Can change trendline properties when switching timeframes? | Forex Factory

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Can change trendline properties when switching timeframes?

  • #1
  • First Post: Jan 2, 2011 1:27am Jan 2, 2011 1:27am
can an indicator (or other) change the properties of the trendline when the chart is changed to a different timeframe??

eg - how can I draw blue trendlines on a daily chart then change the chart timeframe to hourly and have the trendline colour automatically set to red for use on this timeframe??

tks for any help
  • #2
  • Jan 2, 2011 3:19am Jan 2, 2011 3:19am
Quoting Pvj
can an indicator (or other) change the properties of the trendline when the chart is changed to a different timeframe??

eg - how can I draw blue trendlines on a daily chart then change the chart timeframe to hourly and have the trendline colour automatically set to red for use on this timeframe??

tks for any help
i believe so. can you write mql, or are you asking for it to be scripted for you?

if you know how to script then :

track if the period has changed to avoid constantly thrash the cpu for no reason. if it has changed then use objectstotal to iterate through each object, use objectname(index) to return the name of each individual object as you go through the iteration, and from there you can then use objecttype(name) to discover if it is a trendline or not. if it is then change the colour depending on the period. easy enough, but i'm lazy and cbf writing it for you as it won't serve me any good *sorry*
Congratulations ScalaFX for coming out of the closet!
  • #3
  • Jan 2, 2011 4:14am Jan 2, 2011 4:14am
It's quite simple. I've attached the indicator below.
You have to enter the name of the wanted line's name and for each timeframe the corresponding color in the input parameters.

Attached File(s)
File Type: mq4 TrendLineTFColor.mq4   2 KB | 953 downloads
  • #4
  • Jan 3, 2011 5:19pm Jan 3, 2011 5:19pm
Thankyou nubcake and chjungen for you replies.

I don't think that I have explained myself well.

My problem:-
I wish to draw blue trendlines on daily charts and have those trendlines stay blue not matter what timeframe I change the chart to later.

Then - I want to change the charts timeframe to hourly and draw red trendlines that stay red no matter what time frame that I later select.

End result:-
I want a chart where, no matter what timeframe I select - I can see blue trendlines that I know relate to daily bars and red trendlines that I know relate to hourly bars.

I hope that this is clearer.

I thought that an indicator (or something) would have to change the trendline properties at the time of the timeframe switch - ready for drawing any new trendlines in the desired colour for that timeframe.

Can you show example code or point me in the right direction
Thankyou for any help.
  • #5
  • Jan 4, 2011 1:08am Jan 4, 2011 1:08am
To summarize, you want to change the behavior of the trend line tool in MT4

i.e., when you are in daily TF and you click on the trendline button and draw lines it should be blue
and when you go to H1 TF, the button when clicked should draw red lines

Correct?

If that is the case an indicator will not change the behavior of the default MT4 tools.

But a mql script could be written to draw trendlines and color based on the timeframe. It is a bit of a work. I don't know of any indicator that is readily available others here might know.

BTW, if my understanding is correct for your situation, I can see why you would need it, I am looking for automatic FIB drawing tool with same behavior



Quoting Pvj
Thankyou nubcake and chjungen for you replies.

I don't think that I have explained myself well.

My problem:-
I wish to draw blue trendlines on daily charts and have those trendlines stay blue not matter what timeframe I change the chart to later.

Then - I want to change the charts timeframe to hourly and draw red trendlines that stay red no matter what time frame that I later select.

End result:-
I want a chart where, no matter what timeframe I select - I can see blue trendlines that I know relate to daily bars and red trendlines that I know...
  • #6
  • Jan 4, 2011 1:15am Jan 4, 2011 1:15am
you should not have to do anything. If your drawning the lines by hand make sure that the visiblity of each trendline is set to all timeframes. this is done on the last tab of the trendline dialog box. if its set to all time frames they will all show up.

Keit


Quoting Pvj
Thankyou nubcake and chjungen for you replies.

I don't think that I have explained myself well.

My problem:-
I wish to draw blue trendlines on daily charts and have those trendlines stay blue not matter what timeframe I change the chart to later.

Then - I want to change the charts timeframe to hourly and draw red trendlines that stay red no matter what time frame that I later select.

