thoughts on mice
OK, so this won't be the most thrilling thread, but what about this idea for a mouse?
Instead of the USB cord being attached, just have a slot on the mouse for a standard USB cable. This could be designed to mount flush with the front and bottom of the mouse, maybe even sort of locking in. The reason that this comes to mind is that I have a trackball plugged into my keyboard. I only need about 6" of cord, but I've got this long one hanging off. Not the end of the world, but from a Jobs-ish sort of aesthetic it would help.
What does everyone think?
btw mods, this seems like future hardware to me, but feel free to move.
ps edit: and before anyone says wireless, I don't want a mouse with batteries.
[ 09-15-2002: Message edited by: blue2kdave ]</p>
Instead of the USB cord being attached, just have a slot on the mouse for a standard USB cable. This could be designed to mount flush with the front and bottom of the mouse, maybe even sort of locking in. The reason that this comes to mind is that I have a trackball plugged into my keyboard. I only need about 6" of cord, but I've got this long one hanging off. Not the end of the world, but from a Jobs-ish sort of aesthetic it would help.
What does everyone think?
btw mods, this seems like future hardware to me, but feel free to move.
ps edit: and before anyone says wireless, I don't want a mouse with batteries.
[ 09-15-2002: Message edited by: blue2kdave ]</p>
Comments
I'm using a Microsoft Wireless Optical Explorer mouse and I gotta tell ya its a pleasure to use and feels great (damn Apple for making me buy a Microsoft product!).
A two button wireless optical mouse with a scroll wheel is just what we need, Apple are you listening?
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Wireless mouses at the moment are really unprecise, and will waste all the precition-related goodness of being optical. It will grant you more freedom (less at LAN
Ever tried to game with a wireless one?
This is a much better idea than a wireless mouse. You'll be at your computer when you mouse (or type), you don't need the distance wireless provides. Apple's solution to cable clutter is a good one (if yo buy it all from them) -- Monitor to keyboard to mouse. Not three seperate cords. Adjustable cords would tweak this set-up to perfection, and you wouldn't need batteries! No docking, no recharging, no swapping. A properly managed cord beats all the wireless set-ups currently out there.
It's a good idea. Indeed, you are in very rare company here.
The only way I could see a wireless mouse working is with built-in bluetooth and a gyroscopic (self winding) mouse where in your movement of the mouse generates the power needed to transmit the signal. It'd be pricey though. And then do you really want more potential cancer causing radio/electric/magnetic/whatever signals traveling through your hand?
Cords are better, period.
1. A simple, one button mouse and keyboard suitable for the average user. Similar to what Apple offers today with their Pro Mouse and keyboard.
2. A REAL pro mouse with multiple buttons (I'm thinking 3, no more), optical tracking and built-in cord management via a REAL pro keyboard as mentioned previously, that wouldn't differ too much from the current ones except perhaps be slightly larger, and offer a single firewire port.
Any more thoughts? I love this thread by the way.
just me two cents
<strong>A two button wireless optical mouse with a scroll wheel is just what we need, Apple are you listening?</strong><hr></blockquote>
Hmm. Well, it's not from Apple, but I might as well write a mini-review in this thread.
I just picked up a <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/mouse/womb_info.asp"; target="_blank">Microsoft Wireless Optical Mouse Blue</a>. Disturbingly enough, that abbreviates to Microsoft WOMB. Read into that what you will.
*ahem*
This is, as you probably guessed, a wireless optical mouse. It features two buttons, and a scroll wheel which doubles as a button when clicked. Surprisingly, this is incredibly affordable for a wireless mouse, retailing at approximately $39 US.
Inside the box, you get the mouse, the 'base station', an USB-PS2 adapter, a pair of AA batteries, instruction booklet, and the Intellipoint software on CD.
The mouse itself is very sturdy and feels solid. It took some getting used to, as my previous mouse was a Contour MiniPro. This mouse feels heavy after the tiny portable one, but after just one night I was used to it.
Gripping the mouse is surpisingly comfortable, and conforms to my hand extremely well. The buttons are perfectly placed, and the scroll wheel just feels nice. I was afraid the 'button' ability of the wheel would be useless, but there's just enough firmness to the wheel that it doesn't roll when you click it.
The base unit itself is about the size of a bar of soap. A big bar of soap. The nice thing is that it has a light which stays solid when it has a signal from the mouse, and blinks when it does not. If the signal is lost, you press the reset switch on the base (conveniently right on the top) and then the small button on the bottom of the mouse. I've had no problem getting the mouse to re-detect when I accidentally unplugged the base during use, and haven't had any random disconnects either.
Oh, and the software is nice. However, I would recommend against installing it from the CD. For some reason, my iBook hated the disc it came on, and almost refused to mount the disc at all. After about two minutes of spinning up and down erratically, it mounted. Then it kept spinning up and down during the install process. I would recommend you download the Intellipoint drivers from the website, rather than using the disc.
