In an ideal world, technical analysis tries to model psychological effects that are statistically significant in a population of humans. Don't buy just because

In an ideal world, technical analysis tries to model psychological effects that are statistically significant in a population of humans. Don't buy just because you see a W, or crap like that. But if you understand why a W is an interesting pattern, and what it's based on, it can be a valuable signal to digest. I don't know enough to trade purely based on technicals, and I'm not sure anybody should. But when I want to buy a stock I wait until it's oversold (http://clearstation.etrade.com/cgi-bin/details?Symbol=goog http://clearstation.etrade.com/cgi-bin/details?Symbol=goog) That usually saves a few bucks.