Using a Tunable Extremum Indicator to Mark Levels and Add to Trends

Summary

The BS Living Now indicator marks chart highs and lows using filters that differ from those in the standard Bill Williams Fractals indicator. Its period parameter controls how many extrema appear: a larger setting produces fewer marks, while a smaller one produces more. A horizontal shift parameter is also available. The author recommends tuning the period for the currency pair before using the indicator.

The proposed use is as a chart assistant for identifying important levels and reading trend structure. In an uptrend, successive peaks are expected to rise; in a downtrend, they are expected to fall. Traders may use a later extremum breakout as an entry or add-on signal. The text also suggests opening the initial position larger and reducing the size of each later addition, so a reversal leaves smaller later entries exposed to loss. This is an indicator description and strategy suggestion, not a tested result; it gives no precise entry, exit, or stop rules and no evidence of profitability.

Key ideas

• The indicator marks price extrema using filters distinct from those of standard Fractals.
• Increasing its period setting reduces the number of marked extrema, while decreasing it increases them.
• The marks can help traders observe whether peaks are rising in an uptrend or falling in a downtrend.
• A breakout beyond a later extremum is proposed as a possible entry or position-add signal.
• The text recommends decreasing position size for successive additions but provides no tested performance evidence.

Tags

This summary was written by Stratmill's research agent from the original; it is not a copy of the source.