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Input Devices

Ergonomic Mice Reviewed 171

Posted by Zonk from the malformed-meese dept.
Gregg writes "Most of the time these mice are marketed towards people suffering from RSI, however anyone feeling discomfort using a regular mouse should be able to switch to any of these pointing devices that were created with ergonomics, and only ergonomics in mind. TechSpot's comparison includes three products: the Perific Wireless Dual Mouse, 3M Ergonomic 'Renaissance' Mouse, and Evoluent's VerticalMouse 2." From the article: "People are sometimes under the impression that only those who work at a computer all day are at risk of repetitive stress injuries (RSI). Unfortunately that is not true and even people spending an hour or two per day using a computer are now suffering from RSI. Even if you aren't going to purchase ergonomic products for your everyday use, there are still some very helpful tips on how to lower the risk of someday suffering from RSI. Many specialists recommend taking short breaks after long periods of computer use to reduce risk. It is also a good idea to do a few quick and simple hand/wrist stretches that will help make sure you are doing your best to try and stay healthy."
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Ergonomic Mice Reviewed More

Ergonomic Mice Reviewed

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  • Jeez, mice sure are high-tech these days (Score:4, Funny)

    by jackcarter ( 884148 ) on Saturday October 29, 2005 @05:47PM (#13906239)
    Mine's the old style: furry and with a little tail. I give it a little water, some pellets twice a day, and it just runs around on its little wheel and is happy.

  • I cured my RSI (Score:4, Funny)

    by squoozer ( 730327 ) on Saturday October 29, 2005 @05:49PM (#13906248)

    I gave up work!

    Honestly it's the best thing I ever did. I recommend it to anyone that doesn't like working.

    • I gave up work!

      Honestly it's the best thing I ever did. I recommend it to anyone that doesn't like working.

      Hmm... Your ideas are intriguing to me and I wish to subscribe to your newsletter.

    • I gave up work!

      Honestly it's the best thing I ever did. I recommend it to anyone that doesn't like working.

      You consider pimping a fishtank store with zero products available not working?
  • The Perific mouse looked quite cool as it can be used both as a trackball AND a mouse, and also attached to your hand while you type. I feel that even an even better way to save space is one of those touchpads used on laptops.
    • While the touchpads on laptops may save space, they can get very hard on your thumb/index finger quite quickly. With the perific mouse, you won't get problems nearly as quickly as you would with the touchpad.
    • Lots of mice and trackballs look cool, but I find a lot of them quite hard work after a while, especially the cordless ones which usually have heavy batteries inside them.

      My current preference is for a Microsoft Notebook optical mouse (yes, I know MS is evil, but they do make some good hardware) which, since it is very small and very light, I find a lot less of a strain to use for long periods.

      Oh, and BTW, it's cheap too.

  • USB Overdrive (Score:5, Informative)

    by Phroggy ( 441 ) * <slashdot3@@@phroggy...com> on Saturday October 29, 2005 @05:51PM (#13906259) Homepage
    Mac users may want to stay away from the Evoluent mouse because you'll need to spend $20 for a USB Overdrive to program all of the buttons.

    While this is certainly a good thing to be aware of, I disagree that it's a reason to avoid this mouse. First of all, USB Overdrive good software - I don't use it myself but it has a good reputation. Second, the software is not actually required to use the mouse - Mac OS X fully supports the second button for contextual menus and the wheel for scrolling, and the third button works in Safari, Firefox 1.5, and probably other apps.

    Finally, just about ANY mouse is going to require this software to make use of the fourth and fifth buttons, because mouse makers don't make their own Mac drivers. Some manufacturers may bundle it instead of making you buy it separately (I think Microsoft does this), so you should definitely consider that as part of the cost of the mouse, but that doesn't mean you should avoid this mouse, or any other, just for that reason.
    • I had no trouble at all plugging in two different multi-button Logitech mice to my Mac G4. It recognized most of the buttons without any software at all. The right and middle button, the scrollwheel, and the forward and back thumb keys all worked immediately. I believe only the middle thumb button on the MX1000 failed to register. With some Control Panel changes, it was easy to map Expose functions to whatever buttons I wanted.

