3. Refine the periods, and other inputs

Upon deciding on the technical tools, the analyst must decide on the periods, and ranges for which values must be supplied to the software. Today’s traders have many advantages over those in the past, but diligence and patience may not be one of those. As we’re so used to having everything automated and performed by the computer with no questions asked, many don’t even bother to tinker with the minutiae that can in fact be all the difference between success and failure for the trader’s analysis.
Thus, before going any further, the trader must check which periods, which values provide the pattern that is most fitting for the price action on the chart. For example, for the RSI, will we pick a period of 14, 10, or 7 for the chart we examine? Or what will be the periods of the moving averages that constitute the MACD indicator? These can only be answered through trial and error, and for each price pattern, a different value may be necessary.