The software itself is fairly intuitive. Seperate tabs allow you to control the speed of mouse movement, button behavior (both universal and app-specific) and other functions. My only gripe is that it installs a panel in your System Preferences, but the panel simply launches MS's own configuration app, rather than letting you access the settings from the System Preferences screen.
Overall, I'm very happy with this mouse for the price I paid. My only qualm is the batteries, since I would've preferred the base station to act as a charger. Still, I think this is finally an affordable & reliable wireless mouse for everyone.
There is one other thing that would make this better: Bluetooth. I would love to see Bluetooth wireless mice & keyboards, since that would likely eliminate the need for base stations in the next year or two. If Apple does integrate BT into their systems next year, as rumored, it won't be long before such a thing would be feasable for manufacturers.
<strong>I always figured wireless could work with docking stations that powered up the mouse/keyboard instead of disposable batteries. Wireless keyboard, just put it back into its docking station when your done with it. Same with mouse.</strong><hr></blockquote>
Good point. I just don't want to have to change batteries or have them run out right on deadline when I don't have any more batteries. A dock would be perfect for charging, a very acceptable alternative.
Wireless? Neat, but not really needed, since I always use my mouse near my keyboard. Since there's a USB port on the keyboard, I never have any problems with the mouse cord being too short. It's just the right length for me, I use a Logitech mouse.
As for a two button scrollwheel mouse being confusing, that's just nuts. Windows is confusing but that didn't stop M$ from gaining an OS monopoly. Actually in OS X I find that the ability to use a right mouse button makes things LESS complicated, because many commands are in contextual menus. Also, if I had a single button mouse I'd have to memorize a bunch of modifier keys, so using my mouse would take two hands instead of one. That's more complicated, not less.
It's a myth that Mac users are too dumb to be able to figure out a mouse with more than one button. A recent study actually found that Mac users are smarter than Windows users, so it follows that Mac users can handle mice with more than one button.
But it can't just be any wireless mouse. It should have this "slot" for a mini-USB cable (like most digicams use) at the top, so that it can become wired when you really need precision, or just when it needs to charge. That's the secret?it'll draw power from the USB busses when not in use, to recharge it's internal batteries. Of course, an optional charger wouldn't be such a bad idea, either. Maybe the wireless base could be a charger. But the best idea would to not have to have a cumbersome, unsightly 'base station' for it, perhaps just a little doohickey that sticks out your USB slot (a la D-Link USB Bluetooth deal). As far as what it should use... I'm not real sure about Bluetooth; it's made for items that communicate with each other randomly. Do you really need your cell phone talking to your mouse? Do you really want other computers talking to your mouse? Do you want others being able to monitor your mouse/keyboard via Bluetooth networking? I don't think so. Current wireless technologies are more than adequate, if not better than Bluetooth in terms of range, anyway.
[ 09-16-2002: Message edited by: bradbower ]</p>
Knowing me, though, I would quickly lose a wireless mouse . . . especially in a college dorm.
<strong>pull their heads out of their arrogant asses and give </strong><hr></blockquote>
is such speak really necessary? i WAS enjoying this thread...
Better yet. make it user configurable whether just the side-motion produces a click, or if you need to lean to one side while simultaneously pivoting forward, to make it click. Sounds complicated in writing, perhaps, but it would be really easy in practice. It also avoids the un-ergonomy of multibutton mice.
To top it all off, it should have ribbon controller in the front instead of a scrollwheel, preferably an optical variant sitting underneath the clear plastic.
I'll second Bradbower on the idea of a "pluggable" wireless mouse. It's a great idea! It's much cheaper than a docking station, and you can actually use the thing while it's charging. Docking station could be an optional gadget(also like Bradbower said) for the rich and lazy. Just "park" the mouse when you turn the computer off, and you'll never have to plug it in.
<strong>somebody correct me if I am wrong but I believe Bluetooth needs a powered USB port and the keyboard's extra USB port connection is not powered.</strong><hr></blockquote>
The keyboard hub IS powered. Try using an optical mouse connected to the keyboard. See that red light? It doesn't power itself...
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Originally posted by FlashGordon:
somebody correct me if I am wrong but I believe Bluetooth needs a powered USB port and the keyboard's extra USB port connection is not powered.
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The keyboard hub IS powered. Try using an optical mouse connected to the keyboard. See that red light? It doesn't power itself...
<hr></blockquote>
all you had to say was that the keyboard port is bus-powered, but you can be a jerk about it. I do not have a pro keyboard or an optical mouse to do your little fancy test. Thanks for the correction, just next time don't be an ass about it. <img src="graemlins/smokin.gif" border="0" alt="[Chilling]" />