The PowerOptions site comes with saved parameter settings for In the money and Out of the Money values, and it also has several programmed stock lists such as S&P's, Dow 30's, IBD 100, Value Line's, Optionable Indexes and many more. These are just some examples that we have set up for you so you can see the value of the site. But please, don't feel as if that is all that can be done. Just as every investor has his or her own set of defining fingerprints, every investor also has a unique pattern for researching and investing in options.

So, how can the SmartSearchXL tool help you as an individual investor? Did you know that you could set your own parameters that best fit your investing strategies and save them on your account? Did you know that you could create your own lists of stocks for the SmartSearchXL Tools to scan through? Well, if you did not know this, or if you have done it before but now have forgotten how to do it, here is a step by step guide explaining the steps to create your own parameter settings and to create your own searchable lists...

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Steps to set up and save your own Personal Settings:

If you have not done so yet, go to http://www.poweropt.com/logon.asp.

Enter your User ID and password then click the [Log On] button. The ToolMenu will appear.

Click "SmartSearchXL" on the tools menu and you will see the SmartSearchXL Tool menu.

Select whatever strategy you are interested in researching.

As you enter the next page, a spreadsheet should appear with several different stocks and their available options.

Below that is the parameters/filter table where you can set the ranges for different criteria. If you scroll down to the bottom of the table there will be two blue buttons: [Submit these Settings] and [Clear these Settings]. Click the [Clear these Settings] button.

When you have done this, the number values in the parameter fields should empty. If they did not, try clicking the button again.

Now that your parameter fields are clear you can enter the values of the individual parameters that you want the system to search for.

RULES OF THUMB: Do not fill in every field in the parameter boxes. If you fill in every field and click [Submit] there will most likely be no options found that match all of those criteria. One way to use the tool is to write down a list of the parameters most important to you. Enter these one at a time and click [Submit] after you enter each new parameter. This will start you off with a lot of results at first, but step-by-step you can limit those results down to two or three pages. You do not need to put "0" into any field. Greater than "0" values make sense for things like the option volume and open interest, but you do not need to enter a value of greater than 0 and less than 2.1 Broker Recommendation. Just enter a value of 2.1 in the less than box. Do not enter greater than or less than signs in the field boxes.

Once you have set all the parameters to your specific search criteria, go to the top of the parameter field section and you will see a long text box. To the left of the text box it should say "Search Settings Saved As" and to the left of the box there should a blue [Save] button. When your parameters are set, click the [Save] button.

A window will now appear in the upper left of the screen asking you to name your settings. You can name it anything you want — "My Settings", or "Open Stock Price", or "High Volume Search", etc.

Once you enter a name for your settings, you will then be asked to enter a description for your settings. This is just a simple blurb describing your parameters so you can remember why you did that search or what that search should return. The description that you enter will appear below the drop down box in black letters. The description is optional. If you choose not to enter a description make sure that you still click the "OK" selection and not "cancel". If you click the "cancel" button your pre-set search will not be saved.

Once you have clicked "OK" to save your settings, the SmartSearchXL Tool will search the database using those settings. Your new settings selection will be saved in the settings drop down box and can be selected anytime you logon to your account. You can create numerous different settings of differing parameters.

So, you have now created your own set of settings that match your investing techniques. You can use these settings at any time to search against the recommended lists that have been programmed into the site for you. But what if you want to use your new settings to search against particular stocks or options that you are interested in? Here is how to create your own list(s)...

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Steps to set up and save your own Personal Lists:

1) If you have not done so yet, go to http://www.poweropt.com/logon.asp.

2) Enter your User ID and password then click the [Log On] button. The PowerOptions Tool Menu will appear.

3) Click "SmartSearchXL®" on the tools menu to get to the SmartSearchXL Tool menu.

4) Select whatever strategy you are interested in researching.

5) As you enter the next page, a spread sheet should appear with several different stocks and their available options.

6) Below that is the parameters/filter table where you just set up the criteria for your search and saved your personal settings. If you scroll down to the bottom of the table you will see the two blue buttons again: [Submit these Settings] and [Clear these Settings].

7) Just above the [Submit These Settings] button is a pull-down box. The blue text above the pull-down box will read: "Recommended Lists (Create/Modify Lists)".

8) Actually click your mouse DIRECTLY on the letters "(Create/Modify Lists)", not on the drop down arrow next to the box, but actually on the blue letters. A new page will appear that says, "Recommended Lists" in the yellow bar at the top. Below that are two sections: the "Subscribers Personal List" and the "Company List" section. (If you instead went to a page that has a listing of Recommended Lists in the glossary section, you accidentally clicked on the "Recommended Lists" letters instead of the "Create/Modify Lists" letters).

9) To create a new list, you want to click the [Show Personal List] button in the "Subscribers Personal List" section. The "Company List" section is for certain subscribers only. Your login password WILL NOT work in that section, so do not try it.

10) The next page you will go to after you select the [Show Personal List] button should have a header on the top that has "(your name)'s Personal Lists".

11) You will now see a prompt that informs you that you have no saved lists and if you wish to create one click the [New] button. To start a new personal list, click the [New] button by the drop down box at the top of the page. The box will open up and you will be prompted to "Enter a New List Name". Type in your desired list name. You can also add in a comment about your stock list if you like.

12) Once you enter in your desired list name and description go to the empty space under the heading "paste new symbols here". Enter in your stock symbols separating them by using a comma with no space or just a space between them. Once you have entered in your stock symbols click the [Save] button to the right of the box. Your new stock list is now saved.

13) To return to SmartSearchXL, go to the top of the page. There you will see the line of Location: Home > Tool Menu > SmartSearchXL Menu > SmartSearchXL Click "SmartSearchXL" to return to the previous page.

14) As you return to the SmartSearchXL Tool, select your settings from the settings drop down box. Then select your named list from the "Recommended lists (Create/Modify list)" drop down box. You should see your list in the menu along with the PowerOptions pre-set stock lists.

15) Once your settings and your list are selected in their respective drop down boxes, click the [Submit these Settings] button at the bottom of the screen. SmartSearchXL will now search the entire universe of stock/option combinations for results that meet both your saved criteria and are on the stock symbol list that you created.

16) If you wish at any time to make changes to your lists or add new lists, simply follow the same process. When you go into "Show Personal Lists" after you have saved a list or two, you will have three choices: [New], [Edit], and [Delete]. Simply select the function you wish to use.