Navigation & Controls
Learn how to navigate the VS3D interface and use the common controls shared across all views.
Navigation Bar
The navigation bar runs across the top of the screen and provides access to all views and settings.
| Menu | Contents |
|---|---|
| Home | Returns to the home page with a summary layout |
| Dashboard | Opens the customizable drag-and-drop dashboard |
| Position Reports | Positions by Strike, Positions by Expiration, Position Grid |
| Greek Profiles | Gradient Chart, Simulation Grid |
| Options | Option Prices, Greeks by Strike, Greeks by Expiration, Greek Grid |
| Help | Documentation, Release Notes, Discord, About VolSignals |
The Position Reports, Greek Profiles, Options, and Help items are dropdown menus. Click on them to reveal their sub-items.
Notification Bell
The bell icon in the top right provides system notifications about platform updates and data status.
User Menu
Click the user avatar in the top right corner to access theme toggle (light/dark) and sign out.
Common View Controls
Most views in VS3D share a common set of controls and features. Understanding these will help you navigate any view.
Product Selector
A dropdown menu in the toolbar that lets you switch between tracked products (SPX, VIX). Changing the product refreshes the view with data for the selected underlying.
Current Price Display
When available, the toolbar shows the current (or historical) price of the selected product, the change from the previous close as both absolute value and percentage, and a green or red color indicating positive or negative change.
Live / Historical Toggle
Located at the bottom of each view, this toggle switches between real-time and historical data modes:
Live Mode (green indicator)
- Data streams in real time during market hours
- The timestamp of the most recent data update is shown
- No manual navigation needed — the view updates automatically
Historical Mode
- Use the date picker to select a trading day
- Use the timeline controls to navigate through the trading session
- Drag the timeline scrubber along the slider to scrub through the day
Configuration Panel
Most views have a gear icon on the right side that opens a configuration panel. This panel slides in from the right and contains settings specific to the current view, including participant filters, display options, strike grouping, and color normalization.
Zoom Controls
Views with charts or grids provide zoom controls: Minus (−) to zoom out, Plus (+) to zoom in, Reset Zoom to return to default, and Fit to View to auto-fit all data.
Participant Filter
The participant filter lets you choose whose positioning data to display. Select from Market Maker, Firm, Broker Dealer, Customer, or Pro Customer. You can select multiple participants; the default is Market Maker.
Color Normalization
Several views use color-coded heatmaps to represent data intensity. The normalization method controls how data values are mapped to colors:
| Method | Description |
|---|---|
| Linear (Min/Max) | Maps the full range of values linearly from minimum to maximum |
| Percentile Range | Maps values based on percentile rank, reducing outlier impact. Configurable lower and upper percentiles (default: 5th to 95th). |
| Standard Deviation | Maps values based on distance from the mean in standard deviations |
| Z-Score | Similar to standard deviation but centered on zero |
| Manual Range | Lets you specify exact min/max values for the color scale |
Keyboard Shortcuts
When in Historical mode, use these keyboard shortcuts to navigate:
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
| Home | Jump to the start of the trading session |
| End | Jump to the end of the trading session |
| ← | Step to the previous time interval |
| → | Step to the next time interval |
URL State Persistence
VS3D saves your view configuration (selected product, zoom level, participant filters, etc.) in the URL. This means you can bookmark a specific view configuration, share a URL with a colleague to show them exactly what you see, and use browser back/forward to navigate between configurations.