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The Evoluent Vertical mouses have three base buttons, are ergonomical and is programmable.

http://evoluent.com/products/v...

Get a vertical mouse, no more discomfort for any finger or arm, it also has 6 buttons.

http://evoluent.com/

This and a Wacom tablet and you are all set. Bit pricy though when you add the needed Wacom tablet. https://store.wacom.com/us/en/... OR you could just get one of these which took about 2 min to find with the Google http://www.chairslimited.com/p... http://evoluent.com/ Or for a whole page full of them http://www.aliexpress.com/popu...

Check out some of the ergonomic mice. Not inexpensive, but demanding minority products seldom are.

Personally, I like the Evoluent vertical mouse. Reduces pronation (twist) and available LH as well as right.

Which upright mouse are you using? I've got Evoluent's VerticalMouse (right-handed, wired) model - http://evoluent.com/vm4r.htm - and very much enjoying it, highly comfortable and natural once you get used to the change. Not sure if there are other models out there to consider if this one goes, or just as an alternative on another machine.

Using the Logitech M570 trackball for my personal laptop, and a Logitech gaming mouse for the desktop at home. Variety is the key, I've found. Working different muscles and different movements have made all the difference for me in the last 7 years since I first started having issues with the hands and wrists.

I had to switch to an ergo mouse. Nothing else fixed my wrist pain - not exercise balls, not a wrist brace, not an ergo keyboard. I've been using the Vertical Mouse 4 but I think any ergo mouse can offer improvement. Just find one that's comfortable and works.

I tried a completely different type of mouse. Was hard to get used to for the first couple days. Now my wrist and forearm pain is a thing of the past. The vertical mouse keeps your hand, wrist and forearm in a relaxed position.

after a 3 year battle to carpal tunnel/RSI/tendinitis i'm finally getting it under control. after taking care of the carpal tunnel with surgery i still had the RSI/tendinitis. pills did nothing to help. touch-pads killed me. PT cost a fortune. i attribute it to a complete change in lifestyle. not working 7 days a week. no more 16 hour programming marathons. getting away from the computer during lunch. i cut out foods which encouraged inflammation, and increased intake of foods which help reduce inflammation. setting my computer screen to lock me out every 1/2 hour for 3 minutes so i stand up. i ended up losing weight in the process :) made sure every work area is ergonomically correct. no more laptops for me. heat, stretching exercises & ice daily. after the severe inflammation went away, i am now finally working my way up to strengthening exercises. i tried a dozen input devices and finally settled on the mouse which has kept me employed and the Microsoft ergonomic 4000 keyboard. maybe this will help someone or just give them hope

The 3M Ergonomic Mouse is another alternative that might work well for mouse/wrist issues. It keeps those stable, instead using your elbow and shoulder for movement. Only available for right-handed use. I've been much happier with 3M's product than the conceptually similar Evoluent VerticalMouse, mainly because the 3M stick uses a completely different set of muscles. The VerticalMouse might work OK for wrist issues, but it's easy to just move your injury to somewhere else that's weak from years of mouse abuse, because it's not really that different.

Someone might suggest a trackball next. When I last had wrist issues, those didn't help at all. Way too many muscles close to the injured ones involved in using one of those.

What made the original Xbox controller nice (for anyone who actually used it, as opposed to Sony fanwanks and Tycho/Gabe who don't ever even fucking play the games or consoles they talk shit about) is basic ergonomics.

The original Xbox controller is not designed to be held in the "traditional" controller position (wrists curled, hands tucked under, 3rd/4th/5th fingers curled in to support the console). That position is why people get carpal tunnel and "nintendo thumb".

Instead, you can keep your hands vertically oriented ("handshake position", like these absolutely fucking fantastic mice), rest the controller in the crease of your palm, and allow the fingers to rest. Much less worry about RSI, much easier to actually use the damn buttons without worrying about losing your grip on the controller.

If Gabe/Tycho and the Sony fanwanks would ever have used it, they'd know this. Instead, they just screwed around hating on it because it was from Microsoft, and the rest of us now have to suffer with ergonomically incorrect pads because of it.

Evoluent Vertical Mouse

If you have to use a mouse, it might as well be one that isn't going to destroy your wrist.

It might clash with your stereotypical clicky keyboard but it'll fit right in with that ergonomic keyboard that you actually use.

There is a huge market for ergonomic keyboards which the article completely avoids. It is these keyboards, rather than the ones which they present, which offer substantial differences in the typing experience.

I can think of two good examples off the bat. The Kinesis contoured keyboard is what I use, which includes palm rests and vastly different shape which reduces the distance your fingers travel, and takes a lot of strain off your arms. It's also programmable, which is a life-saver for devs. It comes PS/2 or USB, querty or dvorak switchable (i.e. in-keyboard switchable, with dual letter cues), and is solidly constructed.

