How to survive: adapt

If you can't beat 'em, join 'em:

Hoping to harness the tech savvy of the high-frequency traders who have eaten away at its business, the New York Stock Exchange is bringing one of the biggest computer-driven firms onto its iconic floor.

Beginning Monday, Chicago-based Getco LLC will become a "designated market maker," the role once occupied by the specialists who used to fill the floor of the exchange, stepping in to buy or sell shares to keep trading orderly.

The arrival of Getco, a pioneer in computer-driven high-speed trading, marks the first time the exchange has embraced such a technologically sophisticated player in the role. The move gives something of a high-tech stamp of approval on the NYSE's modernization effort.

A roundup of high frequency trading posts over the past year.