End result:-
I want a chart where, no matter what timeframe I select - I can see blue trendlines that I know relate to daily bars and red trendlines that I...
Trader Keit ... Methods Of A Dirt Road Mad Man....
  • #7
  • Jan 4, 2011 5:26am Jan 4, 2011 5:26am
Hi kumars4x

yes - you are correct - that is what I want.

I've not looked at scripts - I guess I'll have to put on the thinking cap and start now.
  • #8
  • Edited 1:39pm Jan 4, 2011 1:16pm | Edited 1:39pm
You can use a script to check the current TF, and place a trendline on your chart of a certain color (example below). But this doesn't change the color of any subsequent trendlines that are added manually. Apparently MT4 keeps a separate record of what the attributes (color, style, width, etc) of the last manually added trendline were.

Inserted Code
  if (Period() == PERIOD_D1)   color c = Blue;    else
  if (Period() == PERIOD_H4)         c = Green;   else
  if (Period() == PERIOD_H1)         c = Red;    //  ........ etc
  
  ObjectCreate("obj1",OBJ_TREND,0,Time[10],High[10],Time[0],Low[0]);
  ObjectSet("obj1",OBJPROP_COLOR,c);


[EDIT]
I've just discovered that the "separate record" that I spoke of is stored in the ..../<MT4>/config/terminal.ini file.
In the [Objects] section, you'll find an entry Trendline_color=XXXXX, where XXXXX is the decimal representation of the last used color (column J in the attached XLS).
You could try writing a script to check the TF, and rewrite this value to your desired color (although I would be very careful about updating this file, especially while MT4 is running). You'd need to run this script every time you changed TFs on your chart.
Attached File(s)
File Type: xls MT4 color palette.xls   234 KB | 565 downloads
  • #9
  • Jan 4, 2011 11:03pm Jan 4, 2011 11:03pm
Thankyou Hanover - I always appreciate your contributions.

I discovered terminal.ini last night

and that by updating the [Objects] section provided a very satisfactory solution.

I now have a different 'profile' of setups for different timeframes - very happy.

I'm currently using AutoHotKey to monitor MT4 windows and update terminal.ini - this was just to get me going.

I'm now looking at how I can do it inside MT4.
  • #10
  • Mar 15, 2013 1:59pm Mar 15, 2013 1:59pm
yeah, i thought of having this...

it would be handy... any updates or, do we have to do the colouring manually?
bit . ly/fantestimonials
  • #11
  • Mar 15, 2013 2:33pm Mar 15, 2013 2:33pm
Yes, it is tedious to change colours each time you want to draw a line or whatever.

I posted this as it's a little widget i created, but has scope for expansion. It's much easier to click the colour button than mess around with right clicking into properties each time. Currently, it only works for the horizontal line.

I came across a similar tool that sold for something ridiculous like $400!

I need to add swatches and ability to change other objects like fibs and trendlines and their width and style.

Hanover's correct, each time you change an objects property, it's written in the config file. If you install a fresh MT4, the objects properties don't exist.

http://i.imgur.com/2FtGelm.png
Politics is the womb in which war develops.
  • #12
  • Jul 6, 2013 9:18pm Jul 6, 2013 9:18pm
Quoting hanover
You can use a script to check the current TF, and place a trendline on your chart of a certain color (example below). But this doesn't change the color of any subsequent trendlines that are added manually. Apparently MT4 keeps a separate record of what the attributes (color, style, width, etc) of the last manually added trendline were. if (Period() == PERIOD_D1) color c = Blue; else if (Period() == PERIOD_H4) c = Green; else if (Period() == PERIOD_H1) c = Red; // ........ etc ObjectCreate("obj1",OBJ_TREND,0,Time[10],High[10],Time[0],Low[0]); ObjectSet("obj1",OBJPROP_COLOR,c);...
In the latest mt4, i don't see that option in the terminal.ini file.. do you know where it went?
  • #13
  • Last Post: Feb 5, 2021 11:34pm Feb 5, 2021 11:34pm
Quoting chjungen
It's quite simple. I've attached the indicator below. You have to enter the name of the wanted line's name and for each timeframe the corresponding color in the input parameters. {file}
any updated version is there. as it is not working now
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