Hi,

There are any number of great suggestions within this forum for functional improvements which could be made in future releases of TeleChart. They all get the standard response "we have passed this over to our development team for evaluation etc. etc. etc." and I expect that 99% of people never hear anything more about their suggestion.

There also appear to be many TeleChart users, including me, who do not want to move to Blocks.

So very simply my questions are, will there be another release of TeleChart containing any improved functionality and if so when will it be? Apologies if I have missed this information somewhere on the site, but it is not immediately obvious to me. I am only really looking for a Yes/No answer and a date, nothing more.

The reason I ask is that if TeleChart is now essentially a legacy platform which will just act as a datasource for Blocks, I will probably want to look elsewhere for a charting package which is still under active developement and receptive to suggestions for improvements.

Best Regards
Richard

Hey Craig.....I thought there was an announced revision for Fall '07 that was missed / delayed.  Recently, non-responsive management in the US has a history of blowing-up or quietly going away with little or no explanation.  Why not ask the crew upstairs to give us an honest answer.  My 40 years of experience tells me that when management won't answer questions there are usually problems: viz. Citicorp, Merrill Lynch, AIG, AMBAC, MBIA etc. etc. etc.    Sorry to be so direct but it seem this issue has been discused for quite some time now and Don, Peter and Chris owe the community an answer.

I realize many are anxious for a new TeleChart upgrade.  Presently TeleChart is a solid charting program, an indispensible tool for screening the market, dependant on your knowledge and experience. Users who require more help with TeleChart, this forum is an excellent classroom for those willing to develop their skills.

As a log time TeleChart user, it’s a fine line how much to inform us, including new features or revisions which will be incorporated in the future.  I feel management looks at the user’s posted suggestions but to include the users in the exact details when and what is planned is unrealistic.  I remember reading somewhere in the forum a TeleChart upgrade was coming, it will come have patience.  Unless you need a specific feature not included now, the main concern; is the program solid, is the data feed accurate and do the scans/indicators work as expected, TeleChart does this very well.

However you feel, TeleChart and Blocks Trader are two different platforms. The pre-release Blocks Trader is an enormous program that has the potential to make a real difference in trading and it is a matter of time and hard work before this is accomplished.

Thank you for the previous post. It is useful to get a balanced view. If you are happy with the functionality in TeleChart and think a $299 annual subscription is reasonable for an EOD data feed then there is no reason to look anywhere else.

However I view a technical analysis / charting package as an expense and have set my aspirations somewhat higher. I happen to want some improved functionality at the same cost or cheaper. Others may be happy with the same functionality, just cheaper. By looking around it is obvious that there are many other readily available options that fit the bill.

I thought this forum would be an opportunity for Worden to fight its corner, however they simply hide behind bland statements.

I have a nasty suspicion that by accepting the status quo you will have a very long wait for any future TeleChart developments from the Wordens, however it would be good to be proved wrong.

Any case, the lack of a material response from "the management" means the debate has run its course so good luck to everyone with their trading.

As the CTO (aka chief nerd) for a software development company, I am always working with management as well as the development staff regarding software upgrades to our product lines. There are a couple of things I'd like to comment on, given the earlier posts to this forum. 
1. The non-committal response (as to if / when a new upgrade will be forthcoming) indicates to me that there are no plans. If there were plans, the word "if" would not be used by a staff member in public. Also, "when" means there are no plans, because there is always a struggle between management, who set unrealistic time goals,  and development personnel, who hate being pressured. If there are plans, there is always a "when".
2. I also understand a couple of other things about these issues, which allow me to be a bit less critical:
a. My guess is that the bulk (all?) of the development staff is involved in the Blocks effort. (From my own perspective, it was a pretty good effort, but not good enough to get me to use it, even though I invested quite a bit of time and money getting to a training and evaluating it rather thoroughly.)
b. My other observation - again completely guesswork - is that the underlying technology of TeleChart is not very amenable to modular upgrades. Yes, bits and pieces such as adding new indicators, etc. would be feasible, but replacing some one piece like the watchlist manager may not be possible. If my hunch is correct, they'd have to rewrite the whole architecture to easily change any one piece, or add significant new functionality. If you're going to do that, you might as well build an entirely new product. This is a long, expensive, and risky thing to do. It is also problematic since Blocks is an entirely new product, and multiple major product design, implementation and roll-outs have lots of fiscal, marketing, management and sales implications which almost always drive technological decisions.
c. If my two hunches (a and b) are correct, then Blocks has to generate enough revenue to warrant such a rewrite, which also takes a long time.

In the end, I find myself torn: the technology is rather good, if archaic; I find the forum very useful, support and training is good; and I still have a lot to learn from this environment. But I would concur that the software needs updating in order to retain the customer base, or it will soon be overtaken by other packages on the marketplace.  And if Blocks doesn't prove to be a block-buster , then there are other problems bearing on investing in TeleChart.

If I were in charge, I'd see if I couldn't roll out a few features here and there to keep people happy, and figure out how to modernize the thing, if at all possible.

Just 2c worth from someone who has a lot of empathy for the complications involved.