[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

RE: [amibroker] Suggestion for better backtesting/optimization



PureBytes Links

Trading Reference Links


Hi 
Al!
<FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff 
size=2> 
Its 
"practically" done (as far as the initial features are concerned) now.  Its 
gotten to be pretty stable at this point - I just wanted to get some usage for 
it before I did something formal.
<FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff 
size=2> 
dale 
(dingo)


<FONT 
face=Tahoma size=2>-----Original Message-----From: Avcinci 
[mailto:avcinci@xxxx] Sent: Sunday, September 29, 2002 5:16 
PMTo: amibroker@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxSubject: Re: [amibroker] 
Suggestion for better backtesting/optimization
Thanks, Ken. I haven't been doing much backtesting lately (been busy 
with, yuk, work from my real job!!), so I probably wonldn't be a good beta 
tester for Dale right now. When will the final package be done? I'm very 
interested. 
 
Al Venosa
<BLOCKQUOTE 
>
----- Original Message ----- 
<DIV 
>From: 
Ken Close 

To: <A title=amibroker@xxxxxxxxxxxx 
href="">amibroker@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Sunday, September 29, 20023:27 
PM
Subject: RE: [amibroker] Suggestion for 
better backtesting/optimization

Al, 
others:  you would not believe how easy walkforward testing is with the 
new Rx - Report Extractor from Dale Wingo.  It was annouced several 
days ago how Dale is looking for additional beta testers (although I can say 
the program is a pretty darn stable version right now).  This is a 
tremendous time saver as you set up some codes within your AFL file, make 
all your settings, code arrangements, etc in the AA window.  You press 
BackTest - Report, change the date range (as in your example below), press 
Backtest again, then Report again.  Very easy to do quarterly or 
half-year (or more) rolling window testing.
<SPAN 
class=360451319-29092002> 
Switch to Rx, 
follow some screen commands, and presto, there are all of your results from 
the two runs, in two (or more, if you did more than two tests) rows of 
Excel, with all documentation of settings, formula, etc. You can even 
put some "comment" code lines in the AFL code (and change it before 
each run) and these comments will be captured as a field and put into 
the spreadsheet also.  Very easy to compare all of the fields of data 
and draw your conclusions. You can do it probably faster than it has taken 
me to type this note.
<SPAN 
class=360451319-29092002> 
<SPAN 
class=360451319-29092002>Interestingly, if you decide to vary a few more 
parameters, you make those new runs, and then click a different box in 
Rx and it appends the last data right behind the data of the first 
runs.  I keep several master excel files, one for each system testI 
do, and the results of each test are appended right below the last run,but 
with all settings, etc, including the formula, so I know just what each 
result row refers to.  It even can let me type in some conclusionary 
notes in Column A, last empty row, and the next system test row is appended 
below my notes.  One of my master file has 35 rows of data, 
representing 35 different tests done over several weeks. Of course, it also 
captures the date of the test.
<SPAN 
class=360451319-29092002> 
Folks, if you 
have juggled html reports and tried copying certain fields from them to 
paste into a spreadsheet in order to keep track of different system tests, 
and gotten all mixed up about it, then I assure you the Rx program will 
literally amaze you.
<SPAN 
class=360451319-29092002> 
Dale may 
still need some more beta testers.
<SPAN 
class=360451319-29092002> 
Ken 

<FONT face=Tahoma 
size=2>-----Original Message-----From: Avcinci 
[mailto:avcinci@xxxx]Sent: Sunday, September 29, 20022:01 
PMTo: amibroker@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxSubject: Re: 
[amibroker] Suggestion for better 
backtesting/optimization
You can do walk-forward testing now with AB. Simply optimize from, 
say, 1997 to 2000, then using the optimum parameter values from that 
optimization, backtest on the same stocks from 2000 to present (out of 
sample data). You can vary the time periods to do your optimizations and 
backtests. Of course, this is 2 steps, but it's not that hard. TJ has said 
that, later this year, he will be incorporating in his graphics engine 3-D 
graphics that enable the user to view the robustness of an optimizationin a 
manner similar to but better than the Excel add-in that Herman developed and 
uploaded earlier. You would choose parameter values from a flat area ofthe 
optimization graph where the parameter values and equity curve would not 
change much from one set to another. 
 
Al V.
<BLOCKQUOTE 
>
----- Original Message ----- 
<DIV 
>From: 
lel4866 
To: <A 
title=amibroker@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 
href="">amibroker@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 

Sent: Sunday, September 29, 2002 
12:29 PM
Subject: [amibroker] Suggestion for 
better backtesting/optimization
My suggestion is for support for walk forward 
optimization. This is what we all actually do in real life. Sincewe 
can't look into the future, we test/optimize based on the past, then 
apply the results to the following days trading. We then look at the 
results and make additional changes.There are 2 simple 
variables: 1) The length of time we look back, and the length of time 
(or other conditions) we wait until we re-optimize.There's a 
3rd, more complicated variable - how we choose the optimium parameters 
from the last optimization run. My suggestion is for a "score" formula 
that takes into account things like: maximum % drawdown, best compound 
rate of return, highest minimum of the running 1 year returns (or 
whatever period you like).I particularly like the last one - I 
always look at a graph of the 1 year returns (Equity() - Ref(Equity(), 
-253)). Ideally, it should be as flat as possible (or maybe rising). 
I've been treating this a little like analysis of variance - it should 
look like white noise with a given mean and standard deviation - any 
periods that don't bear investingation.Right now I use 
AmiBroker for experiments, but when I find an idea I like, I must 
write my own program to do walk-forward testing.Larry 
LewisPost AmiQuote-related messages ONLYto: 
amiquote@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (Web page: <A 
href="">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/amiquote/messages/)Check 
group FAQ at: <A 
href="">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/amibroker/files/groupfaq.html 
Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the <A 
href="">Yahoo! Terms of Service. 
Post AmiQuote-related messages ONLY to: 
amiquote@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (Web page: <A 
href="">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/amiquote/messages/)Check 
group FAQ at: <A 
href="">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/amibroker/files/groupfaq.html 
Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the <A 
href="">Yahoo! Terms of Service. 
Post AmiQuote-related messages ONLY to: 
amiquote@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (Web page: <A 
href="">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/amiquote/messages/)Check 
group FAQ at: <A 
href="">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/amibroker/files/groupfaq.html 
Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the <A 
href="">Yahoo! Terms of Service. 
Post 
AmiQuote-related messages ONLY to: amiquote@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (Web page: <A 
href="">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/amiquote/messages/)Check 
group FAQ at: <A 
href="">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/amibroker/files/groupfaq.html 
Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the <A 
href="">Yahoo! Terms of Service.