What a workspace is#
A workspace is a saved chart layout: which symbols, in which panes, with which indicators, drawings, and time range. Keep as many as you like, each for a different purpose. One comparing index funds, one watching a single stock.
Workspaces live in the Charts group in the sidebar. Create one with the plus button or CmdN. They save automatically as you work. Beyond that:
- CmdS exports the active workspace to a
.tomlfile. A portable, human-readable backup you can store anywhere. - CmdO opens a workspace from a
.tomlfile. - Right-click a workspace in the sidebar to rename, duplicate, save to file, or delete it.
The workspace is a text file you own. That is the same philosophy as the rest of Pyx: see configuration.
Add symbols with the picker#
Press a in a workspace to open the symbol picker. Type a ticker or company name. Results from your own holdings surface first, then the wider market. Enter adds the symbol to the active pane. A star marks a favorite and floats it to the top next time.
You can also chart your whole portfolio or a single account as one series, next to any ticker. Overlaying your portfolio on SPY is one keystroke sequence, not a spreadsheet project.
Split the view into panes#
The layout switcher splits the workspace into a single pane, two columns, or a 2x2 grid. Each pane has its own series, indicators, and drawings. Click a pane to make it active. The active pane is what shortcuts and the toolbar act on. Arrow keys move between panes.
The 8 chart types#
Cycle types with t (ShiftT goes backward) or jump directly with Cmd1 through Cmd8:
| Type | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Line | Closing prices as a simple line |
| Candles | Open, high, low, close per period |
| Hollow Candles | Candles drawn hollow on up periods |
| Area | A line with the space beneath filled |
| Baseline | Movement above and below a reference level |
| Log Line | A line on a logarithmic scale |
| OHLC | Open-high-low-close bars |
| Bar | A bar chart |
If candles and OHLC bars are new to you, how to read a price chart explains them from zero.
Normalize modes for honest comparison#
A $30 stock and a $3,000 stock cannot share a price axis meaningfully. Press n to cycle, or click the LIN / % / LOG chip in the pane's top corner to pick directly:
- Absolute: real prices, no adjustment.
- Percent: every series rebased to the same starting point, so you compare percent change.
- Log Scale: equal vertical distance for equal percent moves.
Percent mode is the honest way to compare two investments. Absolute mode on two different price levels is a picture, not a comparison.
Ranges and exact dates#
Presets run 1D through MAX. Step longer with ] and shorter with [. For exact windows, type start and end dates as YYYY-MM-DD in the toolbar, or use the calendar pop-up. Typing "today" works.
The 12 indicators#
Open the indicator panel with i. Every indicator is tunable (window, color, placement), and you can add the same one twice with different settings, such as a fast and a slow moving average. Each has an info button in the app with its formula, what it measures, and common pitfalls.
| Indicator | Default | Explained in |
|---|---|---|
| SMA | 20 periods | Moving averages |
| EMA | 20 periods | Moving averages |
| WMA | 20 periods | Moving averages |
| VWAP | cumulative, no parameter | Moving averages |
| RSI | 14 periods | Momentum indicators |
| MACD | 12 / 26 / 9 | Momentum indicators |
| Bollinger Bands | 20 periods, 2 std dev | Volatility and drawdown |
| ATR | 14 periods | Volatility and drawdown |
| Drawdown | no parameter | Volatility and drawdown |
| Volume MA | 20 periods | Volume and correlation |
| OBV | no parameter | Volume and correlation |
| Rolling Correlation | 30 periods | Volume and correlation |
Trend indicators draw on the price. RSI, MACD, and correlation get their own panel below it.
The 8 drawing tools#
A toolbar on the left edge draws directly on the chart. Drawings anchor to bars and prices, not pixels, so they survive zooming, panning, and restarts.
| Tool | Key | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Trend line | l | A diagonal line along a move |
| Horizontal line | h | A flat price level |
| Vertical line | v | Mark a date |
| Rectangle | r | Highlight a zone |
| Channel | c | Parallel trend lines |
| Fibonacci | f | Retracement levels |
| Text | x | A note on the chart |
| Measurement | m | The move between two points |
Escape returns to the normal cursor. Delete removes a selected drawing. CmdC and CmdV copy and paste drawings, including across panes. A color swatch recolors the selection.
Your portfolio on the chart#
This is the part no market charting site can draw: your own history. Buys and sells pin to the price line where they happened. Dividends, earnings dates, and splits ride an events lane above the time bar, aligned to its ticks, with a detail card on hover. When several events share a day, they cluster into one marker.
Your notes join the same lane as small flags at their dates. A note linked to a tag flags every member security's chart. The inspector's Events tab toggles each category per pane, and the choices persist with the workspace.
The legend#
A legend strip lists every series with its color, current value, and change. Hover a series to highlight it and dim the rest. Mute a series to hide it without removing it. The legend itself can hide behind a chip when you want nothing but price.
Room to think#
The drawing toolbar and the layout rail both collapse to compact chips, giving the chart back the gutters. Focus mode clears both at once. On narrow windows they collapse on their own and open as popovers.
The right-hand inspector has three tabs: Indicators for what is computed, Events for what is plotted, and Objects for a live tree of every drawing and indicator in the workspace, with visibility, lock, and delete per item.
Where to go next#
- Candles, scales, and normalization from zero: Reading charts
- Every chart shortcut on one page: Keyboard and Vim
- Open any holding straight into a pane: Holdings