Q.

Answer
First you need to take a basic course in Forex trading. This information is free online. No one can give you a comprehensive explanation on reading the forex charts here. There are three websites I have found to be helpful in studying the basics of forex online.
1. www.babypips.com
2. www.forexprofitsignals.com

Number 1 will give you a basic free education on forex
to get you started with a demo and even live account.

Website number 2 will show you a very simple way to start
making money on the forex market today. Get through the
course in website number 1, open a demo account. Get the information from website number 2 and you will be on your
way to make money on forex. Don't be afraid. Fear is the key
to lose money in Forex. If you just do what you see in website
number 2, after completing your course from website no.1,
you will become successful intrading the forex market.

Goodluck

Can you tell me about Forex and currency trading?

I really should get more educated before I decide if I would like to do this. Basically if you could give me a brief overview of currencty trading. Also, how much would I need to have in my forex account to actually make it worth the time and effort of trading and to be able to make any money? I'm a college student so a couple hundred bucks is probably all I could put in adn that's even stretching it a little.

Answer
Currency trading is risky business, but you can make money with it. You just need to trade smart.

Before you start trading, you should learn as much about forex as you can to prepare adequately. Many websites will advise you to trade with leverage to increase your profit. Leverage is ratio between lended capital and invested capital. For example if brokers offers you leverage of 100:1, it means that if you invest $100 you will be able to trade with $10.000. While leverage can bring you higher profits, you can also lose all your invested money very quickly.

Most brokers have automated systems that can issue a stop order to some trades to protect their interests, so you can never lose more than what you invested, but it is also possible that some brokers don't have these systems and in that case you can be responsible for losses that outweight your investment. That is why you should always read brokers margin agreement.

My advise is that you ALWAYS trade with leverage 1:1 and NEVER trade beyond 10:1, no matter how good you become at trades. People who make money with forex never trade with more leverage than 10:1.

Also as a beginner, you can use some trading platform like Metatrader 4 that offers demo account with virtual money. It allows you to try out forex trading without any risk and that way you can see whether you can make money on forex or not.

Just remember greed is your enemy No.1. Also don't expect high profits with forex. People who make money on forex are doing it slowly. If you expect a return of 200% within a week, or month, than forget it and try something else.