[archanix]

Just received my powerbook and need a mouse asap. What would you recommend? Doesn't matter if its wireless or not. If possible post a picture of the mouse or a link to the mouse specs/picture. Thank you for your help.

[Brad]

Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer
5 buttons, wheel, optical. Great feel.



Microsoft may write bad software, but it makes great mouses!

[Luca]

Best thing to do if you want the right one the first time, and you want to get it right away, is to go to an office supply store or a computer store and try them out. Most of these stores have about a dozen mice sitting out for you to try, so you can get a feel for how they fit your hand, positions of buttons, etc.

My mouse is a Logitech MX700, a wireless mouse with about a zillion buttons (actually eight). I have them all programmed to perform various functions, like opening a link in a new tab, using Expose, and going back or forward in the browser. Logitech tends to make good mice, and they have a lot of different models so you can get one that suits you best.

Another excellent choice would be the Kensington Pilot Mouse. My brother has one and it's really comfortable. It is just a simple two button + scroll mouse, but it has rubber pads on it that are very comfortable.

It's probably cheaper to buy the mouse online (NewEgg.com is the best, as long as you live in the US), but if you buy it in the store then you get it right away.

[ast3r3x]

MX700

It's lovely!

Buttons by the scroll wheel are volume up and down, two thumb buttons are expose. Scroll wheel click is normally hide app

[wyvern]

I'd recommend the MX510. Best accuracy available, and I like the feel better than the Microsoft mice.

[Eugene]

Originally Posted by Brad Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer 5 buttons, wheel, optical. Great feel. Microsoft may write bad software, but it makes great mouses!

Oh man, I can't recommend the Intellimouse Explorer, especially the rev.1/rev.2 in the photo. He wouldn't be able to find one like that anyway. The Intellimouse Explorers are too light, the buttons don't have enough resistance or travel. The new ones are overly sculpted like the Logitech MX models, but the old one didn't feel that much better in my hand anyway. AFAIK, none of the wireless Microsoft products use recharging stations. <-- That baffles me.

Logitech MX700 all the way...even if its 'ergonomics' take some getting used to.

[wyvern]

I should note that the MX510 and 500 have the same shape as the 700. So, if you want the better performance (and slight inconvenience) of a corded mouse, get the 510. If you want the worse performance and slightly greater convenience of wireless, get the 700. Simple.

[_Ω_]

I don't know about other PB users, but the trackpad grew on me.

I have mouse for it, but it now sits in a drawer at work as I find it annoying carting it around with me.

If you learn the keyboard shortcuts you can do most things just as quick (not all, it depends on what you are doing).

Just my 2c

[ast3r3x]

Originally Posted by Omega I don't know about other PB users, but the trackpad grew on me. I have mouse for it, but it now sits in a drawer at work as I find it annoying carting it around with me. If you learn the keyboard shortcuts you can do most things just as quick (not all, it depends on what you are doing). Just my 2c

I agree for the most part, but if you are working in photoshop, or coding where you need to be jumping around different places often, the trackpad can't beat a mouse. If I'm just browsing the internet or nothing complicated, I find myself using the track pad without even thinking about it though...just more natural now.

Also though, I use a mouse a lot more now that I got the MX...I had a standard logitec 3 button mouse that was wireless, but the MX just feels better, and having buttons for expose makes it wonderful for when coding and working on multiple open documents like I just said. Wonder if I could stand it again, in a slightly different way?

[DMBand0026]

Originally Posted by Brad Microsoft may write bad software, but it makes great mouses!

Nice goin Brad, way to make up a word
That's "mice", just for future reference



And just to stay on topic. I love my Apple BT mouse. I know a lot of people here can't live without 26 buttons on their mice, but I'm not one of them. If you like a very simple mouse that works great, has awesome battery life, and isn't (all that) expensive...go with the Apple BT mouse.

[autodata]

Definitely the logitechs.

Also, make sure to get sidetrack. It makes expose and scrolling much easier.

[wyvern]

If you like a very simple mouse... then you've never used a good mouse with multiple buttons, or you'd know better.

[iLikeMyiMacG4]

If it wasn't for the asap in your post I would go to http://www.windowsmobiletraining.com/ and take the quizes. You only need 700 points for a free wireless optical mouse. It took me about half an hour to get the points This is what you get. Mine should arrive at my house in about 6 weeks.

[ast3r3x]

Originally Posted by iLikeMyiMacG4 If it wasn't for the asap in your post I would go to http://www.windowsmobiletraining.com/ and take the quizes. You only need 700 points for a free wireless optical mouse. It took me about half an hour to get the points This is what you get. Mine should arrive at my house in about 6 weeks.

The change I save up in three weeks would be enough to buy that mouse

[Eugene]

Originally Posted by DMBand0026 Nice goin Brad, way to make up a word That's "mice", just for future reference

The contention is the plural of "mouse" when referring to the pointing device is "mouses." I think that's a bit of a myth.

[wyvern]

Originally Posted by Eugene The contention is the plural of "mouse" when referring to the pointing device is "mouses." I think that's a bit of a myth.

And I contend that people who say "mouses" are morons.

