Mouse replacements

That's why optical mice were invented. Optical mice don't have a ball and roller mechanism. The rubber ball is great for picking up dust, crud, food scraps, debris, etc from the table top or mouse pad surface. It then transfers most of this to the black rubber ball. The weight from your hand provides the compression necessary to make the debris permanent. The only way to remove the debris, is to scrape it off the hard plastic roller with something that doesn't gouge plastic, such as a wooden ice cream stick. The ball should also be washed with water and mild soap. Don't use alcohol or other solvents.

If the mouse ball is damaged, you will feel a "bump" in the damage area. Procedures for replacing mouse balls are commonly available:

Recruiting the assistance of a teenage gamer might be instructional. If not, the Ifixit instructions are usually sufficient.

Actually, I did repair computer mice in the distant past, where the cost of a new mouse made repair worthwhile. However, with the introduction of imported mice, I found it unprofitable and generally unproductive. When I was doing service calls, I usually had a few mice in the car, which I exchanged for the defective or dirty mouse. Same procedure for dirty keyboards, which were also not worth cleaning.

Cleaning mice and keyboards in bulk worked for me. When I exchanged a dirty mouse for one I had cleaned, it went in a large cardboard box. When the box was in danger of overflowing, I would systematically clean and repair whatever was in the box. This was done while watching YouTube videos or video recordings. This made the time fly sufficiently that it wasn't worth recording the time required. My guess(tm) was about 15 mice per house.

Nope. I buy the mouse switches in bulk, typically 50 or 100 at a time. I replaced all 3 switches even if they were working. I don't want to see the mouse or hear from the customer complaining about defective mouse switches rising from the dead.

NiB? Oh, "New In the Box". I call it "New Old Stock".

I don't see much in the way of infant mortality of dead on arrival mouse switch problems. Most of the failures I see are from owner mishandling and contamination by food, solvents, cleaners, and various forms of dirt. These take a few months to become a problem. My present mouse, on my desk, has lasted about 3 years of continuous use. Dell MS116t1:

That's exactly the same model that I use and recommend. I count 9 such keyboards either attached to a computer or in boxes. Add one for parts. I tend to buy them if they appear at the local thrift shops or garage sales. The most common failure mode is the white lettering on the keys eventually rubs off. The keys are easily removed and replaced.

Likewise. However, I've learned to adjust fairly quickly. I have the same problem with organ and piano keyboards. To make things difficult, my hands are fairly small and not really suitable for playing standard piano keyboards (23.5 or 24.0 mm including a 1mm space between white keys).

Currently, I'm still doing local service calls. It helps to have a working computer with me to make sure the customers network and internet connection are working. For that, I use a Dell Precision M4600 and an Acer CB-311-9H-C1JW for meetings, note taking and quick online searches.

Oops. Of course, I lookup the sizes AFTER I post the wrong numbers. It should be:

I measured my hands at about 175mm. Add 2 * 8.5mm for key dip. I can just barely do an octave if I stretch.

I've played on a narrow (5.5") keyboard and found it much easier on my hands. However, it's not going to compensate for a lifetime of clumsy fingering, some injuries and a general lack of competence. Fortunately, this is not a problem on a QWERTY typewriter keyboard, which was originally designed by Sholes for women's smaller hands.

Why? I can get a new mouse for less than a dollar. Even a teenager's time is worth more than that! Buy them in dozens and you can just pull one "out of stock" when the one you are using fails.

Most people are clueless as to the amount of kit that gets discarded

I need some HDMI cables, some more patch cords, and some "mickey" power cords. I'll visit one of the recyclers and buy 10 pounds of "cable" for $1. Do you know how many patch cords you can get in a 1 pound sack? Maybe I'll splurge and spend *2* dollars!!

The problem is you are stuck with the ubiquitous items -- if you want something special, you're out of luck *or* have to wait for the right opportunity (e.g., I needed some 10 ft VGA cables and 10 ft USB cables for a KVM I was installing; both are typically *6* ft long so my needs were out of the ordinary) OTOH, I was quick to grab a bunch of SpaceBalls when I stumbled on them! "Scrap" in their eyes...

But, mice and keyboards are ubiquitous. There, it's just a matter of style/preference -- if I wanted *white* mice, I probably would be hard pressed to find them. Or, if I insisted on Dell (and, the silver/black combination). But, if I can find a device that is "acceptable", then its just a question of how many I want to store

When hardware is cheap, it's silly to waste time on repairs: pick up new product and give them your old/broken product (this is how I handle my servers -- as long as the old one and the new one have comparable amounts of materials inside, it's a wash: "No charge" I swapped 33 500G drives for 33 *new* 4T drives a month or two ago; they have equal RECYCLE value -- to THEM!)

The left click button usually fails first.

These days I still use Logitech mice and have done since they first popularised the mouse. Prior to that I used their Modula 2 compiler which was pretty much their *only* product (born of ETH Zurich).

I have given up on tailed mice now - preferring wireless mice.

Annoyingly I do as a result now have a box full of working random dongles and mice that need matching up some day when I get a ROUNDTUIT.

I probably spend more time on the keyboard than with the mouse as most of my activities are text-based. Keyboards get "crusty" (foodstuffs and other debris falling "into" them) but I pull the keycaps, periodically, and soak them in soapy water while vacuuming the "base". It has become a popular "game" to fit the caps back onto the keys from memory.

I have about a dozen M705s "in stock". (I used to keep one with each laptop until I was "disappointed" by a dead battery) But, they need to be *held*. The Dell black/silver mice are low enough in profile (and mass) that they can be moved about with just the fingertips of a hand while the hand itself remains "anchored". So, the shoulder is "un-loaded" in the actions.