      I haven't tried anything but Logitech mice, but the Mac seemed fully aware of

    • Re:USB Overdrive (Score:4, Informative)

      by stonedonkey ( 416096 ) on Saturday October 29, 2005 @06:34PM (#13906426)
      I've had some hands-on time with the Evoluent mouse, and I can tell you that its Achilles Heel is the perpendicular hand motion required to click a button. The grip may be more natural to the hand (with less wrist activity and all), but they didn't do a lot to adjust button action. The middle-click button is awkwardly placed as well, and having three proper buttons takes time to adjust to.

      A horizontal middle click button actually calls for less tendon movement. You can feel it on the inside of your wrist -- at least, I can. And notice in the picture how one's pinky finger is flush against the ring finger. That means less fluid action for right-clicking, and the middle finger is more muscular for this job (as any cab driver knows). You can remap so that the center button (not the scroll button) acts as right-click, maintaining familiar movement, but you'll also notice from the picture that you're still left rubbing the right side of your hand against the desktop surface. If you have oily hands, or having been eating Doritos, this can create residue buildup that reduces smooth surface response. And the matte finish on half of the device makes the mouse itself prone to residue.

      In the long run, the Evoluent mouse shifts the axis of tendon movement to something the hand is more accustomed to (up and down waving motion, instead of rotating left to right) so it will probably come in handy to those with tired wrists. But the buttons still need some work in my opinion, and I would want an easily cleanable gloss finish instead of matte, even though matte has "grippier" contact.
      • You can remap so that the center button (not the scroll button) acts as right-click

        That's exactly what I did. It feels a lot more natural. I mapped the third (bottom-most) button to be a CTRL-click, which makes links in Firefox automatically open into a background tab (and does auto-scroll in lots of other apps).

        It did not take very long to get accustomed to the button action, IMO. It's really the same motion for everything, just rotated 90 degrees. So the brain catches on fairly quickly.

        My bigges

    • Re:USB Overdrive (Score:3, Informative)

      by Orion_ ( 83461 )
      Finally, just about ANY mouse is going to require this software to make use of the fourth and fifth buttons, because mouse makers don't make their own Mac drivers.

      Well, it's true that some mouse makers don't make their own Mac drivers, but the big ones do: Microsoft [microsoft.com], Logitech [logitech.com], Kensington [kensington.com].

      That said, you're right that these "drivers" are pretty much unnecessary. Any USB mouse will work fine on a Mac; the only real issue is that in Mac OS X, buttons 4 and higher can only be used for Exposé and Dashboard c
    • 10.4 Lets me use all 5 buttons on my mouse WITHOUT any additional driver. I have Left Click, Right Click, Scrolling, Center Click (as expose all), side button 1 (set to expose application), and Side button 2 (as Dashboard). Though to be honest I mostly just use right, left and scoll.
  • Might Mouse, here he comes to save the day!!
    • Apple's mouses are ergonomic hell! Sure, they look stylish, but just don't feel as comfortable as the old "teardrop" ADB Mouse. Their newer keyboards (anything USB) suck too, since they no longer use mechanical keyswitches.
      • I'm not sure why the parent comment is rated flamebait, but it shouldn't be. Apple's mice are most assuredly form before function (as anyone who use the imac puck mouse can attest).

        I tried the Mighty Mouse in the apple store and while it is a step in the right direction (multiple buttons, scrolling, etc.) its still very uncomfortable to use.

