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The Most Powerful Mouse in the World
Seumas writes "Check out the Durapoint
stainless steel industrial mouse which has bee thrown off a five-story building, submerged for hours, run-over by an 18-wheel truck, beaten with a hammer, used as a hockey puck, thrown across a room and stepped on countless times. It's even theft-proof. Even the pentagon is considering using it. At $279, it isn't cheap -- and it sure isn't an ergonomic wonder, but it might be your ticket if you do your computing strapped to the underside of a Mac truck." If only it had 3 mouse buttons!
It's stainless steel, dude. Unless you're a mutant, semen and pine-sol won't touch it.
If only someone would make computer cases out of stainless steel, maybe with a little chrome. Coolermaster's aluminum cases are pretty, but they could be even better...
---
As copyright owner of this comment, I authorize everyone to defeat any technological measure which limits access to it.
I had a chance to use a Durapoint at a chemical plant once. It is definitely solid and *heavy*. At the time I remember thinking the thing must be tough to damage. If you're thinking it's a pain to use, you're right. Definitely not for fine graphics work. It took a nontrivial amount of pressure to move the mouse.
(Saw someone mention a ball, there is none. The rubber disk on the top is how you move the pointer.)
I like that comment. :)
M$ stock dropped in 1/2 since last year. If you are a MCSE, you will be broke.
When Fry's Electronics and Micro City first showed up in Southern California, they were selling printer cables and mice for 50 cents each. Some time later I was over at a friend's house and he started having trouble with his mouse. He then unplugged it, threw it in the trash, and reached over into a box to get a new one in the original packaging. He had bought 20 dollars worth of mice and figured it wasn't worth cleaning them anymore.
Ok, we've got a stainless steel mouse, so when do we get a stainless steel rat?
Apologies to Harry Harrison...
"Isn't that the sweetest little well-balanced undergraduate-level philosophy of life."
At my university we have had these mice for several years now. They are used at internet cubes, which consist of a cube in which a monitor is installed, a keyboard and this mouse. You can't touch the monitor or the pc itself though.
They are meant to be used by visitors who want to have a go with internet and are seldomly used by students who want to go to a site quickly and forgot their laptop.
Fact is that initially they worked fine and didn't get dirty at all. After a while, though, it wasn't what they promised at the website. Seemingly being used by hundreds (or rather thousands) of people is too much for them. They kept failing to move the cursor and clicking wasn't everything either.
So, we wound up with these cubicles with either a failing mouse or just shut down. They aren't used anymore today. So much for the indestructable mouse!
--- Anyway, here's Aniway!
What's it like working for Larry Ellison?
III.IIVIVIXIIVIVIIIVVIIIIXVIIIXIIIIIIIIVIIIIVVIII
>Don't know about the rest of the world, but
> that's >what everyone in the Midwest calls a
> 18-wheeler.
> A semi-truck.
> A Freightliner, Peterbuilt, Kenworth, >GM/Volvo...A big-rig.
"An articulated lorry"
-fb Everything not expressly forbidden is now mandatory.
For $279 you can buy an awful lot of cheap mice in the event one gets broken.
It's my belief that NOTHING can stand the craziness of the public. :)
Calum
Considering that it's almost ten years *over* the projected lifetime and about one-tenth the projected maintenance, I'd say mir is pretty damn tough.
No, I'm not Russian....
...
Yes, I know I ramble and my spelling isn't quite up to scratch. If you wish to complain,
For that kind of money, you're not going to get one that has all those features AND is that durable. This isn't designed for people to use on their desk. This isn't designed for people browsing the internet. This is for places where you have to have a PC in a hazardous environment. We're talking forklifts moving around, sparks flying, excessively high temperatures, caustic chemicals, piles of dirt and grease, etc. I don't think anyone makes a mouse that can take that sort of punishment AND have the "nice" features you seem to be demanding. And if they did, I bet it'll cost more than this one does.
"That's Tron. He fights for the Users."
All about me
If only Microsoft would harden its Intellimouse Explorer using metal, and would fix the defect where the wires in the cord break when its tugged on, then that would be bad ass.
The wire doesn't look like anything special.
Where is the steel conduit? Is it fireproof?
Maybe they can run over it with a truck, but
can a pocketknife cut the cable? Can the DB9
connector crack off a piece of epoxy? How does
it act with a 7.62 round fired into it?
-fb Everything not expressly forbidden is now mandatory.
I wish I could hide from the law inside an automated fast-food kiost.
Blar.
So what's this little guy's pressure point?
Molten Lava? (I can just see the terminator's dying wish as he's melting away, holding his pet mouse in the air... now there's a tear jerker!)
Seems like the mouse is a bit excessive, maybe the government needs to look into console only apps..
------------------------------------------
If God Dropped Acid, Would he see People???
What are we going to do tonight Brain?
If you're refering to the AWD Subaru Outback, they're made about 25 yards to my left in Lafayette, Indiana. =) But yeah, we're still a japanese company.
