[JJay1231]

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One guy in my group thinks he knows everything about anything, and is convinced that making money on options is like taking money from a baby.

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judging by his comment he knows absolutely nothing about trading options.

Options trading is much harder than trading other investment vehicles because of the fact that not only do you have to pick the right direction, but you also need to factor in "volatility" which is a very important consideration when trading options. If you get into a discussion on options with somone and they dont mention "implied volatility" you can rest assured they are completely ignorant on the subject.

If you buy options and pick the right direction, it is still possible to lose money on the trade because of Implied volatility, thats how important it is.

You are right that options trading (like Futures) is a zero sum game, but there is money to be made in options IF you actually know what you are doing.

"Buy low, sell high" (volatility that is [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]) and have a very firm grasp on Technical Analysis and it is possible to do well.

(and yes I traded options for 2 years, but just stocks now. May look to trade them again in the future)