Online data: Your own private Bloomberg terminal

Cris Sholto Heaton looks at the tools that can help us use the huge amount of information on the internet to make better investment decisions.

The internet has put a huge amount of information in the hands of private investors, from company financials to economic data. However, making sense of all this isn't easy: simply having more data doesn't help you make better decisions. What most of us need are tools that can let us analyse data quickly and use it to make better investment decisions.

That's where two impressive online services come in. The first is SharePad. This is run by Ionic Information, publishers of the popular ShareScope software, which has been the UK market leader for around 15 years. If you've never used ShareScope before, it's a comprehensive fundamental data and technical analysis (charting) programme that runs on your own PC (there's no Mac or Linux version). SharePad is the web-based evolution of this and can be used across all systems with a suitable web browser.

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Cris Sholto Heaton

Cris Sholto Heaton is an investment analyst and writer who has been contributing to MoneyWeek since 2006 and was managing editor of the magazine between 2016 and 2018. He is especially interested in international investing, believing many investors still focus too much on their home markets and that it pays to take advantage of all the opportunities the world offers. He often writes about Asian equities, international income and global asset allocation.

Cris began his career in financial services consultancy at PwC and Lane Clark & Peacock, before an abrupt change of direction into oil, gas and energy at Petroleum Economist and Platts and subsequently into investment research and writing. In addition to his articles for MoneyWeek, he also works with a number of asset managers, consultancies and financial information providers.

He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and the Investment Management Certificate, as well as degrees in finance and mathematics. He has also studied acting, film-making and photography, and strongly suspects that an awareness of what makes a compelling story is just as important for understanding markets as any amount of qualifications.