Markowitzman
There's no way that 90% of people lose 90% of their money in less than a month. Even the dumbest trader would need a little more time than this!
There's no doubt that the vast majority of people lose, however. This link provides details of many studies
http://www.investorhome.com/daytrade/profits.htm
Re. the OP's questions. I do a lot of day trading and it's not easy. Psychologically, it's very taxing. Most people will find it easier to make money through short-term trading (2-10 days) rather than day trading. If you haven't a record of consistently profitable s/t trading, you'd be mad to think you could do so day trading.
If you want to day trade stocks, then you have to choose US markets. Stamp duty and commissions make Irish/UK/Euro stocks unfeasible. You can day trade the UK and European futures markets (no stamp duty there) but you'd want to be very experienced to consider futures trading - when day trading futures, you're up against pros who do it for a living.
The obvious day trading broker is Interactive Brokers. Best commissions, best executions, solid platform aimed at active traders. They also offer a simulated platform (although it's not the same thing when real money is on the line). IB charts are awful, however. QuoteTracker.com offers free and excellent charts - many traders use the IB data feed in conjunction with QT charts.
All US brokers demand a min of $25000 to day trade stocks. You are allowed intraday margin of 4:1 - that is, you can buy $100,000 worth of stock if you have $25000 in your account.
With futures, most brokers will allow you to day trade with a min of just $5000. Futures are very leveraged - one Dow futures contract controls about $70,000 (Euro and UK futures are similar). It costs about $2 to buy/sell a contract (again, commissions for Euro futures with IB are similar).
As an earlier poster mentioned, the real volatility is in far east markets at the moment. IB allows traders to trade global markets, so it is an option, but substantial profits (or losses) are also possible with the more relaxed European and US futures markets.
Stop losses are a must. You're doomed if you day trade without them. That said, inappropriate stop loss placement can see your account die by a thousand cuts.
For the most part, conventional fundamental analysis is useless in day trading. You need a strong technical awareness. The best intro to day trading charts can be found at [broken link removed] - 100 charts or so detailing entry, exit, etc.
Would be better to read some of Trader Mike's material before you try the above charts - they do presuppose a certain degree of knowledge. Check out
[broken link removed]
Trader Mike's site has a load of info for newbie traders in general. He talks a lot about money/risk management, which is the most crucial area of day trading.
Would not bother investigating level 2 quotes - a lot of games played there.
www.trade2win.com is a forum where you’ll likely find lots of your questions answered. There are also a ton of good day trading blogs out there.
If you’re serious about day trading, I would do as much research and practice as possible before committing any money.
Regards