        To right click, you have to lift your left finger or it doesn't register. The side button was equally shitty; there is only one button (that is on both sides of

  • What the (Score:1, Funny)

    by netkid91 ( 915818 )
    That mouse shown in the link looks weird, not only would that be uncomfortable IMHO, I couldn't stand looking at that thing. And 'taking breaks' after extended periods of use, wouldn't that lessen the time I could play EverQuest? No WAY I'd give up my gaming time just to prevent RSI, I'd rather jump off a cliff. GERRONIMO!!!!

  • As for ergonomic keyboards... (Score:1, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward
    I destroyed my wrists using my laptop. It took about four years for it to be really problematic, but almost overnight I started getting burning sensations in my wrists. Laptops generally encourage you (by design) to press your wrists down on the flat smooth bit in front of the keyboard, and this is an absolute killer.

    I'm now using a Kinesis keyboard. It works pretty well, and I can type pretty much without pain. I have yet to find a good mouse (still using the old trackpoint nipple), but will probably i
  • The mouse supports a conventional grip and a grip with both hands. I already hate lifting a hand off of the keyboard, now I've to life both hands to use the mouse. That's bound to be annoying. Instead I'll continue doing what I do currently - I keep changing the hand I use for mouse after every few days. Works fine for me. No RSIs after doing this for 4 yrs now with about 8-10 hrs of daily computer use.
    • Consider buying one of these On-the-Stick [yahoo.com] keyboards. They are pricy($100 for a keyboard!) but they are fantastic. I bought one last year and it is so great I could never go back to a regular keyboard/mouse combo. Also one of the reasons I will only use IBM laptops.
    • The mouse also supports a mode where the mouse basically sits on your left hand, and you can use the trackball with your right thumb without lifting your fingers from the keyboard. Although this doesn't seem like it would work that well with a split keyboard, as anyone who buys an ergonomic mouse would most probably be using. I think the ergonomic benefit of this mouse is primarilly that it can be used in so many different ways that you just switch up when one way is bothering you. Although this means yo

  • All you hardware designers, listen up (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Miss_Thistlebottom ( 901087 ) on Saturday October 29, 2005 @06:12PM (#13906338)
    Trackballs, as someone's mentioned, are the way to go. You might have to try a couple before you find the one that works for you (Kensington Orbit, Logitech Trackman, etc.), but it's worth the try. Several injured people in my office have switched and are happier.

    What I am annoyed about (it's always something, innit?) is that there are NO Bluetooth trackballs! Hello Logitech! It might be a small segment of your market, but I think there are enough of us who are very, very interested. Especially to go with our shiny new iMacs and their wireless BT keyboards. My trackball cord is abotu the only one in sight on my desktop, but a BT version is the only thing I'd trade it for. Neither Kensington nor Logitech seem to be interested.

    (There is one weird-looking, unappealing BT trackball image circulating, but I have yet to hear of anyone actually finding it for purchase, and what I really want is one of the two more common trackballs.)
    • I've been looking high and low for a box that will take a USB generic HID on one end and output Bluetooth generic HID on the other. I'd buy one for my keyboard and mouse - all the better if the device can do both at once.

      This sounds like the kind of thing where there should be at least 7 Taiwanese manufacturers with bridge chips but for some reason it doesn't seem so.

      Can anyone provide links to existing solutions or a theory as to why these don't exist?

  • I'll switch when (Score:4, Funny)

    by $RANDOMLUSER ( 804576 ) on Saturday October 29, 2005 @06:14PM (#13906348)
    You pry my Logitech Trackman Marble FX trackball from my numb tingly fingers!

    Seriously, I'm a Model M keyboard nut, and I'm just as comitted to my trackball. These things are like gold on eBay [ebay.com] (no relation to seller). If you haven't used one of these (set the upper white thumb button to dounle-click), you haven't lived. This is the best pointer device I've ever used.

