Articles on MQL4

Programming in MQL-4 starts with an introduction into the editor, where programs for the MetaTrader4 terminal are written.

Columnist Rosh

You may download the last version of the terminal from Alpari's web-site at Download . There is a forum at the web-site of the writers where you may find a lot of useful information — http://www.metaquotes.ru/forum. Distributive size takes less than 3 Mb. It is small enough for the terminal, which provides powerful facilities for indicators and expert advisers writing. Omega distributive size takes about 200 Mb, which of course inspires with respect. Though, it’s very difficult to overcome it, as it demands administrator’s rights on computer and costs a lot.

Once MetaTrader4 is installed into the appropriate terminal, MetaEditor may be activated by F4. Interface and help system are in English. In order to switch to Russian you should choose «View»-«Languages»-«Russian». The language won’t switch into Russian at once. At first, you have to close MetaEditor and start it again. When starting MetaEditor checks the language and then starts with appropriate language file of the interface.

The simplest way of studying a language for me is to open any user’s indicator (algorithm of which I understand very well) in the distributive and try to understand the written code. Writers’ forum is an additional source of knowledge. As an example let’s open user’s indicator Alligator.mq4 in folder c:Program FilesMetaTrader 4expertsindicators (if MetaTrader4 is put into the folder by default). This indicator is probably known or heard by every beginning trader. If we cursor to the word iMa at line 70 and press Ctrl+F1, contextual help for this function will occur. This function represents readings of the inbuilt technical indicator Moving Average. It is perhaps the most popular technical indicator.

Hereafter, when pressing the button «Synchronize» (when targeting the prompt message «Synchronize the dictionary» emerges) the «Navigator» panel appears, where in the list of other technical indicators the line Moving Average focuses. Another way of calling the contextual help is to press Ctrl+T. Press Ctrl+D (Dictionary) to call the «Navigator» panel.