I see no advantage to "cutting the cord" as there are still a shitload of cords "required" (keyboard, monitor, USB to UPS, serial to digitizing tablet, digitizing pen/puck to tablet, USB to page scanner, SCSI to film scanner, network cable, motion controller, USB to MIDI controller/preamp, MIDI preamp to MIDI keyboard, microphones to MIDI preamp, SAS to DAS, power cords, etc.)

I always chuckle when I recall how USB was going to "solve" this cabling problem (vs serial/parallel/SCSI). Eliding one (two if you count the keyboard) doesn't really make a measurable difference.

The M705s have a place adjacent to the battery (inside the cover) to store the remote. And, they use a "unifying" remote so a moment with their pairing software ensures THIS dongle works with THIS mouse.

The *use* problem arises when the dongle is separated from the mouse and you have to wonder which mouse is paired with which "computer".

True, unless they are left handed (about 10% of the world population).

I had a customer with peripheral neuropathy, who lost all sensation in the fingers and toes. He destroys about two keyboards per year. Computer mice are not a problem because he switched to using a large trackball or a large touchpad (with gestures disabled).

I've also had to deal with a computer user with Parkinson's, where the problem was hitting the mouse buttons when his fingers were shaking. I glued two smooth plastic dish shaped rings over the mouse keys to center the finger tip over the switch. It helped, but did not eliminate the problem. He also tried an oversized keyboard:

A digitizing tablet in absolute mode can help with this -- as long as fine motor control hasn't been impacted.

under the mouse pointer if the mouse "points to it" for a long time (a setting in the software -- don't dally over controls that you aren't interested in!) This can often be faster than trying to force a switch closure manually.

Because Parkinson's is not associated with movement (as is the case for ET), noting when there is NO movement can add value to the interaction. Also, some patients experience the issue more on one side of the body than the other -- so learning to use the other hand can bring improvement.

For ET, you can get software that "filters" motions to (hopefully) bring out the desired motion. (ET doesn't benefit from switching hands)

I had a friend with parkinson's - he got a sort of cage with holes in that covered the keyboard. He could slide his fingers to the right hole and press down. Worked quite well, and kept him happy at his computer. Not sure where he got it. And unfortunately he's not around to ask :-(

Johann 'Myrkraverk' Oskarsson snipped-for-privacy@myrkraverk.invalid skrev: |----------------------------------------------------------------| |"[. . .] | | | |[. . .] | |[. . .] Rather than a mouse I have to charge with a USB C cable.| | | |[. . .]" | |----------------------------------------------------------------|

Using a USB device destroys it. (S.

I get "server not found".

Yah, laser and LED mice need contrast. "Featureless" doesn't work. However, I'm surprised that my flat while Formica desk surface works with all of my assorted mice. ChatGPT says "it may or may not work well depending on the mouse sensor":

No need to reinvent the wheel when there are plenty such artwork available online:

Of course, every good idea must be stretched to an extreme:

Among my bad habits is a compulsion to disassemble far too many things in an effort to understand how they work and possibly repair them. This is not profitable, but does keep me entertained.

That demonstrates that you didn't hide your mice adequately. My mouse stash is located away from the reach of visiting children and gamers. Some of my mice are old or weird enough to be considered a collectable:

I forget that resources at sdf are tenuous.

The key is "to understand how they work". Once that question has been answered, it boils down to whether or not it is a good use of your time (as you're no longer learning anything -- except, possibly, what can go wrong in trying to make a repair!)

I have limited space to label containers so often end up with cryptic names that try to address a variety of items:

I'd have though "Dell Mouse" would have covered all of the dell mice. "Pointing Devices" includes a variety of other "pointing devices" so I didn't expect it to also include MORE dell mice (which, of course, ARE "pointing devices"...)

All my presentations have been standing up. I don't think any audience would accept me giving a presentation while sitting down. I'm not a big fan of PowerPoint style presentations. I prefer to have pre-printed papers, with all the links an references, available in printed form or for download. The question and answer period tends to be more interesting and informative than the traditional boring PowerPoint monologue.

For presentations, think about using a laser pointer mouse:

"Laser Pointer Mouse"

"Mouse emulator using a laser pointer and a camera"

I don't make "in person" presentations.

My presentations are done remotely; I use a large LCD TV with an overlay that can see what I am writing *on* the screen (with felt tip markers that no longer have ink so they just glide across the surface -- the "ink" is drawn on the screen by the computer driving the display).

This allows others (in remote locations) to similarly scribble on the screen -- using mice or whatever devices they have at *their* end. Software ensures we all see the same thing (barring races)

The "interaction" (presentation?) is recorded so we can replay it at later dates to review the details of what we've discussed and decided.

This also has the advantage of letting participants chose to add arbitrary content to the discussion (temporarily replacing the "drawn screen").

This is similar but the laser's spot is actually the tip of a "magic marker" (I can set the color of each marker along with an "eraser")

Don Y snipped-for-privacy@foo.invalid wrote: |-------------------------------------------------------------------| |"[. . .] | | | |[. . .] | |[. . .] "No charge" | |I swapped 33 500G drives for 33 *new* 4T drives a month or two ago;| |they have equal RECYCLE value -- to THEM!)" | |-------------------------------------------------------------------|

Wowsers! (S.

Don Y snipped-for-privacy@foo.invalid wrote: |-------------------------------------------------------------| |"[. . .] | |I have limited space to label containers so often end up with| |cryptic names that try to address a variety of items: | | | |[. . .]" | |-------------------------------------------------------------|

Maybe use transparent plastic boxes. (S.