can not see why we need to read this one when we have the other two books (Technical Analysis of the financial markets, How technical analysis works), which are written by truely outstanding authors.
Rating:
- The lone resident of the TabernacleOutstanding!!
The 9th edition's BASING POINTS could win the Nobel Prize for converting Anal-ysis into Analysis.
It answers the following questions:
(1) Why your investing/trading engine could only hum -- (answer: it never knew the words & never had a ruler).
(2) What to do about Robert Prechter?
(3) With BASING POINTS it is now almost certain that the author has not yet fired 6 shots, i.e. this field is so deep in terms of conceptual understanding, that more is sure to follow. See STAIRSTOPS (a separate pdf file) to dig what I'm talking about.
(4) Is the editor the person whose coming was foretold or are we to expect another?
:)
Rating:
- Old classic (5th edition) is much better!Most of the information presented in this book comes from the old classic 1948 version from the original authors John Magee and Robert D Edwards.
Technical Analysis of Stock Trends
You get more "bang for your buck" if you buy the used (Revised) 5th edition and still have some money left in your pocket.
I remember paying just $12.50 for 4th edition in the early 60's. I don't think the supplements(upgrade) to the text to bring in modern stocks is worth the extra bucks. Why spend the extra bucks and get hoodwinked? Charts are always open to interpretation but a master trader who trades everyday can eyeball charts and interpreted them a lot better. Haven't you noticed in everyday life the most skillful people who have the most knowledge come from family generations who did the same business.
You need to work at it to be just as skillful in any business since making profits in a stockmarket does not come easy at first.
What you see is the same type of stock patterns that your Grandpa would have seen if he traded stocks. These price patterns are like road signs you should be able to visualize them on any chart regardless what time-frame. Not knowing stock patterns when they are completed is like driving through stop signs. After you have read this book you should be very skillful in drawing trend lines,channel lines, and identifying trends on any chart. Even today using a newer stock symbol you see the same old basic chart patterns occur as the old fashioned charts a century ago. No oscillators or momentum-based indicators are needed on your chart. Experience is your best teacher when you look at chart patterns and there are many more to identify that you discover on your own. In the market you must look at what is happening now then predict what is going to happen, not what has already happened to make money. The market always looks through the front windshield not through the rear view mirror like the news media, just after the fact.