Volume¶
What it shows: how much was traded in each candle, and its average over a set number of candles.
How people use it: volume above its average marks an unusually busy candle, which makes a breakout or reversal more convincing.
Pairs well with: a breakout signal such as Donchian Channels or Pivot Points.
Settings¶
| Setting | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Length | 20 | How many candles the average uses. Longer makes the average steadier. |
You set the defaults on the Indicators page. A condition can use its own settings, which override the defaults for that condition only.
Ready-made conditions¶
| For | Condition | Fires when |
|---|---|---|
| Buy or sell | Volume above its 20-candle average | every candle Volume is above the Volume SMA line |
"Above", "below", "is" and "rising" / "falling" stay true on every candle the state lasts, so they can fire many candles in a row. Numbers in the condition names follow your settings on the Indicators page.
Warnings you may see¶
- "It compares a line with itself (same indicator, same settings), so it can never fire. Give the two lines different settings.": both sides of the condition are the very same line. Pick a different line or different settings for one side. With ">=", "<=", "==" or "touches" the message ends "so it is always true" instead.
- "Length must be between 1 and 1000" / "Length must be a whole number": shown in the condition editor when a condition's own value is out of range. Fix the number; the condition can't be saved until then.
Where they show: on the Strategies page, open Create entry conditions / Edit entry conditions (or the exit ones). Each condition's messages appear right under it. The setting messages ("must be between", "whole number", "must be one of", "must be smaller than") start with the indicator's short name, for example "MACD: Fast must be between 1 and 1000", and keep the conditions from being saved until fixed. The other warnings never block saving and are repeated in the strategy's Entry or Exit section, starting with the condition's name.
Good to know¶
- It is worked out from volume only. Because it uses volume, on On candle touch it reads the last closed candle (the forming candle's volume is not known yet).
- To ask for a bigger spike, use the condition's multiplier (for example volume above 1.5 × its average).
- It needs some history before its value settles: the length in candles (20 at length 20). Apathia loads that history for you.
- Volume shows no direction, so the same condition is offered for buys and sells.