Sotaku
If the mouse is being run over by a car, won't the laptop it's pluged into be run over too? I mean, the mouse is a small target, but the laptop, should be easy to hit. :)
=================
Unix is very user friendly, it's just picky about who its friends are.
Bet it wouldn't stand up to long term vibration. The connectors used to attach the lead are just normal square-pin headers (look at the photo), with no additional strain relief. These connectors don't have enough contact pressure for reliability, and in extreme cases (motor-racing) they'll walk their way clean off the pin.
Some years ago I used to instrument power presses. Getting strain gauge signals out through connectors on shop-floor tooling was alway a PITA.
Anyone remember the Tom and Jerry show? No matter how much Tom tried to kill (and eat) Jerry, that elusive mouse managed to escape unharmed.
Seems strinkingly similar to this, no? ; )
Check out this link for more information about the two animals that couldn't get along.
-BBoy doodles
C is for cookie
i spy a conspiracy, the government has one more thing that they can write off, to hide the costs of their secret programs.
big brother, WE are watching YOU
moohoohahahahahahahaha
(end comment) */ }
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[an error occurred while processing this directive]
If you're using a mouse in a dangerous enough situation that you'd need it to be designed this stupi... err, durably, wouldn't you also need a similarly designed computer, protected in the same way? I mean, come on!! What's the deal here? Would someone please explain to me the rationale behind this doohicky? As Enron states, Why???
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+1 Insightful, -1 Troll. What can I say, I'm an Insightful Troll.
Personally, I wouldn't see too many people using the thing. While it is burly, working with those kind of pointing devices is work that can only be done for a while without getting frustrated. But I guess if durability is a concern, it'd work for that.
But really: If durability were a concern, wouldn't you worry more about your keyboard? Your computer can function fine without a mouse, but without a keyboard you're S.O.L.
Actually, now that I look at it a bit more, it looks a lot like my garage door opener ;-)
Ignoranus: A person who is both stupid and an asshole.
I once saw a mouse that could change its own ball: see mpeg movie
Ah - the company would have to be a new mouse if it got damaged, whereas 'loosing' a user would actually cut spending (no wages).
Richy C.
--
SUWAIN: Slashdot User Without An Interesting Name
SUWAIN: Slashdot User Without An Interesting Name
I know someone who has a machine shop with high speed milling machines. The machines use an oil/water emulsion coolant sprayed on the tool, which creates a fine oil mist in the air. The oil mist mixes with dust and makes this ultra sticky crud that gets in everything and doesn't come off, no matter what you do.
This mouse has been working fine in this environment for 3-4 years, along with a similar keyboard with a stainless steel case and rubber membrane keys. I can't keep a ball mouse working at my house for 6 months.
... But what about the LEAD!!
Starship Troopers, the War Craft remix :-)
Big square metal box, sharp 90 degree corners - looks like carpal tunnel syndrome just BEGGING to happen if you ask me.
+++++++++++++++++++++
The Digital Sorceress
Different objects (mouse vs. desk) would have different terminal speeds. The terminal velocity is not only dependent on the speed of an object but also the density of the air through which the object moves.
That's why science teachers pay so much for that glass cylinder with the feather and the penny in it. To think... they could have spent that money on this mouse.
It makes sense for the pentagon to want this 279$ mouse. It'll go great along w/ the 1000$ toilet seats and 300$ ink pens ;-)
Who knows which professional gamers may switch! TheCPL
What good is a mouse that can be run over or flung down 5 stories? where is the computer in all this mess. I mean yeah ok its cool to take out your anger on but its not really usefull.
"used as a hockey puck"
Game on!
Thanks for letting me back in. Hope fully I don't get modded right out the door.
a/s/l here. Sorry, adding domain tags to your s
Yes, if only /. could instinctivly know when each of the billions of pages on the WWW had some new info. How often do YOU go looking for bullet-proof mice?
-This sig intentionally left blank
So, this "mouse" is obviously quite tough, but that sure looks like a conventional serial cable coming out of it. What's the point of having an indestructible mouse if the cable is still subject to kinking or yanking?
"We got a mouse, now all we need is a computer, monitor, keyboard, cables...."
Capt. Ron
crazy dynamite monkey
This is in no way a mouse. Its not even a trackball.
The closest thing to this is an old-skool 2 button game pad.
I gots ta ding a ding dang my dang a long ling long
Now there's a great idea, we could have true 3D mice with accelerometers (With enough sensors you could detect rotation as well as lateral 3D movement). Imagine playing a flight sim (or Descent etc.) with a mouse which you could pick up off the desk and fly around like a kid with a toy plane!
We'd need to combine it with some kind of wireless technology, both so that the wire doesn't get ties up in knots and to make it even more indestructible (As well as the rolling mechanism getting gunged up or the button mechanism breaking I've seen mice fail because their leads break internally)
No ball. It's pressure operated. But suprisingly, Microsoft makes an EXCELLENT USB optical mouse. Maybe they should ditch their OS divsion and concentrate on hardware and games.
