This is not a rant about all the trading platforms, I'm done with that....it is what it is. Time to stop ranting about it, and instead try and learn what I can about how it functions.

Thanks to fuzzyjr's assistance in once again providing me with where to find the trading on alternative exchanges I've learned something new. What I love about this forum, as compared to just about anywhere I've ever posted before....its nice to have a site like agora where retailers can share information and ask questions without being attacked.

I consider myself as having a better than average grasp on the markets, but I also know that there's a lot of areas where my knowledge is lacking.

One thing for sure though, I don't trust L-II. If there's a huge block on the ask or bid, I've long considered it to be a possible contrarian (or opposite) indicator. 300+ lots on the bid gives the "impression" of big demand, but I've seen those big blocks evapourate. Likewise on the ask...500 lots seems like a wall, and can discourage a retail investor from buying in..."man, look at all those shares being offered for sale, looks like someone is dumping".

That brings me to Omega, and "iceberg" orders. In looking at stockwatch (thanks again fuzzy) I see that there was volume of 3,200 on that exchange, with shares trading as high as $1.68....that's .13 cents higher than the 1.55 we closed at, 8% higher. Give me 8% returns compounded annually and I'll double my money in less than 10 years.

That prompted me to check into Omega....and I found their 2014 "subscriber manual" on line:

http://omegaats.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Omega-Securities-Inc.-Subscriber-Manual-06-10-2013.pdf

I'll need to read it more, but so far this part jumped out at me.

Order Priority Queue Omega ATS and Lynx ATS have order books that follows price/time priority rules for all visible posted orders. Hidden liquidity (hidden portion of iceberg orders) will always have inferior priority to visible liquidity at the same price level.

I don't think its too hard to figure this one out....and iceberg it is said, is something like 80% underwater and not visible. So I assume an iceberg order is like an iceberg.....we retailers can see but a small portion of the whole order.

When I look at yesterday's activity, where I bought 500 shares...but they went through a secondary exchange like Omega, it made them somewhat invisible....checking through my broker which only reports TSX volume the trade didn't appear at all.

Nothing nefarious, just another example of the way the "smart money" imo is able to operate under the radar....buying low and selling high while the bleacher crowd does the opposite. There was a buy at $1.68 today, but its not showing....how might that have affected charts if it had been more openly reported?