The SafeType keyboard instead has two vertical parts of a split keyboard, so that your arms have a similar shape when typing as they would holding a large ball by the sides. This is supposed to reduce strain in your arms, by removing some torsion and keeping them in a more natural position. Some keys devs might need (arrow keys) are in a regular, central part of the keyboard. If you need these constantly, it could limit the benefit of changing your hand posture. Still, vim users (for example) wouldn't be affected. Ideally, you'd also get the Evoluent Vertical Mouse to match, so your mousing is also done with your hand in a handshake position.

As someone who's had RSI for a long time, I can tell you that none of the keyboards reviewed in the article are much better, or even significantly different from one another, compared with the difference with real ergonomic keyboards.

As with the QWERTY keyboard layout, the mouse should be replaced with the vertical mouse.

Too bad they don't have a wireless version yet.

Try this:
http://www.evoluent.com/

It really is more natural than a regular mouse. The only reason I don't switch is because I spend so much of my day on other people's computer, I would probably always be getting confused.

Also I used to use a trackball on my old Mac's. All of my family did back then, but they just seemed to away even more than the Mac.

Enablemart - This seems to be a third party seller but I've yet to find out who makes all the equipment they sell
3M Ergonomic Products - Notable is the Ergonomic Mouse that looks kind of like a joystick
Kinesis Corporation - Another third party place that sells ergonomic items (they have chairs also)
Perific - Their main product is the Wireless Dual Mouse
Evoluent - They are known for the VerticalMouse
Contour Design - Best known for the RollerMouse and the PerfitMouse (Contour Mouse)
Combimouse - Combination Keyboard and Mouse
Adesso - They make a lot of products
Aerobic Mouse - Looks a lot like the VerticalMouse except it has a plastic area to hold your hand
Nohands Mouse - Control your mouse with your feet
Zero Tension Mouse - seems like a mix between the VerticalMouse and 3M's Ergonomic Mouse

Some doctors? It just seems like some doctor with a degree held one and said, "Yeah that feels a bit better." They made no mention of a medical reason to use one over any other mouse, they simply said, "It might feel a little better."

I completely agree with your post overall. However, you implied a question about why the vertical vs horizontal has a medical basis:

http://www.evoluent.com/vm3.html

The skeletal picture illustrates the idea fairly well.

Or stand up, and let your arms fall to your sides, the natural position is clearly the 'vertical' position, whith your palms against your upper leg/thigh. Now 'twist' them to the 'horizontal' position with the palms facing behind you. Most of us, at least, can feel the difference as your arms twist away from neutral and can feel the tension increase on the forearm tendons. Its not 'uncomfortable' per se, but its easy to how a vertical mouse eliminates that tension.

How much better the vertical position is would be a separate question, but if your forearms hurt after a day of mousing its pretty reasonable that eliminating that tension is going to help.

Note that the only supported drivers for this mouse (and its predecessor) are for 32-bit XP and Vista. (See the driver download page at http://www.evoluent.com/download.htm.) The site links to a "freeware" driver provided by somebody else, but it had enough issues that I had to uninstall it.

I own an Evoluent VerticalMouse 2, which became an $80 paperweight after my work OS became WinXP x64. Evoluent's support told me that no 64-bit driver was forthcoming.

You might try the http://www.evoluent.com/vmouse2.htmlEvoluent Verticle Mouse
I have the classic thumb and first two finger numbness RSI. This mouse made a big differnce for me. It's not too expensive either. It's light enough that you don't have to grip it to move it around and you don't have to use your thumb for buttons. It's even usable if I have to wear my wrist braces (when I get too ambitions and over do it working on my project car).

I had problems for years. I started doing stretches, taking more frequent breaks and I also bought http://www.evoluent.com/vmouse2.html

It's expensive but it was worth every penny.

We use these at work, and a lot of people found it helped them:

http://www.evoluent.com/vmouse2right.htm

(I have no affiliation with the company that makes/sells it)

Unfortunately, you really have to limit use drastically. There is no single magic bullet. That said, this helped me a lot:
Evolient Mouse

http://www.evoluent.com/

A main driver for this is the desire to reduce the risk or pain associated with carpal tunnel syndrome and other RSI disorders ... The idea is to allow your arm to control the mouse in a more natural position, with the thumb up, in a hand-shaking position. Doctors who specialize in ergonomics consider this position preferable.

I have to ask, did anyone at ExtremeTech actually talk to a doctor who specializes in such things, or were these comments lifted from an Evoluent press release?

The reality of RSI is just so, so much more complex than these simple solutions would suggest.

Although how can you argue with a review like this:

Gained all the votes in terms of comfort and facility of use, of "look", colour and sympathy: the panel as a whole totally adhered to this new product.

