What it is: Primary workspace identity reference where verification links are dispatched.

What it is: Confidential local password used for non-Google portal entry.

Why needed: Secures your automation node from unauthorized access.

How to get it: Create a strong, unique password.

Example: 8+ characters with mixed casing and symbols.

What it is: Your unique identifier for Alpaca API access.

Why needed: Enables the engine to authenticate and route your trades securely.

How to get it: Log in to your Alpaca Dashboard, go to 'API Keys', and click 'Create New Key'.

Example: PKEXAMPLE123456789

What it is: The private password associated with your API key.

Why needed: Provides cryptographic proof of identity for every trade request.

How to get it: Displayed once immediately after creating your API key in the Alpaca Dashboard.

Example: sk_live_...

What it is: The specific algorithmic formulas executed concurrently against your watchlists.

Why needed: Defines the mathematical logic the engine uses to find trade entries and exits.

How to get it: Select one or more strategies based on your current market thesis.

Example: Check 'Mean-Reversion' for ranging markets.

What it is: A direct link to your cloud-hosted spreadsheet containing your target stock tickers.

Why needed: The automation engine continuously scans this sheet to dynamically synchronize your live trading watchlist without requiring manual terminal restarts.

How to get it: Open your Google Sheet, click the blue 'Share' button (top right), change General Access to 'Anyone with the link', and click 'Copy link'.

Example: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BxiMVs.../edit

What it is: The safety margin used to automatically close positions.

Why needed: Protects capital from flash crashes and locks in profits automatically without manual intervention.

How to get it: Determine your maximum acceptable loss or target gain per trade.

Example: Enter 5.00 to trigger a market sell if the asset moves +/- 5% from entry.

What it is: The percentage of your total account balance you are willing to risk on a single trade.

Why needed: It strictly protects your portfolio from severe drawdowns on a single bad position.

How to get it: Determine your personal risk tolerance per trade.

Example: Enter 2.00 to risk a maximum of 2% of your portfolio per trade.

What it is: The maximum number of concurrent active trades the engine is allowed to hold at any given time.

Why needed: It forces diversification by preventing the algorithm from dumping all capital into one or two assets.

How to get it: Decide how many simultaneous open positions you want to track.

Example: Enter 5 to allow up to five different stock lots open at once.

What it is: The starting cash value assigned to this specific automation shard.

Why needed: The engine uses this baseline figure to calculate exact position sizing and dynamic stop-loss bracket values.

How to get it: Check your brokerage account for the available cash you are allocating to this algorithmic strategy.

Example: Enter 100000 for a $100,000 starting base.