The best way to begin your education is to pick some stocks and memorize key levels on the price chart. Then watch the ticker until some quirks in behavior start to appear. Pay extra attention when price enters action zones, i.e. areas surrounding important support levels. Observe how the tape reacts and see if you can predict key reversals in your head.
Traders can now access four levels of ticker tape information.
In the past, professionals relied on the manual ticker, an early version of what CNBC now flashes across the bottom of the screen. As processing power grew, vendors added historical time and sales grids featuring all trading activity in a spreadsheet format. Always look outside the tape flow before execution. At the most basic level, they manipulate trader emotions against the flow of orders coming in the door. Stock insiders keep one eye on their market and the other on external conditions that affect prices.