The mouse is made to be used in hazardous environments, the kinds of places that would kill your average mouse within a few days, if not hours. So, let's say an average lifetime of 5 days in these environments for one of your mice. That's 365/5*$20=$1460 a year. Quite a bit more than $279. Actually, using your $20 average mouse price, if your environment could kill 14 mice a year, then this mouse saves you money.
"That's Tron. He fights for the Users."
If they made a USB interface to the thing, the second button would work wonderfully on a Mac. My IntelliMouse Explorer's second button works just fine on my USB-upgraded 8600. No more hunting for the control key.
The IPCC has purposely engineered a massive scientific fraud.
How could they forget the bubble gum test? Seems like the perfect mouse for a public terminal, but they didn't subject it to bubble gum? Geez...huge oversight.
I'm going to go back in my box and will think within the limits of my box: MS Sucks Linux Good I read too much Slashdot.
- A.P.
--
* CmdrTaco is an idiot.
"Remember when the U.S. had a drug problem, and then we declared a War On Drugs, and now you can't buy drugs anymore?"
The most powerful mouse in the world was susceptible only to Limberger cheese... That's right, here he comes to save the day, MIGHTY MOUSE is here to stay.
Personally, I always thought Speedy Gonzalez was *way* cooler than Might Mouse. Yeeha! Yeeha! Andele! Andele! Ariba! Ariba!
It may look like I'm doing nothing, but I'm actively waiting for my problems to go away.
--Scott Adams
Terminal velocity? It would the same if you bolted the mouse to a desk and tossed it out the window. Galileo and his famous experiment, you see... Perhaps you were meaning the amount of force generated on impact? F=mv
What, is it hardened against a nuclear attack or something? Or is it just another excuse to bilk the U.S. taxpayer?
It can take falls. Being run over. Nuclear attacks. BUT, can it take being used by most pc users out there? I'm betting our secretary can have it disabled in 2 weeks.
Yep, I never spell check.
More incorrect spellings can be found he
"...run-over by an 18 wheel semi-truck..."
WTF is an 18 wheel semi-truck? Is it, like, half a truck or something? Why didn't they just use a 9 wheel truck?
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Moderator's essentials
Well...it's still more ergonomically correct than the original iMac hockey-puck mouse.
> I wouldn't say my boss has a temper, but I'm
> still digging out the shrapnel from the wall
> from computer equiptment that upset my boss.
Erm, which would you rather encounter unexpectedly: a high-speed air-borne mouse made of plastic, or a high-speed air-borne mouse made of titanium?
Slashdot monitor for your Mozilla sidebar or Active Desktop.
But, do you have a flag?
Steve's Computer Service, Hobbs, NM
They want to test the strength of all their $500 hammers.
Seriously the quote-unquote "versapoint" technology in the Interlink devices actually lend themselves nicely to game control and movement within a 3D 1PS. Without looking at the box (i have the Durapoint's little brother the SuperMouse [haha] now discontinued, see The Bone Collector) cursor speed is proportional to applied force..
It's nothing new.. you see it on laptops across the globe... what's different is that the eraser is no longer eraser-sized - it's about as big as a quarter!
The applied force (your finger) can persist as long as you need it to -----> A definite ergonomic advantage, see point.
Sure it's only got two buttons (a downside, i agree) but if you're talking about a 1PS game, you've got 10 fingers (use them): If you're good - you'll utilize a custom keyboard config and two buttons on a mouse isn't much of a concern.
|[;) Not a sermon, just relaying some experience. (=
Have a happy holiday season everyone, however you celebrate (or don't) it..
-j@ce-
aka Timeworn
Interlink's Page. Check out the home of the DuraPoint, DeskStick, and the SuperMouse (may it rest in peace).
It's nothing new.. you see it on laptops across the globe... what's different is that the eraser is no longer eraser-sized - it's about as big as a quarter!
The applied force (your finger) can persist as long as you need it to -----> A definite ergonomic advantage, see point.
Sure it's only got two buttons (a downside, i agree) but if you're talking about a 1PS game, you've got 10 fingers (use them): If you're good - you'll utilize a custom keyboard config and two buttons on a mouse isn't much of a concern.
|[;) Not a sermon, just relaying some experience. (=
Have a happy holiday season everyone, however you celebrate (or don't) it..
-j@ce-
aka Timeworn
Interlink's Page. Check out the home of the DuraPoint, DeskStick, and the SuperMouse (may it rest in peace).
if you are in a position to use a detatched pointing device (i.e., a mouse), you do not need it this durable. If you are so in need of durability, you probably will need an integrated pointing device (e.g., trackpad, trackball, that little nub thingie IBM uses, etc.). And unless they are carrying around a platform with a mousepad on it, i doubt they will be using it in battlefields. there is no use for this. the market will probably be technophiles and computer enthusiasts.
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# cd /
I think a $1000 toilet seat with buttons and USB support would kick ass.
