How To Use CryptoTrader
Navigate the app interface and understand each panel
Simulation Mode vs Live Mode
🎮 Simulation Mode
What it does: Runs the entire trading system without using real money. The app processes market data, generates trading signals, and simulates buying and selling as if real trades were executed.
When to use:
- Testing new settings or coins
- Validating strategy performance
- Learning how the app works
- Training neural models
- Before switching to live trading
Key indicator:
Mode shows "Simulation" in settings; no real money is at risk.
💵 Live Mode
What it does: Executes real trades on your Robinhood account using actual funds. Every trading signal results in a real buy/sell order.
When to use:
- After successful simulation testing
- When confident in your strategy
- With real capital you can afford to lose
Key indicator:
Mode shows "Live" in settings; real money is at risk.
⚠️ Warning: Only use after extensive simulation testing!
How to Switch Modes
- Click the ⚙️ Settings button (gear icon)
- Find the "Mode" dropdown
- Select either "Simulation" or "Live"
- Click Save
- Restart the trader for the change to take effect
Understanding the Dashboard Panels
The main dashboard displays real-time information about your trading activity. Here's what each panel shows:
📊 Process Status Panel
Top Section
What it shows: The current status of backend processes:
- Neural Runner: Generates trading signals (long/short) based on trained models
- Trainer: Trains neural networks on historical data
- Trader: Executes buy/sell orders based on signals
Status indicators:
- 🟢 Running - Process is active
- 🔴 Stopped - Process is not active
- Training % - Progress of current training
Controls: Click process names to start/stop them individually, or use Run All / Stop All buttons in the top right.
💹 Account Status Panel
Left Side
What it shows: Your trading account overview:
- Account Value: Total worth of your trading account
- Starting Balance: Your initial account value
- Gain/Loss: Total profit or loss amount
- Return %: Percentage return on investment
In Simulation: Shows simulated account progression.
In Live Mode: Shows your actual Robinhood account value.
📈 Account Value History Chart
Center/Right Side
What it shows: A line chart of your account value over time:
- X-axis: Time (hours, days, or weeks depending on view)
- Y-axis: Account value in USD
- Green line going up: Profitable trading period
- Red line going down: Losing period
How to read it: A steeply rising line means profits are accumulating. Flat periods mean no active trades. Sharp dips indicate losses.
🎯 Trading Signals Panel
Center Column
What it shows: Current trading signals for each coin:
- Green candles: "Long" signal (buy - expect price to go up)
- Red candles: "Short" signal (sell/short - expect price to go down)
- Coin name + timeframe: Which coin and which model generated the signal
What it means: When signals align across multiple timeframes for a coin, the trader executes a buy or short order.
💰 Profit/Loss (PnL) Panel
Right Column
What it shows: Breakdown of profits and losses:
- Realized PnL: Profit/loss from completed trades
- Unrealized PnL: Current profit/loss on open positions
- By coin: PnL broken down for each cryptocurrency
Green numbers: Profit. Red numbers: Loss.
📋 Trade History Panel
Bottom Section
What it shows: A detailed log of all trades executed:
- Coin: Which cryptocurrency
- Type: Buy or Sell (Long or Short)
- Price: Entry or exit price
- Quantity: Amount of coins traded
- Timestamp: When the trade occurred
- PnL: Profit or loss from this trade (for exits)
How to read it: Scan for successful trades (high PnL %) and review losing trades to understand signal performance.
🧠 Neural Status Panel
Left Side
What it shows: Training status for each coin's neural networks:
- Coin name: BTC, ETH, SOL, etc.
- Training status: In Progress or Idle
- Training time: Timestamp of last successful training
- Signal status: Whether signals are being generated
What to look for: All configured coins should show "Idle" (training complete) or "In Progress". Signals should be active for coins you want to trade.
⚠️ Alerts Panel
Optional - Shows when needed
What it shows: Important system notifications:
- Errors or warnings
- Missing Robinhood credentials (in Live mode)
- Insufficient account balance
- Process failures or crashes
Action required: Red alerts typically require immediate attention.
Common Tasks
Start Training Neural Models
- Go to Settings and select coins to train
- Click the Trainer button (or use process controls)
- Watch the Neural Status panel for progress
- Training completes when status shows "Idle" and signals appear
Start Live Trading
- Ensure models are trained (Neural Status shows "Idle")
- Click the Run All button (top right)
- Neural Runner and Trader processes will start
- Watch the Account Value History and Trade History for execution
Stop All Trading
- Click the Stop All button (top right)
- All processes (runner, trainer, trader) will halt
- Current open positions will NOT be closed automatically (depends on your settings)
Switch Between Simulation and Live
- Click the Settings button (gear icon)
- Find the "Mode" dropdown
- Select "Simulation" or "Live"
- Click Save
- Click Stop All then restart the trader for the change to apply
Monitor Live Trading
- Keep the dashboard visible during trading hours
- Watch for red alerts indicating problems
- Check Account Value History for profit/loss trends
- Review Trade History to understand execution patterns
- If issues appear, click Stop All and investigate
Retrain Models After Market Changes
- Retraining is recommended weekly or after major market shifts
- Click Stop All to halt current trading
- Click the Trainer button to start fresh training
- Wait for "Idle" status in Neural Status panel
- Resume trading with Run All
Troubleshooting
❓ No trading signals appearing
Possible causes: Models not trained, trainer process not running, insufficient historical data.
Solution: Check Neural Status panel. If status is "In Progress", wait for training to complete. If "Idle" but no signals, retrain the models.
❓ Trader process won't start
Possible causes: Missing Robinhood credentials (Live mode), Neural Runner not started first, insufficient balance.
Solution: Ensure Neural Runner is running. In Live mode, verify Robinhood credentials are saved. Check your account balance.
❓ Account value not updating
Possible causes: Trader not running, no active trades, display refresh issue.
Solution: Verify Trader process is running (Process Status panel). If running but not trading, check Trading Signals panel for signals.
❓ Training takes very long
Possible causes: Large historical dataset, system CPU intensive, first time training.
Solution: First training can take hours. Subsequent retrains are faster. Monitor CPU usage. Consider training during off-hours.
❓ Red alert about credentials
Possible causes: Robinhood API credentials missing, invalid, or expired.
Solution: Go to Settings → Robinhood section. Regenerate keypair if needed. Re-enter credentials and click "Test" to validate.
❓ Trades executing slowly or not at all in Live mode
Possible causes: Market latency, Robinhood API delays, insufficient balance, symbol not available on Robinhood.
Solution: Review Trade History for actual executions. Some coins have liquidity restrictions. Check Robinhood API status. Consider larger profit targets.
Best Practices for Using CryptoTrader
🔍 Monitor First, Automate Later
Don't just set it and forget it. Monitor the first 24-48 hours of live trading closely. Watch for unexpected behavior or missed signals.
📅 Regular Retraining
Retrain models weekly or after significant market events. Market conditions change, and models need to adapt to new patterns.
📊 Analyze Trade History
Review completed trades weekly. Look for patterns: Are certain coins consistently profitable? Are certain timeframes more accurate?
⚠️ Stay Alert to System Errors
Red alerts mean something needs attention. Don't ignore them. Stop trading if multiple errors occur and investigate.
💾 Keep Backups
Your settings and trained models are valuable. Regularly back up your resources folder to prevent data loss.
📈 Start Small, Scale Gradually
In Live mode, begin with small position sizes. Increase size only after consistent profitability over weeks or months.