Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!csd4.milw.wisc.edu!lll-winken!uunet!ssgp32!scott
From: scott@ssgp32.UU.NET (Scott Evernden)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: Mouse buttons (and Boing! Mouse.)
Message-ID: <548@ssgp32.UU.NET>
Date: 8 Jul 89 03:11:27 GMT
References: <8907031413.AA11261@jade.berkeley.edu> <1713@ucqais.uc.edu> <7641@cs.Buffalo.EDU>
Distribution: na
Organization: Prime Computer, Inc.,Framingham MA -- Entry Level Systems Group
Lines: 29

In article <7641@cs.Buffalo.EDU>, jmpiazza@sunybcs.uucp (Joseph M. Piazza) writes:
> 	I don't like optical mice; I like ball mice.  This issue
> is a matter or personal preference, not case of absolute technological
> superiority.

I agree with joe.

Sooner or later your optical mouse's felt pads will become encrusted
and packed with skin goo.  This is the same skin goo that cruds up
your mouse ball rollers.  But with the felt pads, you have to scrape
and gouge to get the crud out.  When the humidity is wrong, the
thing just doesn't glide across its pad anymore and becomes less than
fun to use.  You'll find yourself windex'ing that pad a lot too.

In my experience, I have encountered far more workstations supplied with
mechanical mice- very few use the optical version.  I wonder why?

An advantage of optical mice, given the dual sensors, is that you can
determine the rotation of the mouse as an additional input valuator.
A long time ago, Sun had some demo drawing program which used this
feature.

-scott

-- 
Scott Evernden            PRIME Computer Inc.
scott@ssgp32.Prime.COM    Commercial Systems Group
uunet!ssgp32!scott        Technology Drive
(508) 478-8600 x2984      Milford, MA 01757