Drawing — text, numbers & icons

16 functions

DRAWTEXT(COND, PRICE, TEXT)

Write TEXT at PRICE on every bar where COND holds.

COND(condition): Which bars get the label.
PRICE(series): The level the text is anchored to.
TEXT(string): What to write. May be built per bar with VARCAT or STRFORMAT.

// a plain marker under the bar
DRAWTEXT(CROSS(K, D), LOW, 'buy'), COLORGREEN, VALIGN2;

// a live readout pinned to the last bar
DRAWTEXT(ISLASTBAR, HIGH,
         STRFORMAT('C {0:0.00}  chg {1:0.00}%',
                   CLOSE, (CLOSE - OPEN) / OPEN * 100)),
         COLORWHITE, FONTSIZE12, DRAWABOVE;

DRAWTEXT_FIX(COND, X, Y, TYPE, TEXT)

Write TEXT at a fixed position. X and Y are fractions of the pane (0–1); TYPE 0 left, 1 right, 2 centre.

COND(condition): When to draw. Usually ISLASTBAR — the position does not follow the bars.
X(float): Horizontal position as a fraction of pane width, 0–1.
Y(float): Vertical position as a fraction of pane height, 0–1.
TYPE(integer): Alignment: 0 left, 1 right, 2 centre.
TEXT(string): What to write.

// a heads-up panel in the top-left corner that stays put
// while you pan and zoom
DRAWTEXT_FIX(ISLASTBAR, 0.02, 0.05, 0, 'session high'), COLORGRAY;
DRAWTEXT_FIX(ISLASTBAR, 0.02, 0.12, 0,
             VAR2STR(SYSPARAM(4), 2)), COLORWHITE;

DRAWTEXT_LINE(COND, PRICE, TEXT, TEXTCOLOR, FONTSIZE, LINETYPE, LINECOLOR)

Write TEXT at PRICE together with a horizontal marker line.

COND(condition): Which bars get the label and line.
PRICE(series): The level for both the text and the line.
TEXT(string): What to write.
TEXTCOLOR(color): Colour of the text.
FONTSIZE(integer): Font size in pixels.
LINETYPE(integer): Line style, same codes as VERTLINE.
LINECOLOR(color): Colour of the marker line.

// a labelled level — text and line in one call, so they
// can never drift apart
STOP := LLV(LOW, 10);
DRAWTEXT_LINE(ISLASTBAR, STOP, 'stop', COLORRED, 12, 1, COLORRED);

DRAWTEXTREL(X, Y, TEXT)

Write TEXT at a relative pane position where X and Y run 0–999 (thousandths of width and height).

X(integer): Horizontal position in thousandths of pane width, 0–999.
Y(integer): Vertical position in thousandths of pane height, 0–999.
TEXT(string): What to write.

// same idea as DRAWTEXT_FIX but on a 0–999 scale and with
// no condition argument — it always draws
DRAWTEXTREL(20, 50, 'top left'), COLORGRAY;
DRAWTEXTREL(20, 950, 'bottom left'), COLORGRAY;

DRAWTEXTABS(X, Y, TEXT)

Write TEXT at an absolute pixel offset from the pane's top-left corner.

X(integer): Pixels right of the pane's left edge.
Y(integer): Pixels down from the pane's top edge.
TEXT(string): What to write.

// pixel-exact placement — unlike the relative forms this does
// not rescale when the pane is resized, so keep it near a corner
DRAWTEXTABS(10, 10, 'debug'), COLORGRAY, FONTSIZE10;

SUPERDRAWTEXT(COND, PRICE, TEXT, DIRECTION, OFFSET)

DRAWTEXT with explicit placement: DIRECTION 0 middle, 1 above the price, 2 below; OFFSET shifts it vertically.

COND(condition): Which bars get the label.
PRICE(series): The level the text is anchored to.
TEXT(string): What to write.
DIRECTION(integer): 0 centred on the price, 1 above it, 2 below it.
OFFSET(integer): Extra vertical shift in pixels.

// placement is an argument here rather than a VALIGN modifier,
// which keeps buy and sell symmetric and easy to nudge
SUPERDRAWTEXT(CROSS(K, D), LOW,  'buy',  2, 6), COLORGREEN;
SUPERDRAWTEXT(CROSS(D, K), HIGH, 'sell', 1, 6), COLORRED;

DRAWFLAGTEXT(COND, PRICE, TEXT)

Semi-transparent tooltip that appears at PRICE only when the crosshair is on a bar satisfying COND. Use \n for line breaks.

COND(condition): Which bars carry a tooltip.
PRICE(series): Where the tooltip is anchored.
TEXT(string): Tooltip contents. \n starts a new line.

// detail on demand — nothing clutters the chart until the
// crosshair lands on a signal bar
SIG := CROSS(MA5, MA20);
DRAWFLAGTEXT(SIG, LOW,
             STRFORMAT('entry {0:0.00}\nstop {1:0.00}',
                       CLOSE, LLV(LOW, 10)));

DRAWNUMBER(COND, PRICE, NUMBER, DECIMAL)

Write NUMBER at PRICE where COND holds, to DECIMAL decimal places.

COND(condition): Which bars get a number.
PRICE(series): The level the number is anchored to.
NUMBER(series): The value to write.
DECIMAL(integer): Decimal places to show.

