MT4 Setup - Get to Know Your MetaTrader 4 Forex Platform
If you want to learn how to set-up the MT4 platform this forex tutorial guide explains the step by step guide on how to setup MetaTrader 4 for beginner traders with examples.
The following screen-shot below shows the main MetaTrader 4 software inter-face. As a beginner trader trying to learn how to execute orders in the online forex market, the main tool for trading the market is the MT4 forex trading platform software. This is the trading software that you will connect to your forex broker with & execute forex trading transactions and monitor your trading account balance.
The MT4 platform for trading forex is provided for free through the various Forex broker websites. This MT4 software looks like the examples below:
Learn MT4 Software - MetaTrader 4 Platform Setup - MT4 Tutorial for Beginner Traders
The Main Areas of this MT4 software as shown above are:
- Navigation Menus
- Toolbars
- Chart Window
- Navigator
- Market Watch
- Terminal
- Connection Bars
For this MT4 Setup tutorial we shall look at a brief introduction for each of these:
1. MT4 Navigation Menus MT4 Setup - MT4 Tutorial for Beginner Traders
The MetaTrader 4 navigation menus are:
- File
- View
- Insert
- Charts
- Tools
- Window
- Help
These MT4 menus are main navigation menus which can be used to navigate the MT4 platform. As a forex beginner you can start by just clicking any of these MT4 platform navigation menus to familiarize yourself with various buttons that are arranged as sub menus within these navigation menus.
These MT4 platform navigation menus will be discussed in details in the next MT4 setup tutorials about navigation menus.
2. MT4 Tool Bars MT4 Setup - MT4 Tutorial for Beginner Traders
The MT4 tool bars are used to manipulate charts, either by placing technical indicators, line studies, change time frames and load a template from a list of saved templates on the MetaTrader 4 platform.
These MT4 tool bars will be discussed on other MT4 setup tutorials that will outline each button on this tool bar and how to add and customize these MT4 tool bars.
3. MT4 Chart Window MT4 Setup - MT4 Tutorial for Beginner Traders
MT4 Chart Panel is the main area where forex currency charts are displayed and one-can analyze the trend direction of a currency whether up or down, place indicators for technical analysis & even place trading orders from these forex charts.
4. MT4 Navigator MT4 Setup - MT4 Tutorial for Beginner Traders
MT4 Navigator will contain information about forex accounts, whether demo account or real account, this window will also have a list of all the MetaTrader 4 technical indicators as well as EAs and scripts.
A trader can choose which trading account to login by expanding the Accounts menu, choose an technical indicator by expanding the indicator menu or choose an EA by expanding the EA menu.
4. MT4 Market Watch MT4 Setup - MT4 Tutorial for Beginner Traders
MT4 Market watch is used to show streaming quotes for forex currency pairs. This can list as many quotes provided by your Forex broker or a few selected by a trader. To save inter net band width, right-click inside the market watch window panel & select "Hide All", so as to hide the currencies that you are not transacting and save on internet band width.
6. MT4 Terminal MT4 Setup - MT4 Tutorial for Beginner Traders
This is the panel that's like the bank account trade area for your forex currency transactions, on this window you can view your balance, profit & losses statement, equity, margin used also retrieve a copy of all your forex trades transactions history.
This will also list all open trade transactions & calculate all the profit and loss in realtime as the currencies move up or down.
7. MT4 Connection Bar MT4 Setup - MT4 Tutorial for Beginner Traders
Red bars are for no connection, green bars show that there is connectivity to the servers & trade orders can be placed. These MT4 connection bars should always be green when one logged into their demo account or live account.
These main areas form the MT4 Platform Setup tutorial and will be the main areas to be covered in detail in next learn MetaTrader 4 platform tutorials. For now it is best to download MT4 platform and familiarize yourself with the MetaTrader 4trading software interface.
Why MT4 Forex Software is Required for Placing Trade Transactions with Brokers
MT4 Forex platform is the software that is used to access the currency market and interpret these currencies using technical analysis. There are various reasons why a trader requires to use a good platform. A good trading software can determine if a as a trader you make profit or not.
So why does a Forex Trading trader need a good platform:
To connect to the Trading Server:
To place a trading order when trading online a trader needs to use a platform which will connect to the trading servers of their forex broker & allow them to open & close orders. Good platforms will connect with ease to the brokers' servers & allow traders to place orders at any time from their desktop computer.
To analyze forex charts & currencies using technical analysis
To open a buy or sell order one needs to first interpret the direction of a currency pair. This is why all good platforms provide technical tools such as price charts, indicators & various different time frames from which one can interpret price moves using the chart timeframes of their choice.
MetaTrader 4 Platform Setup - MT4 Tutorial for Beginner Traders
From above MetaTrader 4 platform interface, the summary of all information required by a trader is provided on this MetaTrader 4 interface
- Connection - connection to the forex trading expert broker servers
- Forex Charts - price forex charts that display prices
- Toolbars - toolbars to add tools and technical analysis technical indicators
- Market Watch - for displaying available financial instruments
- Data window - provides forex account information and other technical indicator data
- Exchange rates - shows current market price of a currency pair
- Menu bar - Shows all menu items in MT4 platform
MetaTrader 4 Platform Setup - MT4 Tutorial for Beginner Traders
