Most popular trading software is only for Windows PCs.  What do you do if you prefer the security and stability of a Mac or Linux system but want to run trading software?  Well, there is no need to despair, this article outlines some of the options available, and also discusses some software that is ideally suited for these capable and robust platforms.

This article also identifies some freeware and open source tools that you can use, irrespective of whether you are a Windows, Linux or Mac user.

Firstly, if you need to run a Java based tool, such as FXCM’s trading platform, or use web based software such as the FXCM Forex System Selector, you don’t need any additional software – both will work through your setup.  Mac users should download Firefox for the Forex System Selector rather than using Safari.

Software that needs to be installed on your system is more of a challenge.  It is true that most major trading platforms such as TradeStation, WealthLab and Metastock are Windows only applications.  You will not be able to run them natively under Linux or Mac OS, but there are other ways to use your favourite tools.

The least preferred approach is to dual boot your machine.  The Intel based Macs (the more recent ones) can run Windows (in fact they can run Windows faster than many PCs).  The software is called Bootcamp.  Similarly, a Linux box can usually dual boot Windows installed in a separate partition.  The advantage of this approach is that you won’t need any other software.  The disadvantage is that you will be cut off from your preferred platform, and won’t be able to run applications from it at the same time.

Another approach is to retain a Windows PC with your software on it, and use a program such as VNC to access it through your preferred desktop.  You should be able to run everything on your Windows PC, but in a separate window.  There may be a slight lag because you will be accessing it though a network connection.  You will not have everything on the one machine either.

The other approach is to use emulation.  Most people will find this to be the best approach.  Emulation software is special third party software that allows you to run Windows in a separate window, installed on your preferred platform.  For example, if you are running Mac OS X, you can have your Mac applications running, and see TradeStation in a window, running under Windows. Of course, you will also need a copy of Windows.  To use emulation on a Mac, you’ll need one that has an Intel CPU (a recent Mac).

For Linux systems, you’ll need to buy software such as Win4Lin or VMWare. Also, you may run into some issues if you use a very unusual Linux variant, so check out the vendor FAQs and check out the trial versions before purchasing.

I noticed that you can purchase a non commercial personal copy of Win4Lin for Ubuntu for $29.99, a very attractive price.  The full commercial version costs $59.99.  Win4Lin supports up to Windows XP, but not Vista.  You’ll need a separate copy of Windows.  Don’t expect to run games with this software, but you’ll be ok with trading software, and will also be able to use Windows devices (web cams etc). I ran Win4Lin on a Linux box, and was very impressed with it.

VMmare Workstation allows you to run multiple copies of Windows (including Vista) under Linux.  The cost is around $189.  This does support more devices than Win4Lin, so if you really want to, you can even play Windows games, as well as run your trading software.

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Tags: excel, freeware, linux, mac, metastock, tradestation, Trading Software, vmware, wealthlab, win4lin

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 13th, 2008 at 1:24 pm and is filed under Trading Software. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.