Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!mcsun!ukc!dcl-cs!gdt!gdr!exspes
From: exspes@gdr.bath.ac.uk (P E Smee)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: Need Mouse Info
Message-ID: <1990Jan10.121134.15539@gdt.bath.ac.uk>
Date: 10 Jan 90 12:11:34 GMT
References: <1782@mrsvr.UUCP> <7051@b11.ingr.com>
Reply-To: exspes@gdr.bath.ac.uk (P E Smee)
Organization: University of Bristol c/o University of Bath
Lines: 40

In article <7051@b11.ingr.com> cowie@b11.ingr.com (Ivan Cowie) writes:
>In article <1782@mrsvr.UUCP>, krieg@jupiter.uucp (Andrew Krieg) writes:
>> My mouse is dying and I need to replace it fast.  Can anyone recommend one
>> cable.  The arrow moves in the opposite direction of what I want, sometimes.
>> I shake the cord a little, and it will work OK for a short time.  Can I
>> cheaply replace/build a new cable?

This problem can occur if one of the wires inside the cable is broken.
(There seems to be a favorite place for them to break, about an inch
outside the mouse.)  You might be able to get a replacement cord from
someplace that repairs Atari.  (I thought about rebuilding mine, but
couldn't find either an appropriate strain-relief, or a source of the
fiddly little connector used to attach the cable to the board inside
the mouse.)

You can also get this effect (it follows) if your mouse socket in the
ST is lifting from the board and so breaking a connection (apparently
not too uncommon if you unplug the mouse a lot, to put a joystick into
that port) or if the mouse is not firmly, all-the-way, plugged into the
ST.  Check that first, it's easier; my mouse often wiggles loose.  If
you plug/unplug the mouse a lot, get a switchbox, or even just a
joystick extension cable (Tandy/Radio Shack) and do the swap at the end
of that.

If you go for a third party mouse, be careful about the ones with
switches that make a loud click.  They tend to have metal domes which
deform under pressure (like the little metal 'cricket clickers') and
will die from metal fatigue under heavy use.  Probably OK for 'serious'
use, where you don't click a LOT, but I've killed 2 such (different
makes) playing Populous.  (Anybody know a good, durable, light button
touch, 'GAMES' mouse?)  My dead ones where a Kempston mouse, and one
labeled 'Conniver' or something like that.  These might be UK-specific
brand names.  I'm tempted to try modifying the shell of the Kempston
mouse, which is very nice for 'serious' use, so I can install heavy-duty
microswitches.  Nothing to lose, after all...


-- 
Paul Smee, Univ of Bristol Comp Centre, Bristol BS8 1TW, Tel +44 272 303132
 Smee@bristol.ac.uk  :-)  (..!uunet!ukc!gdr.bath.ac.uk!exspes if you MUST)