I have a bad habit of bashing my mouse down on the table when I'm losing .. which luckily I've almost taught myself to not do anymore .. but I've broken a few mice doing it. My logitech mouse has been pretty dang tough though, it's taken a heavy beating, and still (sort of) works. Microsoft mice are pretty pathetic though. I slammed one down just once and it was permanently stuffed.
Anybody else see the weak point of such a mouse? Hmm... that serial cable still seems pretty susceptable to damage. *Snip* Down one $279 mouse.
Zero G
That actually sounds ideal.
Can you imagine trying to use a regular laptop trackpoint dealie to call for an arty strike while bouncing over broken terrain at 40 mph?
"Shit, I think I just called for fire right on top of us."
In a little RTS game, no big deal. In a real combat enviroment, it might sort of suck.
"Freedom in cyberspace'd be fine and dandy if we happened to live there."
People usually get killed if this equipment doesn't function correctly in a combat situation- our people.
Replace the unit is what some would suggest. In combat, you usually don't have the luxury of swapping out parts like that (and unless it's USB, it's NOT going to be hot-swappable either so that means a reboot of most OSes...) In combat, failure is largely NOT an option.
I am not merely a "consumer" or a "taxpayer". I am a Citizen of the State of Texas
I've used one of these things, and even for the limited time I had to use it (1-2 hours) my wrist and fingers didn't recover for a day or so. It's sort of like a trackpoint on a laptop, but extremely stiff. Granted that my admin/programming efforts required a lot more mouse usage than the average worker would do.
Very good for use in difficult environments; factory floors, chemical production, very dirty environments, etc. Not my first choice for anything else though.
"But actually trying to use m4 as a general-purpose langage would be deeply perverse" --ESR
A Sigint system does.
A Sigint system is a computer with a GUI, etc.
While I agree that the previous poster's analogy is a bit broken, there are definite reasons why this is a useful thing (and not overpriced either). If you've never dealt with the stuff, you wouldn't understand. I have.
I am not merely a "consumer" or a "taxpayer". I am a Citizen of the State of Texas
http://www.pcpowerandcooling.com/products/enclosur es/professional/pro_towers/index.htm
They aren't stainless steel, but they are heavy gauge steel and there is an option for a chromed one. Not cheap, but quality hardware usually isn't.If you can't beat them, embrace and extend them.
I wonder if it can survive a spill of my guinness. I know my last couple mice didn't.
it's optical...the only moving part is the mouse wheel and they make them without those....
if they wanted a good mouse that could handle those things it seems like the KISS method would work best.
KeepItSimpleStupid...their mouse looks like a nightmare...no wonder it cost $300...
IMHO of course!
/* Half alive and half dead too, work is for suckers and the sucker is you. - "Half-life" by Local H*/
Drop it from 6'. Repeat for at least 1000 cycles.
Submerge it in water.
Submerge it in oil.
Subject it to vibration approximately equivalent to 70g's worth of acceleration.
Subject it to dust, dirt, and mud.
Subject it to discharges of gunpowder and explosives (Nearby, not ON it...).
Won't last long, will it?
This mouse will under those conditions.
People need to realize that this stuff is not going to always be operated in office or home like conditions. It's going to be subjected, in most cases, to evil conditions that will kill your home or office equipment outright- that's what combat presents. That's why having "milspec" stuff can often mean you've got superior parts. In combat, failure of your equipment is not an option.
I am not merely a "consumer" or a "taxpayer". I am a Citizen of the State of Texas
This mouse needs a better name. How about "Rasputin?"
See you in hell,
Bill Fuckin' Gates®.
See you in hell,
Bill Fuckin' Gates®.
(This post is ©2001 Microsoft(TM) Corporation.)
After all, that is what he asked for...
I am not merely a "consumer" or a "taxpayer". I am a Citizen of the State of Texas
Yea, I guess it takes people a little while to realize. Shoeboy only posts anonymously when none of his other accounts have mod points.
-- I have marked myself unwilling to moderate-- I don't have other accounts to artificially inflate the karma of
If they were testing it on a Mac [sic] truck, I assume the mouse only has one button.
But the damned thing isn't Macintosh-compatible anyway. (It's not transparent blue.)
See you in hell,
Bill Fuckin' Gates®.
See you in hell,
Bill Fuckin' Gates®.
(This post is ©2001 Microsoft(TM) Corporation.)
Gee, I'd like to have a mouse as durable as this. Maybe someday they would be all that's left of this world in case we have a nuclear war. That, plus cockroaches...
You'll see how well it holds up to real abuse.
Is there any mention about how the computer(s) it was attached to is doing?
i use a $25 optical mouse but our pentegon brass needs to look into buying $300 bricks they think will work better??
and no one finds military intelligence an oxymoron?
sheesh!
/* Half alive and half dead too, work is for suckers and the sucker is you. - "Half-life" by Local H*/
i think there really are situations where such a mouse would be useful. just thinking of an internet kiosks, e.g. jwz's dna launge linux kisosk. in such an environment, where a "normal" mouse is not likely to survive a long time, these things could be really good. it is even waterproof.. but the _price_....?!
neither do i
It looks like the ergotrack that comes on Fujitsu notebooks. I've used one before and yeah its kind of difficult but I think its still easy to use compared to an Alpspoint.
