Computer mouse switch going bad

It's usually more or less a last resort for me. I did all the cleaning and stuff first. I'd fix this mouse if I could do it for a buck or two, but not more than that, because there are plenty of cheap used mice at second hand stores, rummage sales, and so on. The only problem is that now when I need it, I have not found one yet. Hitting it was a last resort. If I destroyed it, so be it....

Most of the time hitting an object does break it, but this time I lucked out and made it work again. I did however use an insulated handle to make the blow less damaging, yet still effective. It worked this time. At least so far. I wont expect it to still eb working in a few weeks from now, but by then, I'll find another mouse or have my adaptor so I can use a USB mouse on my PS/2 plug.

When, as an apprentice, I "worked" in the computer test bay (mainframe in those 1960s days), there was a test that included hitting the frame with a mallet in specified places...

Mike.

One does have to know where or what to hit and how hard. Where I worked there were many things that had a tendency to stick. WE could hit it with something and it would work from weeks to months. If we repaired or replaced it, it would still last a few weeks to months.

I am sure most everyone has heard the story where a company hired someone from outside to repair something. The fellow walks up and hits it with a hammer. Sends in bill . The company wants it it itemize. It comes back, hit with hammer, $ 2.00, knowing where to hit it, $ 500.00.

... but not really hard

NT

When the government makes it mandatory to upgrade to the latest version of Windows, I'll be the first person to throw my computer in the garbage. I use both Win98 and XP. I wont touch anything newer.

I recently had the misfortune of someone handing me a computer with Windows 8. They asked me to do someting with it. As soon as I saw that butt ugly Metro screen, I closed the lid and told them to toss it in the nearest garbage can.

Just for the record, Win 95 and 98 did not have good USB support. That was just the one drawback of Win 9.x. Otherwise it was far superior to anything made by MS since. Win98SE works better for me than any other OS I have ever used. But XP is tolerable too, just lacks in some ways.

One other thing, I still use DOS, a USB mouse or keyboard wont work on Dos.

Dos. "

LMGTFY "usb support for DOS"

rs

I agree about 98SE. Lost alot going to XP but 98SE would no longrer connect and the phone support would not walk me through a manual setup for the rou ter/switch/MODEM. I said "What, did my money expire ?".

But one thing I miss is being able to confine a file search. I have this mu sic library and to search that I had saved a search named "*.*" but within the music directory. You could put in any word from the artist or title and get results in milliseconds. Well XP won't do that and any search goes thr ough something like five hard drives every time. Now Vista, I can't even fi gure out how to get the thing to search for a file.

Also, I manually did my "SendTo" menu you get on a right click. You create a shortcut and move it in there. Then you can send a file to any of your im age editors, or a movie or music to any of your players, without changing t he file association or going through its dialog box. I also liked the fact that the old style media player would allow multiple instances so files tha t I had downloaded could be compared and only the best one kept. Now, I hav e an old version of VLC or something that does that. Might be Irfanview not sure.

I got into the Sendto in Vista but as an administrator. I couldn't get in a t all on Win 7. What do you mean access denied ? Whose PC is this anyway ?

Anyway, the government is not the one who will force your upgrade to the du mpster, it will be software manufacturers.

UVc5rs

ct and the phone support would not walk me through a manual setup for the r outer/switch/MODEM. I said "What, did my money expire ?".

music library and to search that I had saved a search named "*.*" but withi n the music directory. You could put in any word from the artist or title a nd get results in milliseconds. Well XP won't do that and any search goes t hrough something like five hard drives every time. Now Vista, I can't even figure out how to get the thing to search for a file.

e a shortcut and move it in there. Then you can send a file to any of your image editors, or a movie or music to any of your players, without changing the file association or going through its dialog box. I also liked the fac t that the old style media player would allow multiple instances so files t hat I had downloaded could be compared and only the best one kept. Now, I h ave an old version of VLC or something that does that. Might be Irfanview n ot sure.

at all on Win 7. What do you mean access denied ? Whose PC is this anyway ?

dumpster, it will be software manufacturers.

The easiest way to find files on any PC is to maintain a plain text list of everyfile & its location, and update that now & then. There's a windows ut ility called LS that creates such lists, conveniently named to cause confus ion with linux.

98 usb support was mostly fixed by nusb3.1 3rd party patch.

