3-button Optical Mice?

proclus asks: "Does anyone else think that scroll wheels are a clunky replacement for the middle button? Mice are supposed to have three buttons, right? It was such an improvement when the three button mice started appearing for PC hardware, but I'm wondering, where are the optical ones?"

Comments

I've kinda got one

[standsolid]

I know what you mean. I have the Logitech dual optical (available at ThinkGeek for the low low price of 35.99)

there is a tumb button that is useful if you think the middle mouse button on the scroll is somewhat useless. of sourse you still have the scroll, but it's worth a shot, yeah?

blarg

[E1v!$]

Ummmm,

Try just about any optical mouse over $15. They'll have a middle button, usually in the wheel (as in 2nd and 1st posts).

But then they also may have buttons for your thumb, and other fingers.

The MX700 has 3 middle buttons not counting the one combined with the wheel.

(it also has 2 thumb buttons an the normal click and alt click.)

Last, could we PLEASE have more cool articles? This one is pretty much dog food.

Sun

[TRS-80]

Sun makes 3-button opticial USB mice, and they ship with most of their new workstations. You could probably pick them up as spare parts, but they're probably fairly costly.

efficiency

[Ender Ryan]

I find a mouse wheel to be 1000% more efficient than having to move the mouse over and drag a clumsy scrollbar. And of course, wheels also act as a button when pressing straight down. Yes, it's more difficult to press than a normal button, but not too much, and that's why it is relegated to tasks done less frequently and more deliberately.

FWIW, I used to prefer a 3 button mouse over a mouse w/wheel, until I actually started using them.

Of course, YMMV.

I've got one

[Apreche]

I have the Logitech cordless freedom keyboard and mouse pair. The mouse is the Cordless Mouseman Optical. I got it because it has a third button. A thumb button! I also hate clicking the scroll wheel, but I like scrolling the scroll wheel. The mouse is perfect in every way, I've even made it work in linux and windows. I highly reccomend it.

Re:No and no.

[SN74S181]

Huh? Only Solaris users need three buttons?

There are plenty of uses for the third button, even essential uses in some programs, like xfig. But you're a PC guy, and don't use X I assume. Except maybe as a replacement for Microsoft. Pity.

Simple mouse mod

[Hungus]

Why not just mod a wheeled mouse? The steps would be simple enough.

Parts Needed:

3 button optical mouse with wheel

Set of screwdrivers (prolly just need a #0 and #1 phillips)

X-Acto Knife

McDonald's Straw - I am not sure if other straws will work it needs to be thermo softening while being thick enough for wear and pliable enough for use.

Personal flamethrower or lighter or soldering iron

krazy glue

about 30 minutes of your time.

Heres how to do it:

1. With the X-Acto knife make a faint score on the mouse wheel along the profile where it sticks out of the mouse
2. Remove mouse cover (typically by removing 2 screws maybe 3 in your case)
3. carefully remove the screw holding the circut board to the upper mouse casing
4. Remove the wheel and action spring noting how they were installed.
5. Trim the mouse wheel with the X-Acto knife so that it is almost flush with the mouse case (using your earlier score) - Nice thing here is you have 3 chances if you mess up at first because you can just rotate the wheel 120 degrees and have a fresh surface!
6. Cut the straw latterally so as to be able to lay it flat and cut a section off which is approximately 35% longer than the exposesed mouse wheel opening in the upper shell of the mouse
7. Heat the straw fragment (dont burn it) until it lays almost flat on your work surface (you do still want some curve)
8. place the mouse wheel back on the curcuit board with the flattened side up (away from the board
9. place the now flattened straw fragment over teh mouse wheel centering it.
10. once you have things the way you want them remove the upper cover again and the trimmed straw fragment
11. place a single tiny drop of krazy glue on the former wheel and immediately recenter the star fragment on it
12. wait a few minutes as the off gas of the glue will cloud the optics of your mouse if you re-assembled immediately.
13. Re-assemble the mouse and you now have a 3 button no wheel mouse!

Congratulations!

FPS without a scroll wheel?

[Andy Dodd]

oh god the painful thoughts...

Next weapon - mwheelup
Prev weapon - mwheeldown

And I have no problem using the middle button for alt fire in UT and Q3A mods that have altfire weapons. (Or otherwise for zooming).

Just get a GOOD scrollwheel that has good click action in the wheel (i.e. it's hard to accidentally scroll it.)

Any optical with a wheel made by MS or Logitech usually has a pretty good scrollwheel. I've used both brands (IM Explorer, classic IMs, and a cheapo Logitech non-MX optical), and all of them have good scrollwheels.

IBM

[GiMP]

IBM makes a 3 button no-wheel optical mouse. Try looking yourself next time.

wrong and wrong

[tolldog]

All the artists I know hate the scroll wheel. They want 3 button mice.

Some software apps use all three buttons and combinations of them and keys to do things.

When its button 1 and 2 with a scroll wheel, all day long, it gets uncomfortable.

-Tim

Re:Scroll wheel click

[KurdtX]

Open up your mouse (the physical one)

Inside there you'll see that the button under your mouse is just a metal spring that brings two contacts together. Tape over, or break off one of the tabs so they don't connect any more and you're done. No more middle clicking for you. I've looked at three scrolling wheel mice (one was optical) and they all worked the same.