I've had the same mouse for 5 years, with no problems (regular mouse cleanings come in handy sometimes) ... so my question is .. who would want this?
A Grizzly "suit" (sort o' like a shark suit...)- who'd have thunk...
I am not merely a "consumer" or a "taxpayer". I am a Citizen of the State of Texas
that's for sure
--I assume full responsibility for my actions, except the ones that are someone else's fault.
Oh my god... just when I thought I would never fall in love again... CHROME!
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As copyright owner of this comment, I authorize everyone to defeat any technological measure which limits access to it.
Is DM still on the air? I haven't seen it in years.
-Legion
So you're telling me that the country that developed the Mir is the place to test designs for their reliability? Is it past experience with fubar designs or knowledge of reliable designs?
Just a very, very short joystick.
-- Alastair
Did anyone notice that he never said if the mouse actually worked afterwards? http://you.know.you.want.to.have.sex.with.chaz.aft ernet.org/
Both the main case and the monitor of a computer can be protected from a hazardous environment. Let's say you're working in a cabinet maker's shop, and there's tons of sawdust. Put the case and the monitor inside of a filtered cabinet, with a window to see the monitor. You still need to have input devices exposed to the harsh environment.
If someone constructs keyboards and mice for harsh environments, and the rest of the computer is removed from those environments, you can still have a very durable system.
Other places I can see this being used:
On the back of a Hummer in the middle of nowhere
A machine shop
Okay, I'm out of ideas now, but you get the picture.
It may look like I'm doing nothing, but I'm actively waiting for my problems to go away.
--Scott Adams
Have you ever tried increasing the voltage level? That usually helps. Yeah, really, all you have to do is just go and get a nice heavy-duty generator with variable voltage settings. Jack it up to the highest one. Plug that sucker into the monitor, switch on the power, and ... BAMN! Fireworks baby! Your Quake games will never be the same...
--
+1 Insightful, -1 Troll. What can I say, I'm an Insightful Troll.
So does a Mac truck only have one wheel? ;-)
(Should be Mack truck, BTW...)
cya
Ethelred
Everyone wants to be Ethelred. Even I want to be Ethelred.
Best of all, next time my house is hit by a satellite I won't have to worry about my mouse being damaged!
LAI
:eof
Isn't the point of the 18 wheels on a truck of that size to evenly distribute it's unusually large weight over many places? Let's get a stuntman rolling that thing on one wheel over the mouse.
And what's the terminal velocity of a mouse, anyway? Bolt that mouse down to the desk (now there's an attractive feature) and then throw the whole desk out the window. Then I may be impressed with the durability.
You want a real test? Find your typical cubicle dweller, take away his mouse, bolt that ugly thing down to his desk, and give him five minutes to destroy it out of sheer frustration.
I would like a joystick made just like this mouse...it seems i need to buy an new joystick every few months because everything is make of cheap plastic. I want a 3-D joystick made out of steel!
I dont' know about you but Boomers are really starting to cheese me off --- Me
Great, an outdoor, industrial or Mil grade mouse. From the boxy looks of it, it's not intended for easy of use or much use, for that matter.
Is there a reason this thing has to be square or rectangular? I mean, besides the designer being the sort who checks his last buzz cut with a level and T-square. Reminds me of the way people used to design things before form was considered as opposed to functionality above all else.
--
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
Hmmm...wonder how durable this Compaq Mouse is...okay, this Microsoft Mouse, damn.
Hey, betchya these Dell Laptops are pretty durable....nope.
*scans office for other things to drop out window*
This is not the way to build a lasting empire.
Why would anyone, I mean anyone need such a mouse i have in my life broken 5 mouses that brings the grand total to $100 including tax and I think that in the next 20 years I will probably buy 5 or six more but that is still only $200 a $79 savings still and by the time you actually save any money with it you will not like it anymore and buy another. The only thing that I can see this mouse being used for is bragging rights:
"Hey Y'all watch This!"
"The secret of success is to know something nobody else knows." -Aristotle Onassis
Shut up, be happy. The conveniences you demanded are now mandatory. -- Jello Biafra
A truck in California, a fall in Sweden? Bring it to us in Russia. If it survives then they can certify it for real and claim as the real thoughest mouse... Meanwhile it is only a though mouse...
I would like to see it pass -50, dropped into the coffee mug, being mistakenly taken for the ashtray, occasionally plugged into the power socket, then being kicked by one though sysadmin in Quake. And being sadistically tested by dozens of users - "Though yeah? Let's see then.."
Once I saw how canadians brought a though truck into a Siberian town. A big bright shiny Kenwood. The Kamaz looks as a tiny family car in front of it. Russian mechanics looked at the american monster and warned that it wouldn't hold up too long. Canadians answered that they have Kenwoods working in similar climatic conditions in their North... Two weeks, BHAM! The main axis turned into a small mound of steel sand. And the guys got stucked in their base without supplies... Well five guys in a whole filled Kamaz. Running 80-120Km/h through the Taiga, frozen river beds at -50 they brought the supplies to the canadian group... A whole trip of over 300Km through Siberia...