[Brad]

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=mouses

pl. mice or mous·es (mousz) Computer Science. A hand-held, button-activated input device that when rolled along a flat surface directs an indicator to move correspondingly about a computer screen, allowing the operator to move the indicator freely, as to select operations or manipulate text or graphics.

http://www.wordiq.com/definition/English_plural
http://www.allwords.com/word-mouses.html
http://www.saugus.net/Computer/Terms/

There are plenty more sources that say "mouses" is correct, but I guess anyone that uses dictionary.com must be a moron. I think people who put extra letters like u's where they don't belong (as in colour and honour) are morons too.

[wyvern]

I think the only semi-reputable online dictionary is m-w.com. The only truly reputable dictionary (as in the kind you hold in your hand) is, IMO, the Random House II, but that's hard to find these days.

[_Ω_]

Originally Posted by Brad I think people who put extra letters like u's where they don't belong (as in colour and honour) are morons too.

He's talking abo[u]t people like me

[HOM]

[iLikeMyiMacG4]

Originally Posted by ast3r3x The change I save up in three weeks would be enough to buy that mouse

Yeah well right now I'm using the single button mouse that came with my imac and when I get my free mouse I'll try it and if I don't like I didn't waste any money on it (didn't even pay for shipping).

[reaches in pocket and pulls out handful of change worth $1.50. Hmmmm. $1.50 * 21 days = $31.50. Gets TI-83 out of drawer and checks if $31.50 > $0. Its is. :smokey:]

[Tuttle]

I have a Logitech MX700. It's fantastic. I haven't found any cordless mouse that comes anywhere near its feel.

[Spart]

I absolutely hate mice that are too light. For this reason, most optical mice suck. Mechanical mice with heavy metal balls, like my hockey puck, have a much better feel than light mice, which feel like they will easily break.

One of the few optical mice I've used that I like is the MX700. It has batteries which give it weight, it has a good shape, the clicking feels just right and the sound of the click isn't annoying.

However, I'm curious as to the weight of the MX510. Is it really light like most of the crappy Microsoft mice? Or does it have roughly the same weight as its cordless, battery-powered brother?

Either way, whenever my hockey puck craps out, I'm replacing it with a Logitech.

:smokey:

[wyvern]

Go to CrapUSA and test how the mice feel in your hand.

[autodata]

Originally Posted by Brad There are plenty more sources that say "mouses" is correct...

Seems to me it's just a case of so many people using it wrong that it becomes acceptable.

A little more info:

Wired Style: Principles of English Usage in the Digital Age (ed. Constance Hale, HardWired, 1996, ISBN 1-888869-01-1) says: "What's the plural of that small, rolling pointing device invented by Douglas Engelbart in 1964? We prefer ~mouses~. ~Mice~ is just too suggestive of furry little creatures. But both terms are common, so take your pick. We actually emailed Engelbart to see what he'd say. His answer? 'Haven't given the matter much thought.' "In fact, Engelbart shared credit for the name with 'a small group in my lab at SRI.' Nobody among his colleagues seems to remember who first nicknamed the device, but all agree that the name was given because the cord ('tail') initially came out the 'back' of the device. 'Very soon we realised that the connecting wire should be brought out the "front" instead of the back,' Engelbart notes, but by then the name had stuck." The Microsoft(R) Manual of Style for Technical Publications (ed. Amanda Clark, Microsoft Press, 1995, ISBN 1-55615-939-0) says: "Avoid using the plural mice; if you need to refer to more than one mouse, use mouse devices." Markus Laker reports from the U.K.: "In the early eighties, a few people did selfconsciously say 'mouses', but the traditional plural 'mice' gained ground rapidly and is now more or less universal here."

http://alt-usage-english.org/excerpts/fxmouses.html

[Luca]

"Mouses" may be correct (more or less) but I think most people say "mice" anyway, because it's a word that is familiar to them. Just as many, many people say "hung" instead of "hanged" when referring to an execution in the past tense. "Hanged" is the proper term when referring to a hanging, but "hung" is the word people are familiar with so it gets used.

[Eugene]

"Mouses" was probably one geek's method of going against the grain. From there he spread it to other geeks. And then every time a regular Joe said "mice" to a geek, the geek would snap and correct him...

Most dictionaries accept colloquial terms after a while, but the fact that M-W hasn't yet picked up on it speaks for itself.

[autodata]

Originally Posted by Luca "Mouses" may be correct (more or less) but I think most people say "mice" anyway, because it's a word that is familiar to them.

Actually, you have that backwards. "Mouses" is apparently only in usage because enough people got it wrong.

Apple, Microsoft and Logitech call them "mice" as well.

[onlyafterdark]

My vote is for the Logitech mice as well. I have a MX700 and I love it.

I use the Kensington "72123, Mouse in a Box. It's nice and light and doesn't have the annoying round front of many mice. Your fingers have a nice grip and don't have to move that big bumper (like Apple's pretty round bumper-car mouse that will ruin any wrist in 1/2 hour easy)

Don't get a cordless mouse. The batteries add too much extra weight. After using Illustrator for 3 hours you'll know why.