I've seen it mentioned a couple of times. It seems to be a fairly robust product/service. If one wanted to shift their stock trading over to TOS and begin looking into options, would that make sense? Do the fee structures make sense if you are not going to be heavily trading stocks or options, at least in the short term?

Other thoughts about the strenghts and weaknesses of TOS from anyone familiar with it?

They are not the cheapest out there in terms of commissions. But - you know what they say about getting what you pay for, right?

I find the value proposition to be very enticing. Their execution has been excellent for me, and I like their tools - a lot.

Be aware that some of the "complete" types of services (e.g. checkwriting, etc) are not on par with some of the bigger brokerages. So if you need that, you probably want to keep your existing account wherever has those features.

How do you think TOS may perform in a bank run (great depression style) compared to the big brokers?

Tough to know.

Penson (their clearing firm) appears to be less exposed to the sort of systemic risk that many of the other brokers are...... in the end its tough to know how any of these guys will do in a TRUE crisis situation.