So, while it is not "Russian certified", it's only though...
Those of you looking for a good rugged mouse/keyboard at a decent price can find one from Keytronic. Specifically the lifetime series mouse and keyboards. They are called "Lifetime" because they have a lifetime warranty. The Lifetime mouse uses wheels on the bottom instead of a ball, so it needs no cleaning and doesn't require a mouse pad. I've had mine for 2 years and it's good as new. Check it out here. No, it probably won't survive being dropped off a 5 story building, or being run over by a truck, but they are pretty tough. Their keyboards are good too. They are the OEM that build the Microsoft Natural Keyboards.
witty sig goes here
"Even the pentagon is considering using it."
Hmm...why the hell would the pentagon need this? It's not like that building is a battle zone. The pentagon doesn't need high durability hardware like this; people there are normal users, pretty much like everyone else in terms of hardware durability needs. (And don't tell me its for field use, because if any computers are deployed in the field they are laptops with built-in pointing devices. Using anything but that is a risk and an inconvenience to users.) I think that the pentagon's consideration of this piece of hardware has less to do with its durability and more to do with its $279 price tag. The military loves to max out its budget so it can ask for more next year, even if it doesn't need it. I read somewhere that people doing work in the pentagon used $150 hammers and that office supplies, etc. were bought for way above retail in order to spend all the money that congress gives them, so they could ask for more the following year. This is the perfect opportunity to do just that.
If you ask me, this country's government is a joke.
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# cd /
Dead.
This next song is very sad. Please clap along. -- Robin Zander
Just to help people out, re-read 'though' as 'tough'.
~Cederic is not criticising, he wishes his Russian was as good
except a Neck and some Tendons!
Good old John K. - How can you beat lines like that???
Durable maybe, but powerful?
:Cue :Cat. I guess it's target-marketed to the gearhead types who are into computers--the same people who are running out to buy P4s because their P3 is "obviously" obsolete. These same people usually only run a browser + MS office.
I think its driver software could make it actually powerful, but this is only a mouse used conventionally.
Honestly, this is the stupidest thing I've seen since the
What's that saying? A fool and his money are soon parted.
I'd rather be a unix freak than a freaky eunuch
Ewige Blumenkraft!
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Game over, 2000!
God I hope so, that thing needs to take a look in a mirror for a reality check.
Anyone can make something bomb proof, truck proof, etc, but who's going to use it?
Some likely uses are warehouse/industrial, auto shop and military. A regular mouse wouldn't stand a chance in those environments.
Yeah, I'll bet the thing plays a crap game of Quake too...
--
Slashdot didn't accept your submission? hackerheaven.org will!
neither do you.
It was a joke. Get over it.
Yep, I never spell check.
More incorrect spellings can be found he
I bet Troy Hurtubise could use that in his project.
Karma karma karma karma karmeleon: it comes and goes, it comes and goes.
They failed to mention that you have to feed this thing raw beef to keep it running (or risk losing your fingers when it gets hungry).
User? There`s millions more where they came from.
In order to gain a competitive edge, I have overclocked my Microsoft Intellimouse and my serial port. I find that with the overclocked UART, I get finer control over my mouse movements and can move the mouse faster and more accurately.
Of course I had to replace my hand with a Borg implant with a heatsink and cooling fan instead of a palm, but you should see my Frag Count!!!
Steven
-- I have marked myself unwilling to moderate-- I don't have other accounts to artificially inflate the karma of
If I bought a user this "mouse" and he/she did that to it, they could also expect to get the world's largest kick in the ass.
It's even theft-proof. Even the pentagon is considering using it.
Those are called, wait for it, bolts you morons.
At $279, it isn't cheap -- and it sure isn't an ergonomic wonder, but it might be your ticket if you do your computing strapped to the underside of a Mac truck."
If only it had 3 mouse buttons!
Yeah, but who expects a three hundred dollar mouse to posess all the bells and whistles?
I love the smell of Karma in the morning
You see the problems with pricing conservatively? If they'd asked for $500, the Pentagon wouldn't have given a second thought and placed a bulk order for 10,000.
My last mouse cost $20. I can't imagine for a second that I'd get through 14 mice in my lifetime.
Rich
and no ps/2 connection. Nice.
I love the smell of Karma in the morning
... now I can can hit my mouse until my desk goes to pieces. I just hope, that I remember this when the next anger-attack comes around ... damn hargglllll JuuhGUSUDFUz uasdfuUUhjhj *crack*
Danger Mouse could kick Might Mouse's ass any day of the week.
Besides, as geeks we are obligated to support anyone who's as geeky as Penfold.
-Chris
...More Powerful than Otto Preminger...
Can it clean its own ball?
Does it work any better? I knwo most people are used to paying more for things that work less (Windows), but this is getting out of hand.
Yep, I never spell check.