NT

snipped-for-privacy@tubes.com wrote on 1/17/2018 4:39 PM:

I believe they made minor tweaks to 98 to create Windows ME and then discontinued that OS line. The reason was it was designed from the ground up to be insecure and unstable. It was impossible to provide the sort of protection from misbehaving applications and malware that the "real" OS line descended from NT has. I recall my copy of Windows 98 had gotten so full of poorly written drivers that it would crash about once an hour. I got my hands on a copy of of Win2k and my life was forever changed. If you are going to obsess with a version of Windows, THAT is the one.

Windows 98 is a real piece of crap and anyone who is obsessed with running it has so much to learn. But then we pretty much know that about you anyway. So no surprises there. BTW, this was typed on a Windows 8 machine that hasn't been rebooted in well over a month. Hmmm... 1 hour, 1 month... I wonder which is better?

--

Rick C 

Viewed the eclipse at Wintercrest Farms, 
on the centerline of totality since 1998

I had to go to a Win 10 computer from XP just so I could run a tax program. Partly the same way I had to move from Win 98 a number of years ago to do the taxes.

Each upgrade of Windows causes me to have to keep another machine running. I have laptops running Dos and WFW 3.11 to run some programs, another ruunig Win 98, Win XP and Win 10. I did manage to bypass the win 7 and 8 versions. The had to buy a newer version of Office to run on a new laptop. Just glad I found someone on ebay that sells the key (or whatever) for under $ 10 for the 2016 version.

I don't care for what microsoft has to offer, other than the Office set, I don't run anything or do anything with microsoft once I get the computer up and running.

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98 was dreadfully unstable and insecure by today's standards. But back then there wasn't anything better, it was as good as it got. Before anyone obje cts of course there were NT and stable non-windows OSes, but none of them h ad the range of apps needed to be very useful as a desktop machine.

Once you learnt 98's many foibles and got it running sufficiently, it's the n near zero effort to keep running it. Hence many of us ran it when there w ere in some ways better OSes available. But I sure do not regret going linu x, and watch people's endless win up/down/sideways-grade nightmares with be musement. Why people are so keen to volunteer for their own misery I don't know.

NT

Ralph Mowery wrote on 1/17/2018 11:07 PM:

Maybe your problem isn't the OS, maybe it's the applications you want to run. I haven't used MS Office in a decade or more. LibreOffice works great and just seems to work everywhere I want to use it.

I will say I miss Visio. But then I was using that before MS bought them.

--

Rick C 

Viewed the eclipse at Wintercrest Farms, 
on the centerline of totality since 1998

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en there wasn't anything better, it was as good as it got. Before anyone ob jects of course there were NT and stable non-windows OSes, but none of them had the range of apps needed to be very useful as a desktop machine.

hen near zero effort to keep running it. Hence many of us ran it when there were in some ways better OSes available. But I sure do not regret going li nux, and watch people's endless win up/down/sideways-grade nightmares with bemusement. Why people are so keen to volunteer for their own misery I don' t know.

Somewhere out there there's a set of windows 2 apps made to run on modern w indows. They're still usable.

NT

What do you mean "still" usable. When was it originally usable?

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Rick C 

Viewed the eclipse at Wintercrest Farms, 
on the centerline of totality since 1998

seriously?

when they were released with windows 2 or perhaps earlier. Was there a point you wished to make?

Flyshit to the right. Pepper to the left.

The point is already well-made, but creative hair-styling is at play.

Peter Wieck Melrose Park, PA

I saw Windows 2 and it was virtually unusable on a 286 PC which was the fastest at the time.

--

Rick C 

Viewed the eclipse at Wintercrest Farms, 
on the centerline of totality since 1998

I think we are sort of saying the same thing.

The tax program I am using quit woring with win 98, then it quit with XP as the years went on. Some old programs that I need to run to program old equipemnt such as motor speed controlers and radio transceivers will not run under anythng but a true DOS program and a slow computer. A TV dongle will show the video but not play the sound under Win 10. With MS Office being used whre I worked, I got used to using it. Guess that I could use Open Office at home now I am retired,but did not want to change as the old Office XP worked fine for what I am doing.

I don't play games on the computer, but do have an old version of Doom that I sometimes put on to check out the graphics speed. That thing quit working under Win 10 ,just as some of the old games did under XP.

So it is the APPS that I want to run , but I still blame the OS for not being compatiable with the old programs. The it works the other way, blame Turbo Tax for not running on the older operating systems either.

That really depends on the BIOS of the machine; I've got a few DOS machines out there with USB keyboards.

(Don't use USB mice on DOS machines nowadays, so can't say.)

RwP