coding question # 2

[eurostoxx]

so I think I have my simple script almost working. Though now it wont "update" , and my bools all return true.

I think it might have something to do with the allbars?

any ideas

/***** 
Avis script written Feb 23 2011

versio 1.1

will alert if moving averages (to be use on a fast chart (ie 30 seconds, 1min) is 
showing a trending market


**/ 

var xFast = null;
var xSlow = null;
var above_lows = false;
var above_fast = false;
var above_previous_sma = false;

var below_highs = false;
var below_fast = false;
var below_previous_sma = false;
var aFPArray = new Array();


function preMain() {


var x;


    setPriceStudy(true);
    setShowTitleParameters( false );


    
    //initialize formula parameters
    x=0; 
    aFPArray[x] = new FunctionParameter( "fSlow", FunctionParameter.NUMBER);
    with( aFPArray[x] ) {
        setName( "Slow Period to use for SMA" );
        setLowerLimit( 1 );
        setDefault( 34 );
    } 
    x++; 
    aFPArray[x] = new FunctionParameter( "fFast", FunctionParameter.NUMBER);
    with( aFPArray[x] ) {
        setName( "Fast Period to use for SMA" );
        setDefault( 15 );
    }

         
    x++;     
    aFPArray[x] = new FunctionParameter( "fExactlyWhen", FunctionParameter.NUMBER);
    with( aFPArray[x] ) {
        setName( "How many bars to use to Slow above/ bleow threshold" );
        setDefault( 40 );
    }     
    x++;     
    aFPArray[x] = new FunctionParameter( "fExactlyHowMuch", FunctionParameter.NUMBER);
    with( aFPArray[x] ) {
        setName( " How much above/below theshold needed for condition # 3" );
        setDefault(4);
    } 



}

//== Main processing function
function main( fSlow,fFast,
               fExactlyWhen,
               fExactlyHowMuch,
               fTickSize) 
{


var exactly_when = fExactlyWhen;
var exactly_howmuch = fExactlyHowMuch

if(getBarState() ==BARSTATE_ALLBARS)
{
xFast = sma(fFast);  
xSlow = sma(fSlow);

}

var nFast_0 = xFast.getValue(0)
var nFast_1 = xFast.getValue(-1)
var nFast_2 = xFast.getValue(-2)
var nFast_3 = xFast.getValue(-3)
var nFast_4 = xFast.getValue(-4)
var nFast_5 = xFast.getValue(-5)

var nSlow_0 = xSlow.getValue(0)
var nSlow_1 = xSlow.getValue(-1)
var nSlow_2 = xSlow.getValue(-2)
var nSlow_3 = xSlow.getValue(-3)
var nSlow_4 = xSlow.getValue(-4)
var nSlow_5 = xSlow.getValue(-5)

var myCondtion_1_h = low(0) > nSlow_0; 
var myCondtion_2_h = low(-1) > nSlow_1; 
var myCondtion_3_h = low(-2) > nSlow_2; 
var myCondtion_4_h = low(-3) > nSlow_3; 
var myCondtion_5_h = low(-4) > nSlow_4; 
var myCondtion_6_h = low(-5) > nSlow_5; 


var myCondtion_1_l = high(0) < nSlow_0; 
var myCondtion_2_l = high(-1) < nSlow_1; 
var myCondtion_3_l = high(-2) < nSlow_2; 
var myCondtion_4_l = high(-3) < nSlow_3; 
var myCondtion_5_l = high(-4) < nSlow_4; 
var myCondtion_6_l = high(-5) < nSlow_5; 


// condtion 1, are prices above or below slow SMA. Ie has it been trending 
// need to figure out how to make function parameter to allow user to specify the time period back for which high/low must be aboe SMA


if(myCondtion_1_h==true && myCondtion_2_h==true && myCondtion_3_h==true && myCondtion_4_h==true && myCondtion_5_h==true)
above_lows = true;

  
if(myCondtion_1_l==true  && myCondtion_2_l==true && myCondtion_3_l==true && myCondtion_4_l==true && myCondtion_5_l==true)
below_highs = true;


//condtion 2 ...is the fast above the slow or vice versa

if ( nFast_0 > nSlow_0 )
above_fast = true;

if (nFast_0 < nSlow_0 )
below_fast = true;



// Condition 3... the current SMA must be significantly higher than it was before. how high and exactly when before are user defined

// time period offset for when to measure how much higher the sma has to be
var ex_when = xSlow.getValue(-exactly_when)

// how much higher the current sma must be comparted to an older sma
if( nSlow_0 > ( ex_when  + exactly_howmuch))
above_previous_sma = true;

if( nSlow_0 < (ex_when  - exactly_howmuch))
below_previous_sma = true;

var myFlag = "Neutral"

if (above_lows==true && above_fast==true && above_previous_sma==true)
// change background color
// put in label
{
myFlag = "UP"
setBarFgColor(Color.black,0)
setBarBgColor(Color.RGB(192,255,160))


}

else if ( below_highs ==true && below_fast==true && below_previous_sma==true)
{
myFlag = "Down"
setBarFgColor(Color.white,0)
setBarBgColor(Color.RGB(255,160,160))

}


else
{
myFlag = "Neutral"
setBarFgColor(Color.black,0)
setBarBgColor(Color.lightgrey,0)
}


// to add on in the future. If UP or down was true in the recent past, and now a condtion is not (price pierced moving average, or fast above, etc, comment on that.. save it as an object? last one

return new Array(myFlag, xFast, xSlow);
} 

[waynecd]

just at a glance,

If by "won't update" you mean won't plot, use getSeries() for the sma studies by replacing lines78-83 with:

if(getBarState() ==BARSTATE_ALLBARS)
{
xFast = getSeries(sma(fFast));  
xSlow = getSeries(sma(fSlow));

} 

Though you declare booleans globaly as false, in main() once their value is changed to true, there is no opposite condition making them false again so they stay true from then on. For this, if appropriate, you can add an "else boolvar = false;" as in:

if(condition) boolvar = true;
else boolvar = false; 

or change the scope of the boolvar to local instead of global so it starts out as false for every iteration of main() and will be true only upon a condition that changes it to true. To make the variable local delete the global variable declaration from outside of main() and put it inside main(){}.

Wayne

[eurostoxx]

thanks wayne. I realized the problem was where I was declaring the variables.

all of my bools had to be declared outside the main function, otherwise they weren't changing bynamically with the data, they would always update as true/fasle

but thanks for the help