I had the same problem with mice, and finally found one that I like
http://www.evoluent.com/ and combined with this keyboard http://ergokomfort.com/catalog/comfort_keyboard_sy stems_3932753.htm have made all the difference in my wrist pain. I know using the track point and laptop keyboard make it all come back

The Evoluent VerticalMouse2 comes in left-hand and right-hand models.

You'll be the best judge for whatever system hardware you need, no sense trying to argue that - but as far as input/output - spare no expense.

Display: LCD (Dell? good quality, good deals)

Nice high res lcd, should be able to rotate/pivot. Match to preference - but remember, you're staring at this the WHOLE day. Some prefer 2 or 3. I personally would like to try 3, but I think 2 is a more realistic practical limit (but like I said, never tried)

Keyboard: Kinesis http://www.kinesis-ergo.com/contoured.htm [normal site is in frames, but eh]

Ergonomic, no question. I used to swear by the thin little laptop-style keyboards with no numeric keypad (mainly so my mouse was closer) - cramps your hands too much over the years. I switched to a Kinesis keyboard. Yeah, it was $300. Yeah, my hands are loads better for it. If you're making any kind of scratch at all using a computer, you can easily afford paying for this. The split design and perfect placement of the keys, plus the thumb keys, is awesome. It's fully reprogammable in hardware, so there are no compatibility problems - want to switch your space and backspace thumbkeys? Press 6 keys* total and you're done. 'enter map mode' - space - backspace - backspace - space - 'exit map mode'.

* map mode requires 2 keys pressed simultaneously, so if you want to be nitpicky, it's 8 keys.

Mouse: Evoluent http://www.evoluent.com/

Also ergo. Normal mice are tiny and horrible on your hands - switching to and fro. I use an Evoluent myself, and it's not quite perfect, but it's a ton better than a normal mouse. $70 again isn't too much to drop for your health.
Also, if you can break the habit - use your scroll wheel sparingly. It's a really bad interface as far as overworking your tendons go. At the VERY least, increase the # lines scrolled for scrolling it.

Chair: Aeron? [match to taste.]

Chairs are pretty particular beasts. I would like to get an Aeron, I used one for a while in my last job - but it's too expensive given that I have 3 cats and no reliable way to keep them out of the office. I can definitely attest to its comfort, adjustability (be sure to get the most adjustable model), and breathability - which is very important for long stints on your arse.

Desk:
That's a matter of preference. I have a huge desk at the moment because my office has a wall made entirely of windows, so my desk makes up for it by "making" a wall (it's about 6 feet tall and has a solid backing for almost all of it). There was no way to position things so I could avoid glare, so this was the only solution. As long as your legs fit under it, and you can adjust the keyboard tray (adjust, not just slide in/out) - or it just happens to be the perfect height - then it's fine.

Plus, it looks so weird that no one dares use my computer anymore when I am gone! Actual quote from someone who came into my cubicle the other day: "What is that thing, a rudder?"

A company called Evoluent http://www.evoluent.com/ has a "Vertical," or "handshake" mouse, that is a hell of a thing. There are pictures on the web page linked above. Anyone at risk for RSI should take a serious look at it. Basically, instead of turning your palm down to the desktop, you leave your hand in the handshake position, the position it is normally in when you are standing relaxed. In addition to the ergonomic shape, it happens to be a fantastic optical mouse. I moved from a regular mouse to a trackball, which was great until I started getting pain in the knuckle of the finger I used to move the ball. I then switched to the handshake designed and used it without problems for years. Actually what I'm using more recently is also noteworthy: the Kinesis Evolution keyboard http://www.kinesis-ergo.com/evol_desk.htm. They keyboard is fully split in half, so you can position it as you like. Plus it has a laptop-like touchpad on both sides of the keyboard. I don't use a conventional mouse anymore: I "mouse with two hands" by usually navigating with my right hand on the right touchpad and clicking the buttons with my left. For me that's meant even less strain than the Evoluent Verticalmouse, which I didn't think was possible!

that already happened !

Actually, I'm 15 and had something similar to carpal tunnel at about age 11 (can you believe it? These damn Silicon Valley people :-D). My big worry was nixing it before high school! I was lucky enough to not have any nerve issues, just sore wrists, but mousing was definitely my issue. My parents both also had mousing issues, but once we switched to vertical mice and adjusted posture, we're all better. Rather than going dvorak, I used IBM ViaVoice for a few months so I could use the computer at all but was eventually able to migrate back into using a normal setup. I have a pretty nice acer split keyboard with a builtin touchpad (which I don't use...) and an amazingly cool Evoluent Vertical Mouse. The big thing for any kind of repetitive strain injury is reduce and relax. I took biofeedback training for a few weeks and it helped me immensely. Not playing games for 6hrs+ a day and switching to learning Java helped too... Now I'm productive and I don't have any problems! Watch your posture too, you can get neck/shoulder issues really easily. You probably already have hypertension and it's just below threshold so you don't treat it.