    • Yup. I bought two of them back when they were in production, one for work and one for home. I wish I'd bought three or four. Be sure to add your post to the Logitech Forums [logitech.com] asking them to bring it back.
    • that thing is too odd for me, i prefer the previous generation Trackman Marble. much more ergonomic, i have never had any wrist problems with it, and i can sit at my computer for several hours playing Civilisation without ever having any discomfort in my right hand.
      i'll be dead and 6' below ground before you'll pry this mouse from my hands, hell, you just might have to bury me with it
      http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00004L8IG/002-0 4 25879-7990434?v=glance&n=172282&v=glance [amazon.com]
      • I disagree. One of the guys in my office uses one of thise on his laptop, and I find that my thumb is too spastic on its own to use that thing properly. I can use two or three (index through ring) fingers on the Marble FX to move the pointer, and that gives me the stability my poor twitchy nerve-damaged fingers need.
        If you want to sell your Marble FX, contact me.
    • Well, meet your long-lost clone. I too am a model M nut, and I too covet my trackball. However, I never got the model you like because I coulnd't play FPS games with it... instead I went for their el-cheap-o $29 model where my hand rests firmly on top of the ball.

      At work, I managed to procure one of the Model Ms with the built-in trackpoint... I almost shot a load when I finally got my hands on it. :-) All day at work my hands NEVER LEAVE THE KEYBOARD. It's ludicrous how much faster I can work than my c
    • Had some serious wrist pain (couldn't sleep for a week), bought TrackMan Marble FX on eBay. Struggled with it for two weeks, and got used to it. No pain since then. I've bought two more. One for use at home and one just in case either of the other two breaks (which I don't think it will - there's nothing in it that can break).
    • ...numb tingly fingers...

      ...set the upper white thumb button to dounle-click...

      It gives you white thumbs [2protect.com]? Seriously, you may want to look at reducing the vibration from that thing ;)

  • Mouse Trapper (Score:3, Interesting)

    by NoOneInParticular ( 221808 ) on Saturday October 29, 2005 @06:16PM (#13906358)
    My personal favourite, the MouseTrapper [officeorganix.com]. Completely mechanic, can use whatever old mouse you have lying around, and the motion you use are completely different from a regular mouse. It also doesn't break. I personally cannot use any mouse, not even those 'ergonomic' ones, as I will feel it in my wrists in a couple of days. I usually use a laptop with touchpad, but when I sit behind a desktop machine, this thingy really helps.

  • Wacom board (Score:2, Informative)

    by wilper ( 103281 )
    My hands were so bad that I considered getting out of the computer area alltogether. As a last resort I bought a Wacom Graphire 3 board, and all my problems disappeared. The pen is very light and the angle of the forearm is just the same as when writing with a regular pen.

    It takes a while getting used to, but was worth it, my hands are so good these days that I even spend time playing games and stuff again, very nice.

    Linux support is good enough.

  • "ergonomic" devices are not ergonomic at all (Score:3, Interesting)

    by lokedhs ( 672255 ) on Saturday October 29, 2005 @06:18PM (#13906365)
    Seriously... What's the deal with all of these "ergonomic" pointing devices?

    Most of them are big as houses are requires you to move your entire hand to move the damn thing around the desk. If anything, this increases the risk of getting "mouse arm".

    The way to use a mouse, is to rest your wrist on the desk, and move the mouse with your fingertips. None of these ergonomic ones allow you to do that. Instead, they force you to move your entire arm, increasing stress on the shoulder.

    Someone should tell the mouse manufacturers that the problem isn't that the hand isn't resting "comfortably" around the mouse, but rather that the user moves and strains his shoulder.

    • Re:"ergonomic" devices are not ergonomic at all (Score:5, Informative)

      by shawb ( 16347 ) on Saturday October 29, 2005 @06:50PM (#13906502)
      Have you ever heard of carpal tunnel syndrome? [nih.gov] What you are describing is the worst possible thing to do to your wrists. The large muscles and ligaments in your shoulder and elbow can take some repetitive use. The delicate tendons in your wrist will swell from mousing all day using the method you described, pinching off the carpal tunnel nerve. Extremely painfull and debilitating. That's why ergonomic mice require macro-movements with the whole arm rather than the delicate micro movements used in fingertip mousing.

