Do NOT buy software products from HUBB Co. based out of Australia!
If you are not familiar with HUBB, they make what some poor souls mistake for trading software. The first product they created is called Option Gear. It is supposed to be an options analysis tool. The funny part is that it crashes so often that it is nearly impossible to keep the program open long enough to figure out that it does not work!
If you are fortunate enough to get the program to work, you will find that the data is SLOW to load and many times, the program locks up due to the way information travels. This is not a program for anyone looking to trade while the markets are open. Data does not flow quickly enough from their servers to your computer to get ANYTHING done. Their data source is mediocre to poor at best. Many times, entire strikes are missing even from stocks as common as those in the S & P 500 Index.
They claim to have back data, meaning past stock and option data in their product. The problem is that much of that data is corrupt and in many cases, it is actually missing. They have a REAL problem looking for options once a year has passed. At that point, LEAPS are taken off their database for no known reason and there is no solution in the near future.
If you think the data travels slowly, you should see what happens when you try to run the data through their option models. Not only do the models leave a lot to be desired, they can be deceptive. Their default setting for option models is that for european options. However, most equities trade on american exercise. Therefore, any option strategy placed on an equity will show incorrect information. In many cases, the software will tell you that a calendar spread in IBM can trade for a credit! If the SEC and FTC are listening, please do something about these frauds.
Of course, the answer would be to switch to the american model as a default for equities. Why is that not done? Because as painfully slow as the european model setting is, the american one is significantly worse and makes the software crash more often! If the SEC and FTC are reading this, please grab a copy of the software and see for yourself!
BUT it doesn't stop there. As if Option Gear was not enough of an abortion, the following year, they released a piece of software called Profit Source. This was supposed to be the answer to the general public not being able to pick stocks. Here's what it entails: It is not quite as slow as Option Gear. It does not crash as often as Option Gear. However, if you play with it enough, you can make it crash on demand.
I spoke with Hubb regarding the fact that while in backtest mode, if you click certain buttons repeatedly, the program crashes EVERY time. They are now aware of the problem but do not know when they will be able to fix that! Can you believe it?
Then, I thought that I would only have to pay the $4000 for the software. I was told that I could use alternative data sources. What I came to find out a year later when my Hubb data feed ran out is that THE PROGRAM WOULD NOT OPEN! That's right! If you do not purchase their data feed, FOREVER, you forfeit your use of the program!
Add to this the fact that just about everything in Profit Source can be gotten off either the internet or off the free software platforms that most brokers offer. The only thing that cannot be gotten for free is their Elliot Wave module, but there are other companies that offer that for less.
They also have a System Trader that is anemic at best. To pretend to give value, the software includes many precomputed scans. In fact, they boast that their Elliot Wave scans are 66% accurate. This number comes DIRECT FROM HUBB! Please, SEC and FTC, if you are listening, try the product out yourself and see whether you get anywhere near 66% accuracy. The number is closer to 6%.
They now have a new product called Value Gain, which I'm sure follows the same path of destruction. I refuse to purchase it.
That said, their tech support staff is among the best I've ever encountered. Then again, why shouldn't they be? They get plenty of practice. I used to be on the phone helping these poor souls debug their software at least once a month! I finally gave up. They should beta test their software before releasing it to investors.
Their staff always puts on the face of concern and willingness to help. The staff would be a welcome customer service asset anywhere. However, this is not an attack on the staff. It is a concern regarding the software products that somehow pass through an inspection system.
If I buy a car that breaks down once a week, the fact that the staff works round the clock to fix my recurring issues does not make the car a quality automobile. I'm not saying that they are not trying. I'm saying that they should work harder at getting their programs to at least work the first time they release them to the public and they should not rely on the public to fix even the most basic problems with their software.
They also do have a 30-day return policy. However, in the beginning, one does not know whether the crashes and the slow response times are user related or software related. It wasn't until several months later when I started trading more volume and needed to use software extensively that I found out I was spending more time finding and helping fix bugs than trading.
I'm sure they have collected a ton of testimonials in defense of their shells posing as programs. However, testimonials are by definition biased. An employee will ask someone how their trading is going. If they say it's not good, they move to the next person. If they happen to have one good trade in the recent past, that is taken as a testimonial. There is an enormous difference between many individuals having one good trade that they talked to someone about and having more than a handful of people actually trading consistently and profitably.
I beg you, SEC and FTC, please look into HUBB. Find out why they are doing this to people.
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