New York, Feb 15: While critics welcome the New York Stock Exchange's recent moves to improve its electronic trading capabilities, some question whether it could hasten the demise of its embattled open-outcry system. Last week, the Big Board approved a list of new rules in an attempt to address the questions of efficiency and speed. Among them were the elimination of certain trading restrictions that add to the time it takes for investors to execute orders. The exchange said the new system would be employed for smaller, less liquid stocks. Meanwhile, the NYSE's specialists -- firms that use their own capital to buy and sell specific listed stocks on the trading floor in order to dampen periods of volatility -- would continue to handle larger orders. The new trading proposal "does not in any way represent an end to the specialists on the floor of the NYSE," said Eugene Goldman, partner in Washington, D.C.-based law firm of Will McDermott & Emery. "It may cut into some of the things they do, but on balance they intend to assess the marketplace's efficiency in serving those who are trading, and to get the best and most efficient price," he added. The NYSE has long contended that its hybrid of technology and human intervention serves the marketplace better than purely automated alternatives. But the accession of John Thain, a proponent of increased technology, to the post of NYSE chief executive has created speculation in some quarters that the Big Board is taking the first steps toward abrogating the role of the specialists. Thain "knows how to trade equities. He is an expert in that field, and there is always a need for improvement on the technology front," said one former NYSE insider. Bureau Report