      There are other conditions the position you mentioned can cause or aggravate, such as bursitis and tendonitis.

      The best defense is to take a break every now and then and stretch out the wrist. General body stretching can also help back pain which can result from sitting in a chair all day.
    • There's no perfect mousing position; moving your mouse naturally implies putting stress on some muscles. But the position you're suggesting is particularly bad since your hand becomes bent upwards (as well as rotated to face downwards, which is a problem with any position using a horizontal mouse). That puts a lot of stress on the small muscles on the back of your forearm, and the stress continues even if you're not even moving the mouse but just resting your hand on it. Vertical mice shift the pressure
  • I don't suffer (yet) from RSI, but one thing that does matter to me about the mouse is the weight. I've noticed that wireless mice with batteries put a great deal of strain on my wrist mainly because of the weight of the batteries. I am not sure how many ergonomics designers out there place weight among the considerations...

    Consequently, I've settled on using wired lightweight mouse or laptop-style small wireless mouse.

    • Weight shmeight already. I have a microsoft wireless wheelmouse, and I don't notice the weight at all. It's certainly less of a pain in the arse than the drag of the cable, especially if you hve the gain set high. But then I've discovered this clever technique which I've christened sliding the fucking thing, not picking it up and juggling it.
    • .... you are not using your mouse correctly.

      You should slide it on the surface where you work, no need to raise it rom it....

  • Glucosamine & Chondroitin (Score:4, Informative)

    by rufusdufus ( 450462 ) on Saturday October 29, 2005 @06:30PM (#13906405)
    I started taking glucosamine and chondroitin to see if it would help a problem in my neck, and was amazed to find that my fingers felt like they had been hit with dollop of WD-40. Pain that I had sublminated was suddenly gone, and I can now do things that used to cause me agony, like hold a bowling ball or open a jar.
    I recommend anyone who uses a computer all day long even if they don't notice any pain try this stuff for a week and see whether it makes a difference.

    • Another solution (Score:3, Interesting)

      by bunyip ( 17018 )
      If the glucosamine and chondroitin don't work for you, there are therapies that will. Active Release Technique (ART) is great for RSI and other repetitive injuries (I'm a runner and triathlete, I've used ART to treat various problems).

      The company where I work has an ART practitioner come on site 2 mornings a week to treat RSI and other problems. Several of my friends and colleagues have been rteated on site. It's a pretty cool benefit.

      BTW - I don't do ART for a living, I'm a programmer, so don't consider

  • Right-handed bias (Score:5, Interesting)

    by piyamaradus ( 447473 ) on Saturday October 29, 2005 @06:30PM (#13906407)
    As with almost all higher-end mice, these seem aimed at primarily or entirely right-handed use. Left-handed mouse users are almost completely stuck with 2 or 3 button mice that are longitudinally symmetrical and thus work with either hand. I'd love one of the high end logitech laser mice but it's impossible to use in any reasonable fashion with the left hand. Yet I find most left-handed people have given up and just use the mouse with the right hand, which makes very little sense -- mousing with the left hand on a standar keyoard reduces by 3x-4x the distance required to move the arm to change from keyboard to mouse and allows the right hand to use the keypad or other control-type key clusters easily. I chose to use the left hand with the mouse on my first mouse-enabled machine ~18 years ago (I'm not strongly handed either way, but use left for some tasks and right for others) and am amazed that the mouse manufacturers treat 10% of the population this way. Logitech doesn't even answer my emails.

    • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

      by account_deleted ( 4530225 )
      Comment removed based on user account deletion

    • Re:Right-handed bias (Score:2, Informative)

      by mk500 ( 652220 )
      Evoluent makes a left-handed version. It's a bit more expensive because they don't sell as many, but is otherwise identical.

