i have never done trading before, and i hope i will be able to open a account with either scottrade or sharebuilderi think if i buy x number of stock of company A, i am long on it, right?how do i go short on company B, is it called a futures trading or options trading?...can you point me to some website which can explain to me about it?practical way to do it will be appreciated.i think it can be done on online websitessome one read my mind (i am not surprised the whole world is not thiniking about the same trade).i do want to go long EMC anticipating that their price has to increase, else VMW price has to decrease.keep in mind that i am not going to put a lot of money in this trade, only around $2-4k.

If you want to go short on a stock, you need for your broker to *borrow* the stock for you, from some investor who is long on the stock. Obviously, you need *very* good credit to do that. "He who sells what isn't his'n, must buy it back or go to prison."And if your broker lends you the stock to sell, HE is on the hook for it as well. Futures trading is options trading, and it's not the same thing as going short on a stock. Discount brokers are just fine for people who don't need the services of a full-price broker - but it doesn't sound like that describes you, does it?

You are missing some info for more exact answer."Long" is a time frame of more than 1 week if you are a short term trader, or 2.5 yrs if you write a LEAP option.If you buy a stock today expecting its value to increase by X% in 1 yr. yes you are long. (Actually 3 months is considered long) (Like riding a tricycle)"Short"? - Do you mean as in a week time frame, or shorta specific equity (stock) in the anticipation it will go down.You can short a stock anticipating it decreasing in value, thisis risky in that you are on the hook to deliver that stock at a specific price. If you buy a put option you have the right, but not the obligation to perform. You can short company B: naked, w/ put option, or a futuresoption if you are talking about a commodity (gold/grain)(Like riding the space shuttle)There are several diffirent risk factors involved in your question depending on specifics.If you are going to trade on your own you might considera full service brokerage. I personally run all my trades by a full service broker so my enthusiam can be brought back into the realm of reality.Google your subject or Investers Business Daily or The Motley Fool or Barrons all online with honest educational site.

You can sell stocks short or buy (long) at Scottrade.You might want to create a "practice" portfolio at http://www.top10traders.com - it's free - each month the site ranks the best performing investors.You might want to think about going long EMC, and short VMW.Good luck.

From the sound of your question, I don't think you have much experience in trading at all.Not only is it not a good idea for you to begin trading without any training, but the market is so volatile ( shakey) right now, that even the savvy investors are losing money.I would hate for you to lose your money like so many have.On the Internet, look up virtual trading and try some of the free trading programs that are available - I learned a lot that way and there are sooooo many mistakes you will make without losing any real money.I trade on Scottrade and haven't had any problems with them.Sharebuilder is different - you can't buy and sell as freely because your stock orders are combined with other clients before sent in.The term buying long commonly means buying low and selling high. Whereas shorting a stock is much riskier and you should not even try it until you learn more. It's where you enter your position at a high point in hopes of it going down, whereby you sell back the stock at the low point and make your gain, but this is for more knowledgeable traders.

Just go short (i.e. sell company B) but remember you will require margin in your account to cover the cost of the shares that you are short (or at least 50%) - the long side (bought company) require you paying for them up front (or 50% if a margin account). Going short requires an "up tick" in the price, that is - the stock has to be going up - when you would like it to be going down. Dangerous game, going short - unlimited risk!Stan

Being 'long' just means buying the stock. Going 'short' means short selling the stock, selling stock which you don't own. Behind the scenes, this involves you borrowing the shares from your brokerage and selling them. At some future time you must buy back the shares and return them. If the price of the stock has dropped you can buy the shares at a cheaper price than you sold them, thus pocketing the difference. Going short stock has nothing to do with futures or options. When you open an account you will see that short selling is very easy to do (you will need to open a margin account, though).I realize you're just starting out, and we all make mistakes when starting out. But I would like to point out that shorting VMW doesn't make much sense to me. This is the hottest IPO since Google, and it's been climbing ever since it was offered. Why in the world would you be thinking of shorting it? You might say the PE ratio is high, but this is quite natural for new high growth companies. You mentioned that it 'has to go down.' All I can say is those are the last words of many short sellers. What ever you do, choose a stop loss limit (say 15%) and stick to it! I commend you on coming up with a plan and being willing to risk your money on it, but do so wisely. If your plan turns out to be wrong just take the 15% loss and forget about it. Don't let it turn into a 50% loss (or more!) because you are convinced that it 'has to go down.'Best of luck!