More incorrect spellings can be found he
...it might even survive an X-Windows crash!
Anyone can make something bomb proof, truck proof, etc, but who's going to use it?
seriously.
At least in My Narrow Point of View
"i blew a booger that i'd swear had it's own spinal cord" "OUCH" Caroline's Spine
it's not mac compatible? oh, i forgot. it has two buttons, and macs can't use the second button. like everyone else, this company doesn't give a rat's ass about macs.
Did they try unleashing a toddler on it or spill coffee on it during a time critical job? Didn't see a mention of that, and with good reason...
by Pentagon they are refering to military overall, Army/Marine corps battlefield conditions, Navy vessels, etc...
Reba! Reba! Undulate!
"I might have made a tactical error in not going to a physician for 20 years." -- Warren Zevon
The Most Powerful Mouse in the World
Don't try to put that one past me! I've seen Mighty Mouse, and this thing aint nothing compared to him!. Why it doesn't even have a cape!
"Check out the Durapoint stainless steel industrial mouse which has bee thrown off a five-story building, submerged for hours, run-over by an 18-wheel truck, beaten with a hammer, used as a hockey puck, thrown across a room and stepped on countless times. It's even theft-proof." What good would the mouse be if the computer was destroyed? Shouldn't they work on making a computer that doesn't break if you look at it crooked? THAT would impress me more.
- yezzz, my name is a joke.
If only it had 3 mouse buttons!
Just what other kinds of buttons might a mouse have?
Posted from the wireless couch.
We'd need to combine it with some kind of wireless technology, both so that the wire doesn't get ties up in knots and to make it even more indestructible (As well as the rolling mechanism getting gunged up or the button mechanism breaking I've seen mice fail because their leads break internally)
UHF. Trust me on this one. My family used to have a UHF remote control for our satilite dish. You could be standing outside by the dish (about 300 meters away) and the control box would still pick up the signal. It was awesome for tuning the dish, let me tell you.
Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
I wouldn't say my boss has a temper, but I'm still digging out the shrapnel from the wall from computer equiptment that upset my boss.
It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
...maybe it will survive my daily fits of rage at the @ssh0le that AWP'ed me in counterstrike....
[BOOM goes AWP]
"Son of a ^%&%^#&!!!!"
[BAM BAM BAM goes mouse on desk]
[CRACK! goes mouse]
"uh, oh..."
After all, they're not going to go to Congress and say, "Can we have $50mil to think up ways to kill Milosovec?" But turn those $60 toilets into $600 toilets, say a few wise words to the committee on defense spending, and bang!
I don't know what's scarier - the fact that so much money is being used for totally unchecked activities or that the newsmedia actually reports it as if the military was that stupid without even hinting at the real meaning behind it.
-- ShadyG
Nerd Rock In Progress
As far as the Pentagon thinking of using it, I'm not surprised. I do work for DoD, and am always amused when we have to design equipment that will survive events that will reduce the human operators to bloody bits splattered on the walls. I have a mental picture of this pointer device sitting there with a detached hand sitting on it ...
"If I have seen further than other men, it is by stepping on their glasses." - Michael Swaine
Optical? I was expecting precision accelerometers!
See if only I worked for a company like this. Think of the fun ad's we could do for a product with this sort of angle. Try: "Our Mouse has balls that clank" or "Have you polished your mouse today?" it's products like these that make computers fun and, I still remember those cool wooden keyboards and monitors that cost like $4000.00. Although any knucklehead spending $4000.00 on a wooden keyboard must be from Canada. :)
Touche!
3-Server OC-3 Linux Counter-Strike Cluster
www.rnp.ca
Umm isn't this like a little old just to be making news now?
That's not entirely true. For example, if my brain were miraculously removed at this exact moment in time, due to the configuration of my office chair I would slump forwards and my head would doubtless impact on the keyboard, resulting in something like:
:)
bhnhruty
Notice that this is not only an incorrect spelling of "arriba," but it is also an incorrect spelling of much simpler words, such as "a", "I", "it", and complex words like "triskadecaphobia". So, I'm afraid that your post isn't entirely correct
It may look like I'm doing nothing, but I'm actively waiting for my problems to go away.
--Scott Adams
This is great! My mice take so much abuse (due largely to the cheating lucky jerks who somehow always manage to kill me in quake 2 and half life)...I get so angry, and the mouse is the first thing I can think of to bash my fist on. I actually got in trouble at work for it. :)
"It is well that war is so terrible, lest we grow too fond of it."
Time is fun when you're having flies.
-Kermit the Frog
Hah! I'm laughing out loud about the response an accelerometer would give when dropped off of a five storey building, or run over by a Mack truck!
It may look like I'm doing nothing, but I'm actively waiting for my problems to go away.
--Scott Adams
dynamo
Suppose your Navy Destroyer is hit with a missile or a bunch of wackos pop off a couple hundred pounds of C4 next to the hull. Think a Logitech or MS Mouse will keep working? I know that the computers will keep running, all of those things are on shock mounts. Have you seen the over-enginered flat panel displays the DoD buys?
