See this reply from Wouter of the Grail Ssytem to an user,
Please pay special attention to point #6 bolded part.
Reply from Tssupport...QUOTE...
Grant
Thank you! The above announcement is indeed a milestone for The Grail and I am happy to share with you some of the benefits that Grail users can be looking forward to:
Integrating Grail into the TS platform, will provide the following benefits to existing Grail users:
1. Grail will no longer be backed by a one man business with its associated risks. Partnering up with a larger company, will thus ensure continuity for Grail users, in case anything should happen to myself, and users will be ensured that the software remain available, usable and being further developed for many years to come.
2. TS will provide Grail complete access to fully integrate Grail into their trading platform. This will provide significant scope to increase both the user friendliness and performance of Grail.
Indications thusfar shows that we should be able to more than double the speed of GGO/GWFO/CASB optimizations, even without the effect of multi-threading.
Integrating the GGO/GWFO/CASB into TS will mean that the Grail is no longer standalone software. This means that the end user no more has to perform the tedious process of transferring strategies to/from the GGO SmartEditor.
In other words, the user will be able to setup his GGO/CASB optimization within TS itself just like one would setup optimization ranges when performing a Genetic optimization using the built in TS genetic optimizer.
Also, integrating Grail into TS will allow users to use the GWFO with protected strategies which is not currently possible.
3. Allow simplified installation & registration procedure. Once Grail is integrated in TS, users will not have to go through the tedious process of re-registering Grail over and over again.
4. Up until now, the greatest limitation for further expansion of Grail was the fact that it was a standalone application. Thus it had to deal with lots of intricacies & limitations in communicating with the underlying platform. Now that Grail will be integrated into TS, it will greatly simplify these intricacies and remove virtually all existing architectural limits, thereby opening up huge possibilities for further enhancements.
Here I am thinking in the line of applying Grail at a portfolio level etc.etc. which was not possible as standalone software. For example, it would be a major convenience to be able to load a list of instruments and then have Grail automatically run single walk-forward analysis and/or cluster analysis for each instrument in the table. By testing the same strategy across other similar/related instruments, we will further reduce the chance of over-fitting, making sure that only truly robust strategies are finally implemented.
5. As part of the integration process the, CASB will get a complete new facelift to improve the user friendliness of the front-end and making it more intuitive for the end-user.
Obviously this is going to take some time, but the end-result will be more than worth the wait.
6. The decision to join TS (and moving my whole family to Florida) was not taken lightly. One of the main factors that swayed my decision was the fact that TS took me into their confidence sharing sensitive information about certain functionality to be released in the new TS 9.0.
While I cannot share details at this moment, I can say that TS will be releasing some extremely powerful functionality with TS 9.0.
In my own opinion, this functionality is going to take the TS platform to a new level where it will be very difficult for any other platform to compete. In this regard I had to consider the impact on MultiCharts users of the Grail software.
Whereas less than 20% of the Grail user base are currently “MultiCharts only” users, I had to give priority to the overwhelming benefits that the more than 80% other users are going to enjoy in the long run.
In short, the implication of the new technology to be introduced by TS, will result in MultiCharts not being compatible with a large number of extremely powerful commands and functionality to be introduced in TS 9.0. In fact, from here on MultiCharts will have great difficulty to maintain its EasyLanguage compatibility.
While TS has been working on this new technology for more than 5 years, it is now time for TS to move the goal posts and I have to admit, I think they are indeed doing so! Realistically speaking, I cannot see how MultiCharts will be able to catch up with the new TS9.0 functionality soon. (It might take them several years) As soon as I can share more detail, it will be more clear what I meant above.
7. The backing provided by TS, both financial and also in terms of manpower, will allow us to further develop Grail to its full potential. This will include much improved documentation as well as courses and/or tutorials teaching Grail users how to get the most out of their GWFO/CASB.
8. Technovest(Pty)Ltd will continue to provide technical support to all existing users of the Grail standalone software, regardless of the platform it is being used with. Technovest(Pty)Ltd will also continue to issue licences whenever an existing user need to install the software on a new computer.
9. Finally I have to mention that before I made my final decision, I spent a considerable amount of time with TS top management. I was especially impressed with the quality of people I met at the TS head office. Honest people, willing to walk an extra mile even during difficult times.
After all, TS is the true inventor of EasyLanguage, a language that has become an industry standard and changed all of our lives. Without TS, there would have been no Grail in the first instance!
Indeed, exciting times are lying ahead. In fact, I predict that together with the new functionality to be released in TS9.0, the new TS9.0 with Grail is going to establish itself as the true leader when it comes to systematic trading.
Wouter
UNQUOTE