are you a mouse?

[calimac]

My computer mouse is getting annoying. Actually, it's a trackball, which is basically a mouse flipped upside down where you can manipulate the ball directly instead of swearing at it as it refuses to move properly over the mousepad. I much prefer trackballs; I don't like traditional mice and I really, really dislike touchpads.

That part works fine. It's the button that's the problem. The left button has gone wonky. I click it once and the computer thinks I've double-clicked. This causes all sorts of unwanted things to happen. Toggle switches flash and then return to their original position. Buttons clicked that close instructional windows activate whatever was directly behind them. I can't place the cursor on a word, but only highlight it. It's almost impossible to drag anything instead of opening it.

I went to the control panel and changed the response time from Andante to Lento, which helps a little but not much. I could switch the left-button command with the right-button one, as there's nothing wrong with the right button, but that would also require rewiring my brain.

I downloaded Logitech's SetPoint program, which allows you to program the little buttons set up against the big ones. Unfortunately there's no manual included, so the command options are all cryptic ("Back" and "Forward" what?), but there's one thing that it's clear it won't do, which is allow you to set the little button to do what the big button does.

What I suppose I need to do is buy a new trackball. I hope they still sell the wired ones. I don't trust wireless computing, and the cord makes it very easy to retrieve the trackball when it gets accidentally knocked off the desk.

Comments

[k6rfm.livejournal.com]

I believe there are still wired trackballs sold; also EBay is generally a good source for obsolete stuff, but if you get desperate I still have a working one in the garage. It's possible the problem is just some crud in the microswitch contacts, try picking up the thing and slamming it on the table a few times to try to knock it loose.

[kalimac.livejournal.com]

try picking up the thing and slamming it on the table a few times to try to knock it loose.

Amazingly, that seems to have worked. Thank you. I love high tech solutions.

[k6rfm.livejournal.com]

I learned that trick from an IBM keyboard engineer back when I worked for Big Blue.

[bibliofile.livejournal.com]

I have also taken mice apart to get the grit, lint, etc. away from the moving parts. Only going after what one can do with small screwdrivers.

[kalimac.livejournal.com]

This one has four screws on the bottom. I'd only go into it that way out of necessity. I tried popping the button off, the way you can pull the actual trackball out to clean the contacts (which I do frequently - but never wash them; I once ruined a device that way), but either it doesn't go that way or I don't have a tool on my desk that'll do the job.

[barondave.livejournal.com]

It sounds like your trackball is having connection problems, and reading one click as two. This may be crossed wires or a loose connection in the plug, but it's unlikely to be software. This has happened to me in several wireless mice, which is why I don't use wireless mice anymore.

Aside: "Back" and "Forward" usually refer to web pages (and sometimes Finder windows), allowing you to use the trackpad buttons instead of the arrows in the upper left of the browser window.

Further aside: Since I wanted a wired mouse, I got one... that the company didn't make any more and didn't support. So I downloaded USB Overdrive (for Mac). This doesn't actually support all the buttons on my mouse, but it helped. (If it had better documentation and fully supported the mouse, I'd pay the shareware...)

[kalimac.livejournal.com]

I found out about SetPoint from this site for a similar shareware product which alluded to it. As my trackball is Logitech, SetPoint's maker, I went to that instead, but if mine weren't supported, I'd probably have wound up with this.