It is often difficult to compare the drawdowns from iteration to iteration during development because the DD scale is dynamically changing (as a % of chart? or...).

A special setting could allow to fix the scale to X$ with N steps.

Thank you.

Plot 2 flat lines at max and min when you want the chart not to scale.

plot ("DDmin", -200,MAIN+AXIS2,BLACK+TRANSP); does not seem to do the job.

Actually, makes it worse: a line at -200 guarantees that the DD is at least that and Zorro adds even more room beneath the -200 line. (when the max DD is -100)

Is there a different way to make it work like you suggested?

It seems that Zorro sets max DD scale at appr 20-25% of the profit.
Can this be made adjustable?

I don't even know what a DD scale is. I only know that if I could affect drawdown just by setting some scale, I'd be rich long since.

By "DD scale" I meant the proportion of the main chart dedicated to displaying DD.

If profit is 20K, than the scale for displaying DD will be from 0 to -4-5K...or appr. 20-25%.

Can this please be made adjustable?

We can only adjust what exists, but drawdown has no "scale". It's simply the money you lost since the last peak.

:-))

Thread Subj: Allow to fix the scale of DDs on a CHART.

By "DD scale" I meant the proportion of the main CHART dedicated to DISPLAYING drawdown.

Can the CHART drawdown AXIS scale be made adjustable, please?

I believe we are still talking past each other. When you look at a chart, you see numbers on the right and numbers on the left. Left is the asset price and right is the money on your account. The axis runs from min to max. You can scale it all the way you want with your mouse. But that won't affect the proportions on the chart. Only way to reduce the DD proportion is writing a better strategy.

...And the whole purpose of this simple Feature Request - a 9-message thread by now - was to make chart proportions - between profit and dd - adjustable.

Specifically, be able to fix the maximum displayed DD in absolute - in $$ - rather than it being determined as a "proportion" of the chart/ relative to profit (so it seems).

Ok, I give up.

jcl, c'mon...

On the attached pic, the DD AXIS SCALE is from 0 to -2000....making the drawdowns hardly visible..

I want to be able to set it to be from 0 to -1000...or to -500

Either with existing tools, or with a new feature.

If your drawdown is hardly visible because of the large equity range, just don't plot the equity.

https://manual.zorro-project.com/colors.htm

Thanks, Petra.

This works, but just a drawdown chart is somewhat unusual to comprehend.

Why not have both looking properly?

You heard it, DD is in account money units and has no own "scale".

I never asked for "DD's own scale" (or axis)..

Based on a profit number, Zorro somehow sets the right "account money unit scale" from -X to + Y.

And I am asking for a way to set that X myself.

X is automatically set so that the chart shows the full range. For what purpose do you want not to see the full range, compared to just not plotting the equity?

I do want to see the full range, but current Zorro's definition of the "full range"/automatic scaling is kinda "imperfect"....If Equity range is -450 to +10000 ,why would Zorro have it from -2000?

IMHO, a more practically useful approach would be to add some 20% of each "side" separately, i.e. 20% to the maxDD below and 20% to the equity high above.

Then the right axis range will be from -540 to 12000, all information is clearly visible at a glance and there is no need to waste time commenting/un-commenting ColorEquity=0.


But my original feature request was about the ability to set a hard limit on the displayed DD range, in absolute.

With automatic scaling, gridlines change as well..and gridlines are quite useful to QUICKLY judge e.g. average drawdown or equity development for a certain market period...

Hmm if you set the begin to -540 instead of -2000 then the DD would look almost the same. So I do not really understand what you want to achieve.

Maybe you can paint an image to explain what you want and how it should look.

I hope it does not look almost the same. When set at -540, it will be discernible better (unlike in the pic above) and gridlines step will be smaller - so it we be possible to judge the average/max level of a dd in a certain period better.

On a second thought, I realize that if maxDD is very small relative to the total eq range, then indeed - as you say - such slight magnification will hardly make a significant difference and ColorEquity=0 is the way to go.

However, in most situations during development the relation is smaller and such suggested automatic scaling will be enough out of the box.

Ideally, the profit and dd should be scaled separately: fixed split of the chart space - 80(profit)/20(dd) , profit axis is from 0 to +(Y+15-20%) , dd axis scale is from 0 to - (X+15-20%)...both will be clearly visible, guaranteed
That's how other trading sw does it.