Each month in this Journal, our technical support staff addresses issues of interest to many CSI subscribers in a question-and-answer format. 

Notice:
  The views and information expressed in this document reflect the opinions and experience of the author Robert C. Pelletier.  Neither CSI nor the author undertake or intend to provide tax advice or trading advice in any market or endorse any outside individual or firm.  All recommendations are provided for their informational value only.  Readers should consult competent financial advisors or outside counsel before making any software purchase or investment decision.  CSI does not stand behind or endorse the products of any outside firms.

Copyright (c) 2001 Commodity Systems Inc. (CSI).  All rights are reserved.

Q.
    The factsheets that are part of my CSI software are full of vital information that I would like to review in printed form. There doesn't seem to be a print utility for the factsheets. How can I get a hardcopy?

A.
    We maintain copies of our factsheets in printable form on the CSI website at http://www.csidata.com/csi/exchangelist/index.html. There you'll find clickable links to download files suitable for use with WordPerfect® or MS Word® and other files for use with Adobe Acrobat Reader.® Factsheet documents are grouped by commodities, cash series, stocks from different exchanges, mutual funds and indices.

Q.
    I would like to add grid lines to my Unfair Advantage® (UA) commodity charts, but I don't see the option on the Chart Tools menu. How do I add a grid?

A.
    The "X Grid" and "Y Grid" options located on the pop-up "Right-Click Menu" control the placement of vertical (X) and horizontal (Y) lines on your chart. Reach this menu by clicking the right (not left) mouse button whenever a chart is displayed within UA. Check marks next to the menu items indicate that they are selected for display in your chart. 

    When you click on either of these menu items, you'll have the option of selecting "None" for no grid lines, "points" for dotted lines, "lines" for solid lines or "regions" for shaded areas.

Q.
    I arranged my UA portfolio to create ASCII files in weekly frequency, so my export files include just the weekly open, high, low and close with weekly volume and open interest. These work great in my custom programs, but I sometimes wish I could view the data in a daily frequency. Is this possible with UA?
 
A.
   You have several options here, including adding a second entry to your portfolio that would be a daily ASCII file for each desired series. However, if you don't want to analyze the daily data with your third-party software, but just want to occasionally view a chart, your best bet may be to simply call up a UA chart. This can be done easily by selecting the desired entry in your UA portfolio and then clicking the [Chart] button. 

    Since your portfolio listing specifies weekly series, the initial chart presentation will be in weekly bars. You can quickly change this using the "Right-Click Menu." Just click your right (not left) mouse button and then click the fourth entry on the list, which is "Bar Frequency." An additional menu will give you the option of viewing "daily," weekly," "monthly," "quarterly" or "annual" price bars. Make your selection and UA will immediately display the data in your desired bar frequency.

    Please note that your selections for "Aggregate Files" in your portfolio settings will affect the volume and open interest displayed on the chart. These can also be adjusted as desired through the "Display Volume" and "Display Open Interest" entries on the Right-Click Menu.

Q.
    Can I view and print CSI's Alert Calendar from outside of UA?

A.
    Yes. The Alert Calendar file can be reached by right-clicking your Windows® "Start" button and then clicking "Explore." Navigate to the file ua\archives\alertcal.adm (in the UA\Archives folder) and double-click it. You will be asked which program you want to use to open the file. Select your word processor, Notepad or WordPad, and then make sure that the box indicating that this program should always be used in NOT checked. Click [OK] to view the file in the program you selected. You may edit, save (with a new filename) and print this file as desired.