// today's percentage change above the bar
DRAWNUMBER(ISLASTBAR, HIGH, (CLOSE - OPEN) / OPEN * 100, 2), DRAWABOVE;

// label every swing high with its price — no VAR2STR needed,
// the formatting is built in
DRAWNUMBER(HIGH >= HHV(HIGH, 20), HIGH, HIGH, 2), COLORYELLOW, DRAWABOVE;

DRAWNUMBER_FIX(COND, X, Y, TYPE, NUMBER, DECIMAL)

Write NUMBER at a fixed pane position, coordinates and TYPE as DRAWTEXT_FIX.

COND(condition): When to draw — usually ISLASTBAR.
X(float): Horizontal position as a fraction of pane width, 0–1.
Y(float): Vertical position as a fraction of pane height, 0–1.
TYPE(integer): Alignment: 0 left, 1 right, 2 centre.
NUMBER(series): The value to write.
DECIMAL(integer): Decimal places to show.

// a fixed-corner stat block: label on the left, value beside it
DRAWTEXT_FIX(ISLASTBAR, 0.02, 0.05, 0, 'ATR'), COLORGRAY;
DRAWNUMBER_FIX(ISLASTBAR, 0.12, 0.05, 0, EXPMEMA(TR, 14), 2), COLORWHITE;

DRAWNUMBER_DIF(COND, STEP, START, COUNT)

From the bar where COND holds, label COUNT consecutive bars with an increasing number starting at START, stepping by STEP.

Numbers sit under the low by default; add DRAWABOVE to move the whole run above the high. This is how a nine-count sequence is drawn.

COND(condition): Where the counted run starts.
STEP(integer): How much the number increases per bar.
START(integer): The number on the first bar of the run.
COUNT(integer): How many bars to label.

// a nine-count setup: the run starts when the close first
// falls below the close four bars earlier
DOWN       := CLOSE < REF(CLOSE, 4);
SETUP_START := DOWN AND NOT(REF(DOWN, 1));
DRAWNUMBER_DIF(SETUP_START, 1, 1, 9), COLORLIBLUE;

// the mirror image, counted above the highs
UP        := CLOSE > REF(CLOSE, 4);
TOP_START := UP AND NOT(REF(UP, 1));
DRAWNUMBER_DIF(TOP_START, 1, 1, 9), COLORRED, DRAWABOVE;

DRAWICON(COND, PRICE, ICON)

Draw icon number ICON at PRICE where COND holds. ICON may be a number or 'ICO<n>'.

Use 85 for buy markers and 97 for sell markers — signal scanning and alerts key off those numbers.

COND(condition): Which bars get an icon.
PRICE(series): The level the icon is anchored to.
ICON(integer): Icon number 1–117, or the string form 'ICO85'. See the Constants section for the full table.

// the platform-standard buy / sell pair — keep these two
// numbers, or scanning and alerts will not recognise the signal
DRAWICON(CROSS(DIF, DEA), LOW,  85), VALIGN2;
DRAWICON(CROSS(DEA, DIF), HIGH, 97), VALIGN0;

// FILTER stops the marker repeating through one long trend
ENTRY := FILTER(CLOSE > MA(CLOSE, 20), 10);
DRAWICON(ENTRY, LOW, 85);

ICON(POSITION, ICON)

Modifier form used after a condition: POSITION 1 anchors to the high, 0 to the low.

POSITION(integer): 1 anchors the icon to the high, 0 to the low.
ICON(integer): Icon number, or the string form 'ICO1'.

// a modifier, not a call: the condition comes first and the
// icon follows after the comma
CLOSE > OPEN, ICON(1, 'ICO1'), VALIGN0;

// the DRAWICON equivalent, which reads better when the
// anchor price is not simply the high or the low
DRAWICON(CLOSE > OPEN, HIGH, 1);

TIPICON(COND, PRICE, ICON, TEXT)

An icon that reveals TEXT as a tooltip on hover.

COND(condition): Which bars get the icon.
PRICE(series): The level the icon is anchored to.
ICON(integer): Icon number, as DRAWICON.
TEXT(string): Tooltip shown on hover.

// the marker stays small; the reasoning lives in the tooltip
SIG := CROSS(MA5, MA20) AND VOL > MA(VOL, 20) * 2;
TIPICON(SIG, LOW, 85,
        STRFORMAT('cross on {0:0.0}x volume', VOL / MA(VOL, 20)));

DRAWLASTBARICON(PRICE, ICON)

Draw an icon at PRICE on the most recent bar only.

PRICE(series): The level the icon is anchored to.
ICON(integer): Icon number, as DRAWICON.

// same as DRAWICON(ISLASTBAR, …) but without the condition —
// use it for "current state" markers rather than signals
DRAWLASTBARICON(HIGH, 1);

DRAWLASTBARTEXT(PRICE, TEXT)

Write TEXT at PRICE on the most recent bar only.

PRICE(series): The level the text is anchored to.
TEXT(string): What to write.

// a right-edge label that follows the last bar as it moves
DRAWLASTBARTEXT(MA(CLOSE, 20), 'MA20'), COLORYELLOW, ALIGN0;

DRAWLASTBARNUMBER(PRICE, NUMBER, PRECISION, COLOR)

Write NUMBER at PRICE on the most recent bar, to PRECISION decimals.

PRICE(series): The level the number is anchored to.
NUMBER(series): The value to write.
PRECISION(integer): Decimal places to show.
COLOR(color): Text colour — passed as an argument here, not as a modifier.

// the colour is an argument, so it can differ per line
// without repeating a modifier on each one
DRAWLASTBARNUMBER(HIGH, (CLOSE - OPEN) / OPEN * 100, 2, COLORRED), ALIGN0;
DRAWLASTBARNUMBER(MA(CLOSE, 20), MA(CLOSE, 20), 2, COLORYELLOW), ALIGN0;