The Evolution of Online Trading Technology: How it has Changed the Financial Markets

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Financial trading has historically been conducted through telecommunication, electronic networks and third party brokers, as interested parties from across the globe have invested their money in a range of stocks and derivative products. While the international nature of the financial markets remains unchanged, however, the methods used to execute trades and manage portfolios have evolved beyond all recognition.

The current market is on the verge of an even greater and more controversial development, however, with automated and high frequency trading becoming increasingly popular among investors. Criticized as being vulnerable to manipulation and derided as the potential triggers for financial market instability, there are many who claim that the creation of automated trading techniques has taken technological advancement beyond its comfort zone.

Online Trading Evolution

The Online Trading Revolution: It’s Defining Moments

This controversy aside, however, the development of online trading technology has been largely positive for the financial markets. With this in mind, it is worth addressing its advancement and the key benefits that it has delivered to international traders and investors. Consider the following: –

  • The Integration of Online Server Technology: When the concept of online trading technology first entered the public domain, its key selling point was its capacity to provide users with instant access to the financial markets. This is thanks to the application of wider, online server technology, which allows multiple individuals to operate within a single space without minimizing their productivity. The integration of this technology removed one of the major barriers to entry for aspiring traders, as instant access to the financial markets was once exclusive to financial experts and large corporations.
  • The Development of Mobile Technology: While having the capacity to access the financial markets remotely has benefited traders immensely, it is the development of mobile applications that has truly revolutionized modern investment methods. Significant advancements in online trading for the Android and iPhone have enabled investors to operate effectively while on the move, regardless of their precise geographic location or circumstances. This has ensured that modern day traders can execute orders in real time, while striving to maximize the profitability of each transaction that they undertake.
  • The Delivery of Highly Evolved Analytical Tools and Indicators: In days gone by, the main issue facing independent and part time traders was a lack of access to financial and intellectual resources. Both problems have been partially resolved by online trading technology, as increasingly sophisticated platforms continue to eliminate barriers to entry and reduce the gap between individual traders and financial institutions. As a result, prominent examples of software such as the MetaTrader 5 are now available to all aspiring traders, and deliver a comprehensive range of technical indicators and advanced analytical tools.

While the supposed threat of high frequency trading is a keen talking point for financial institutions throughout the world, its suspect nature should not detract from the positive impact that online trading technology has had on the financial markets. From the application of online server technology to the development of advanced mobile trading platforms, investors in the 21st century have benefited hugely from innovation and the increasing accessibility of advanced market tools.

Embedded Systems–What They Are and How They Affect You

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"Embedded Systems Revolution"Which of the following modern products doesn’t have a computer inside? Pick from a washing machine, a stove, a can opener, a TV remote, a lawn mower, a refrigerator or a coffee maker. Think again, because there’s really nothing that would give away whether a product has a computer inside except that it has no electric power. The only one you can be sure of is the can opener (non-electric). The rest could have something called an embedded system, a computer designed for a very specific purpose.

Early Computers Went to the Moon

When the Apollo missions headed for the moon, they contained one of the earliest embedded systems. NASA created a computer which had only one purpose: to ensure the success and safety of the mission. It didn’t do word processing. It would have been useless on a banker’s desk. For the astronauts, it was the perfect helper. These helpers are everywhere in the twenty-first century.

Hidden Windows and Linux

Sometimes an embedded system is the same PC system, all on a small circuit board, that you have at home. These can run a version of Microsoft’s Windows or the Linux operating system. Electronic signs in train stations, sports arenas and shopping malls sometimes reveal it by accidentally showing familiar Windows error messages. Movie or train ticket vending machines and Redbox DVD dispensers may also be running Windows.

Really Simple Minds

Another type of embedded system runs a specialized processor, often with software on the same chip. It usually doesn’t have a hard drive, display or keyboard. Your car probably has one of these. Some machinery has these. If you have a “Roomba” vacuum cleaner, you’ve seen a little embedded system scooting around your floor.

School Kids Program Robots

Students in elementary school are now programming robots. They start with special Lego robot kits. High school kids enter the FIRST robotics competition where students design and build sophisticated robots and program the embedded controller. FIRST robots are similar to those in factories, where industrial robots use a collection of embedded computers working together to manufacture items from consumer electronics to cars.

Embedded Systems Basics

Controllers, like all digital computers, receive input, process information, and send output. The input can be sensed information like scanned bar codes, motion detectors, or key presses. Output can be lights flashing, motors speeding up and slowing down, or door locks releasing. The processing consists of decisions and math. For instance, if any two buttons are pressed, flash a light. If one or three are pressed, don’t do anything. To see even more examples of this and other embedded systems read this from Dell.com.

A Handyman’s Nightmare

Home appliances are no longer fair game for a practical home repairman. Tracing the wires will bring you to a “controller board” which contains a special computer. Symptoms of a “confused computer” from a failed part might not be so obvious. So it is with cars, home entertainment systems, washing machines and telephones. Embedded computers make their inner workings invisible.

Tiny Systems in Your Shoe or Your Chest

One of the latest applications for miniature systems is running shoes, where a tiny controller senses pressure and uses an equally tiny motor to adjust absorbent material in the shoe’s sole. Type 1 diabetics can use insulin pumps with computer chips calculating and delivering doses. Heart patients can have devices literally embedded inside their body which stand ready to save their lives.

Future-thinking Technologies

Nanotechnology and light-based circuits are two ways that embedded systems will shrink even more in the future. There’s no telling what tiny objects may be “thinking” a few years from now. To learn more about on embedded systems and industrial technology click here.

Author Bio: Brian Jensen works with Dell and has a passion for learning and writing about all things technology. In his spare time he enjoys traveling, cooking and spending time with his family.