      I've been using my Evoluent Vertical Mice for over a year now, and they are really great.
    • am amazed that the mouse manufacturers treat 10% of the population this way.

      Probably because it's *not* 10% of the population. I'm left handed, my brother is left handed, there are a lot of people at my work who are left handed.. we all use a right handed mouse with our right hands.

      It's more like 1% of the computer using population uses a left handed mouse.
      • My right-handed college roommate mouses with his left hand.

        Me, I'm left-handed, but mouse right. I still prefer symmetric mice though. They're a lot smaller. I just don't like huge mice.
    • and allows the right hand to use the keypad or other control-type key clusters easily.

      Like what - the arrow keys? Why not get a left-handed keyboard [fentek-ind.com]?

      I am left-handed, and see no point whatsoever in using a "left-handed mouse". I can type faster with just my left hand than my right, and I get no speed or accuracy advantage from using my left hand for the mouse (quite the opposite.)

      There are some serious ergonomic issues for lefties e.g. scissors - mice are not one of them.
    • The Evoluent VerticalMouse2 [evoluent.com] comes in left-hand and right-hand models.
    • THAT is the least comfortable mouse i could imagine using. Although I am a right hander, I still stick to the ol' symetric logitec 2-button + wheel optical mouse. No crazy curves to make me think it's scientifically designed and no stupid side buttons to force my hand into unnatural positions when doing the thing the mouse is primarily intended to do: move a cursor on a screen.

      You're amazed that mouse manufacturers fail to bring "interesting new" mice to 10% of the population. I'm even more amazed that t

  • Trackball Alternative? (Score:3, Informative)

    by Comatose51 ( 687974 ) on Saturday October 29, 2005 @06:34PM (#13906421) Homepage
    People at my company who have RSI usually just request a track ball mouse. They seen to help quite a bit, are fairly common, and relatively cheap. That's basically what the first one, the Perific mouse, is but with a small ball. I don't see how that's actually better than a trackball which has a much larger ball. Repetitive small movements are hard on the wrist (I know from hammering in nails in weird parts of houses for Habitat for Humanity).
    • I suspect the idea is to minimize the amount of force you have to exert
      e.g; spin a Space Invaders ball vs. a marble.
    • I've tried TouchPads, trackballs, and various mice. After 20 years of computing, here are four things that I recommend to everyone:

      1. Learn how to type by touch. It isn't difficult.

      2. Reduce your clicks: use X-mouse focussing. (If you use Windows, install Microsoft's TweakUI Powertoy. If you use X, you have the setting somewhere.)

      3. Keep your forearms flat on your desk. Adjust your chair's height if you must.

      4. Use a REAL ergonomic keyboard, one with the split-key design. (Any keyboard that does not have th
        • The good things about the M keyboard, you already know: it is solidly built (value) and provides good tactile response (the lack of which may contribute to RSI). You could also use it as a pry-bar and a snowboard.

          The bad things about your beloved are: it's loud; its right-handedness (movement keys and number-pad on the right) became The Standard but is awkward for a significant percentage of people; the grid-layout of the letter keys forces the user's arms inward and straight ahead, or forces the wrists to
          • I keep my keyboard in my lap, which lead to a far more natural typing position.

            Oh, and the loud is a benefit. Audio feedback helps a lot.
    • Here's one alternative: what do people think about the TrackPoint on Thinkpads (and many Dell laptops)? You don't have to move your hands around or remove them from the keyboard, and you click with your thumb... to me it's dandy and I work on this laptop a lot. That said I have a trackball on my work PC, a mouse on my home PC, and another laptop with a touchpad, and really they all seem fine to me.

    • Repetitive small movements are hard on the wrist (I know from hammering in nails in weird parts of houses for Habitat for Humanity).

      You don't get more stress from smaller vs. larger movements. Either one can cause RSI just as easily as the other. It's all about how awkwardly positioned your fingers/wrists/arms are when exerting force (even numerous very small forces).