But the mouse? Will it keep running? You need something...stout so that you'll be able to keep inputing.
Just because it's not the kind of mouse that most people need on thier desk...The Military and heavy industry has other needs that many geeks just don't get.
It doesn't have a ball, it appears to use a directional pad type thingy to control the cursor, so I wouldn't really call it a mouse. Its more of a fancy indestructable nintendo controller.
-Stype
-Stype
Bus error -- driver executed.
...finally has something to compliment their $300 hammers and $700 toilet seats
The ivory tower has never had to reach so h
"Just one word. Why?"
--Just Another Pimp A$$ Perl Hacker
El riesgo vive siempre!
The mouse may survive, but what about the user?
Penguins love mice. The Linux Pimp
--It's Pimptastic!--
But I'm not likely to throw my mouse off of a five story building or hit it with a hammer.
What's needed is information on how it handles my day to day mousing activity.
How does it stand up to being squirted with semen and then cleaned off with pine-sol?
--Shoeboy
..also survived a dive from a high building. Maybe it wouldn't have if I'd let go of the cord though. Hmmm.
Sig (appended to the end of comments I post, 54 chars)
Where I work (a hydraulic repair shop) we use HulaPoint mice on the test stands. They're a nice little stainless steel box, with two buttons and a 'wobble pad' (three buttons aren't needed, since I haven't yet convinced the powers that be to run Linux over win98). The cool thing about them is that they are constantly doused with hydraulic oil, knocked off the desk, shot with 3500+ PSI of oil, etc... So far they're holding up great.
Downside is, the price is around $400, so I don't think I'll be getting one anytime soon.
Del
Finally, a mouse that will stand up to my foul temper and fits of violence while playing 1st person shooters ;)
That is, of course, if someone could actually use that mouse for FPSes. . .
How did the mouse stand up against the PC trucks? Hmm, maybe TruckRolloverMarks will be the next meaningless benchmark cited by PC trolls in comp.sys.mac.advocacy? ;)
Zahlman Q. Namlhaz, esq. {:> "Zahl Incorporated - the Last Word in Everything(TM)"
See here (remove any spaces /. might put in the URL for you)
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
I have to admit that when I heard about a stainless-steel mouse, I pictured something shaped like the new button-less Apple mice, but with a cool brushed-steel finish. That would rock.
-- It only takes 20 minutes for a liberal to become a conservative thanks to our new outpatient surgical procedure!
.. if only it was a USB mouse. This one even appears to have the old DB-9 connector -- they couldn't even make it a mini-DIN ..
73 de N5VB (ex-KD5BIV) AR SK
At that price how could the pentagon afford NOT to use them.
Don't know about the rest of the world, but that's what everyone in the Midwest calls a 18-wheeler.
A semi-truck.
A Freightliner, Peterbuilt, Kenworth, GM/Volvo...A big-rig.
So when is Slashdot getting a spelling and grammer check option as part of 'Preview' ?
I do not deploy Linux. Ever.
I am using a Logitech wireless mouse and it rules. Honestly a good mouse can save your wrists and I am going to seriousily look into purchasing this new mouse. That is all. -R
We used these on the SCADA computers that controlled the production lines where I used to work. They withstood quite a bit of abuse from our (l)users. In two years time running 6 of them I think I replaced one. That one was because someone cut the cord off of it. They do take a bit to get used to and are quite a pain for dragging, but for our applications all that was necessary was clicks and double clicks. Once our (l)users got used to them they would use a regular mouse anymore. :) They withstood Direct HighPressure(150 PSI) washdown with some pretty harsh chemical's nightly and almost never had any problems.
Check out the Weekly rant..http://rabbit-trax.net/rant.php
This mouse is going to be PERFECT for my new underwater oceanic frozen hammer and truck manufacturing plant!
Did I mention that we get supplies via non-parachuted air drops?
------
Let me give you the lowdown
isn't this more of a crappy joystick than a mouse? Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the defining characteristic of a mouse that you move the device to move the cursor?
This chunk of metal had a button on top that you push to control the cursor speed and direction, similar to those awful joysticks you find on laptops. Plus, it comes with all the holes necessary to bolt the damn thing to the desktop. I'm pretty sure you couldn't move it around then. Geez, I was expecting some rugged optical-mousing technology. Colour me disappointed.
It may look like I'm doing nothing, but I'm actively waiting for my problems to go away.
--Scott Adams
It's rough and it's tough and it don't take no sh!t
'There is a Light that never goes out.'
If you look at the specs, it's not a mouse in the canonical sense. You can't drag it around or anything.
It's more like a very very industrialized TrackPoint.
Very useful for computing in dangerous environments or out on the field. Or in the middle of the desert where the sand will grind the fsck out of the ball and probably scratch those funky new optical mice to hell, too.
Gentoo Sucks
For the International Space Station.
Government of the people, by corporate executives, for corporate profits.
I am currently working on a project to overclock my monitor, in order to get a few more valuable frames per second in Quake III.