Why Apple Makes a One-Button Mouse

IdiotOnMyLeft writes "There is a short article at Gear Live that tries to explain why Apple still sticks with a one-button mouse. It points out the fact that although it is perfectly possible to use a two-button mouse on a Mac for 7 years now, developers are forced to rethink their design approach and can't flood the right-click menu. No article of this kind would be complete without mentioning that users get confused with two buttons. There's a rumor that John Carmack once asked Steve Jobs what would happen if they'd put one more key on the keyboard."

Comments

Seven Years?

[the pickle]

Seven years? Are you kidding me? There have been two-button mice available on the Mac since the debut of the original Kensington Turbo Mouse trackball in about 1990.

Seven years since Apple singlehandedly created the market for USB peripherals with the introduction of the iMac, maybe, but two-button mice have been available for the Mac for over twice that long.

Ah, to be a newbie with absolutely no sense of history. Must be nice.

p

Re:Doesn't anyone here do usability studies?

[GoofyBoy]

I think that you are giving Apple too much credit. There are just too many complex things with Macs, if you already find that right clicking is hard.

Whats with the F1 to F12 keys? Whats the Esc (escape) key do?

How easy is it to double-click?

Why two special modifier keys?

Why the huge amount of inconsistancies in Apple's software UI (see as a good outline with references; http://www.scifihifi.com/index.cgi/mac/UILand.html )