      As for your own experience (hopefully this won't sound trollish) the solution is to work-out. The better developed the muscles are, the les

  • Make your own (Score:4, Interesting)

    by mathgenius ( 526070 ) <simon@ar[ ]theory.com ['row' in gap]> on Saturday October 29, 2005 @06:35PM (#13906434) Homepage
    For less than $20 I modded [arrowtheory.com] a cheap mouse so that I can have one of these "vertical" mice at home. It's a lot cheaper than the 3M model. Also you can adjust it to fit your hand exactly.

    Simon.

  • Goldtouch mouse (Score:2, Informative)

    by DrElJeffe ( 741629 )
    I experienced serious pain from using the scroll wheel.
    Why, Microsoft, why? Why did you place such a tempting button halfway down the longest finger, why? The tendons that control the bending motion for that finger extend through over six inches of flesh from the finger tips to the muscles in the upper arm. These tendons saw back and forth across several nerves, blood vessels, and tiny bones when when you use the scroll wheel.
    I now swear by the Goldtouch optical mouse. Like the Evoluent VerticalMouse, it s
    • I've always used my pointing finger, and not my middle finger, to operate the left button and the wheel. Actually, moving my middle finger like that is a bit annoying anyway.
    • place such a tempting button halfway down the longest finger ... the scroll wheel has been moved from its middle-finger position to a bi-directional button at the side

      Two things. You probably never used that scroll wheel as intended. Also, you probably never saw a good logitech mouse.

  • You see, that is what the gamecube controller should be modeled after. That looks comfortable enough to point at your TV and click whatever button is needed. A lot better than that darn remote.

  • Unnatural movements (Score:2, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward
    I don't know why people still use mice, human index fingers are simply not made to make a clicking motion so many times in a day.

    After working as a video editor using a mouse for a couple of months the pain in my index finger became so bad that I had to use my middle finger to keep on working.
    After I got pen & tablet the pains resided, touching the tablet with a pen gives the so much less stress, not to mention that it feels much more efficient than a mouse.

    Sure, decent tablets cost a whole lot more tha
  • I don't get it.

    Not that there is a need for ergonomic mice, but that people can get hurt by mice and keyboards.

    To me, it looks like an attitude problem. I've been working with computers for the last 25 years, where I've been at the keyboard/CRT/mice for hours at stretch (it's even worse since the Internet came about).

    Yet, I never had the slightest problem. Perhaps it is because I never always do the same thing, but vary what I do, that is, get a book, get a printout from the printer (which is purposefull

  • It's completely beyond me why anyone with the option not too should continue to use a mouse in the first place. Trackerballs are far superior as there's no arm movement involved and with most designs the left click is done using the thumb, which has stronger muscles than the index finger. Plus trackerballs are more flexible than mice for FPS's :-)

    I try to mix designs between computers on my desktop. Both the Logitech and Microsoft trackerballs are nice. I like the Logitech Marble Mouse (http://www.logit [logitech.com]
    • ### It's completely beyond me why anyone with the option not too should continue to use a mouse in the first place.

      One reason, at least for me, is that trackballs suck for drag&drop, be it dragging files around or simply doing a rectangle selection, because those force you to old down one finger in a fixed position and wiggle around with another to move the cursor, feels very unnatural. Whenever I have a task that involves lots of drag&drop I switch back to mouse (Blender, gaming, etc). That said I
      • That's interesting. Personally I find drag and drop significantly easier with a trackerball, particularly the Marble Mouse, because holding down the button with the thumb while moving a finger seems less strain to me than hoilding down a button with the forefinger. Indeed I seem to apply less pressure because I'm not moving the device at the same time.
  • Why can't I just use my old wingman joystick? And why don't they make a keyboard that's broken in half (like where most ergos split, but hinged) so you can type with the pinky side of your palm on the table and your your thumbs up? It'd have to be a laptop layout (no number pad) . And ideally it would have a convenient thumb track ball for one thumb and clicker under the other. I'll pay a crapload for that.
    • Comfort Keyboards [comfortkeyboard.com] are like that. Nicely made but expensive. I went through a point were I couldn't type any more. Just too painful. Used this for six months and all was right. I did end up going back to a normal keyboard though.

