There are many online futures brokers. Since nobody like to jump from a broker to broker, the first step in futures trading is to find a good broker which would fit your trading needs. It is recommended to dedicate time for a brokerage research - it will save you time time and emotions in the future.
When it comes to the finding of best futures broker, a few points should be considered:
1) Is a futures broker is in good standing with the NFA (National Futures Association)?
2) Did a broker have any complaints and/or violations in past?
3) How professional is selected broker? (call them and ask for a somebody who may help you to understand how futures trading works)
4) What account funding requirements have to be met to open an account with a broker?
5) How big are the broker's commission rates and any other fees that may be charged?
6) Does a broker provide any educational material?
7) Does a broker provide any material for analysis? (quotes, charts, news, research results, etc)
8) How fast are placed orders executed?
Futures trading is highly leveraged financial instrument. With relatively small investment a commodity trader can control many times greater values. As an example a gold contract worth $75,000, depending on the market, can be traded with an initial margin of about $3,000 - $4,000. High leverage of the futures attract many speculators which make them highly volatile.
High volatility and high leverage provide ability of high profit in a short period time with relatively small margin amount if a trader is on the right side of the market.
Naked options trading is very risky - many people lose money trading them. It is recommended contacting your broker or investment professional to find out about trading risk and margin requirements before getting involved into trading uncovered options.