    • Also look at the Siemens KB-PC E - the E is for ergonomic. I've been using it for 2 years or so now, in conjunction with a mouse that is very much like the 3M from this test, and it has really helped me a lot. The Siemens KB is very comfy, has palm rests, is split in the middle and the angle can be changed, plus it can be raised in the middle to two different levels of height, allowing for a very natural position of the hands.

      http://www.fujitsu-siemens.com/products/prof_acc essories_mainboards/keyboards_mi

  • I really hope someone from Logitech is reading this article because I find their newer mice to be terribly uncomfortable. The MX1000 for instance requires you to grip it completely like a glove in order to get it to work, having to constanly 'grip' the mouse for hours while playing fps games is exhausting and totally annoying. I usually prefer to simply rest my wrist on the mousepad, and have my digit finger hover over the LMB. Whenever I need to move the mouse I pivot around where my wrist makes contact
    • As always, you can't make a one-type-fits-all mouse (or keyboard). For you, that mouse didn't work. Probably nobody said it would. Sell it, find another. For me, the mx500, and now the mx1000 (almost the same shape) proved to be the most comfortable mice I ever had.

  • This guy I used to play Ultima Online with was looking for a way to make mousing more comfortable and he decided that changing the mouse's location was as helpful for him as changing the mouse. He says its for RSI, but I think he was tired of getting waxed in online games.

    Anyway, be designed a plastic mousepad that attaches to the arm of your chair, so your mouse is where your hand already is. He had someone produce a few thousand of them and he's selling them now. You can look at them here [megamouse.com] if you're int

  • And before the insensitive clod jokes show up (sorry if you are an unemployed amputee) I thnk the above is a fair generalization to make.

    Get 4 mice, as different as possilbe one from each other and then make sure you also use both of your hands.

    I for example have 2 rodents in the office and 2 more at home.

    In the office I use the left hand, at home I use the right hand (dirty, dirty you old dirty you) and increase variety by changing mice every couple of weeks or so (now this is all sounding very fishy).

    So t
  • Switch hands. Use keyboard shortcuts.

    Whenever I've had problems related to the mouse, I've switched it to the other side of my keyboard. When injured one shouldn't continue to abuse it. Let it heal.

    I'm right-handed but normally use the mouse left-handed. This has the added bonus that I can still write or type with my right-hand.

    The best solution to mouse related problems is to just not use the bloody thing. This seems to be easier under Windows than X mind you.
  • I'm a 23 year old programmer, and I already have bad carpal tunnel in my right arm, and sorta bad in my left. I was so bad that I'd get tingling and a dull pain in my wrist after 15 minutes of computer use.

    I say "had" because sometime around March I bought one of the 3M Ergonomic Mice. It was the best $50 I ever spent. The mouse is shaped like a joystick and has 3 buttons. It was hard to aim at first, but after a week I was back to 90% accuracy. (100% after 2 weeks). After adjusting I can play FPS games at
  • What about left handers? Are they conveniently forgotten by mouse makers when designing so-called ergonomic monstrosties?

  • Use hind paws (Score:2, Interesting)

    by 2901 ( 676028 )

    I've put a trackball on the floor, and I'm spinning the ball with my toes. That spares my hands and lets me leave my fingers in the home position for touch typing on the keyboard.

    The trackball only has two buttons and I need three for X11 on FreeBSD so I've started the mouse demon with

    moused -p /dev/cuaa1 -3 -E 500

    "-3" gives me three button emulation, "-E" adjusts how simultaneous the left and right buttons have to be to count as the middle button. I boost it from 100ms to 500ms to accomodate my relat

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