Apple Files Patent For Display Mouse

Aren't there already products like this? by SuperKendall · 2011-01-21 15:57 · Score: 1

It seems like somebody would have done this before, even if kind of crudely. I know there are keyboards that have LCD's...

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"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley

Re:Aren't there already products like this? by Amorymeltzer · 2011-01-21 16:00 · Score: 3, Insightful

Maybe, but I haven't heard of one. Keyboards, yes, peripherals, yes, but mouse? I think the generally held wisdom is that your would fingers get in the way.

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Re:Aren't there already products like this? by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · 2011-01-21 16:11 · Score: 2

I don't know of any implementation of a a mouse + touchscreen specifically; but keyboards with LCDs for dynamic reconfiguration are shipping products, wacom digitizer tablet screens are shipping products, mice with dynamic settings(sensitivity, scroll speed, etc.) indicated by LEDs on the mouse are shipping products, and the general notion that a touchscreen can present a reconfigurable set of buttons is basically the foundation of the contemporary smartphone industry.

Novel product? As best I can tell. Patent worthy? Srlsy?
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by Kenja · 2011-01-21 16:17 · Score: 1

No ones done this yet because it will be VERY expensive and wear out just as fast as any other mouse.

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Re:Aren't there already products like this? by GNUALMAFUERTE · 2011-01-21 16:18 · Score: 3, Interesting

http://www.engadget.com/2006/07/26/loginoki-the-lcd-mouse-mod/

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Re:Aren't there already products like this? by PatPending · 2011-01-21 16:48 · Score: 1

Expensive? It's possible to prosecute a simple patent application like this one for about $15k, although Apple is probably going to spend less than $100k for it -- certainly that's not expensive to a company like Apple.

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What one fool can do, another can. (Ancient Simian Proverb)
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by Kitkoan · 2011-01-21 17:18 · Score: 1

It really reminds me of a Asus Eee Keyboard. It is a whole computer built into a keyboard with a 5 inch touch screen that can change what is displayed or be used as a mouse.

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Re:Aren't there already products like this? by walshy007 · 2011-01-21 17:31 · Score: 1

and wear out just as fast as any other mouse.
I'm still using my logitech mouse I bought over five years ago, a properly built mouse lasts for more than long enough.
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by bhcompy · 2011-01-21 18:09 · Score: 1

Wingman Gaming Mouse is the best mouse ever made. Model M of mice
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by jo_ham · 2011-01-21 18:45 · Score: 1

I remember back in the early 90s there was a big panel that hooked up to a computer (an Archimedes perhaps?) that was basically a big touch sensor split into a grid, with each square perhaps 15mm on a side. You could then set zones on this layout to be specific buttons, and you'd put an overlay on top.
At the time, my mum was using it as part of her teacher training - I remember her cutting out characters from children's TV shows and putting them into position on this big board (which was the size of a large graphics tablet). The key was that the shapes mapped out on the device didn't all have to be the same size, or even a 4 sided shape.
You had different profiles for different applications or modules within an application (I forget the computer side of it - I was a young kid at the time) and you'd simply swap over your overlay. So not automatic with a display underneath, but very similar to this sort of idea, just easier to implement these days.
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by jcr · 2011-01-21 19:16 · Score: 2

I don't see why it would have to be very expensive. The display you'd put in a mouse wouldn't have to be anything like the kind of display you put on an iPhone. Unit cost could easily be under $10 in the kind of quantities that Apple buys. As for wearing out, I have yet to have any Apple mouse die on me, and the oldest one I've got is an ADB mouse from 1996 or so.
-jcr

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The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by CJSpil · 2011-01-21 21:32 · Score: 1

Was originally available for the BBC Micro and could be plugged into the Archimedes if you had the user port podule installed.
Concept Keyboard A3
Happy days, almost wants me to get my A310 or RiscPC 600 out of the cupboard.

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Re:Aren't there already products like this? by Bitmanhome · 2011-01-21 23:52 · Score: 1

Yeah, Apple already makes it -- it's called the iPod Touch. It's got the touchscreen, camera, and LED. And strangely, another camera pointed at the ceiling. But it's got everything needed to act like a mouse.

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Not that this wasn't entirely predictable.
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by jo_ham · 2011-01-22 00:09 · Score: 1

That is exactly it! Blue surround and all. That takes me back.
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by MF4218 · 2011-01-22 00:45 · Score: 1

After 13 months the on/off switch on my Magic Mouse is deteriorating to the point that I have to remove the battery cover to push the switch far enough to convince the mouse to turn on using a brand new set of batteries.
I went and got a logitech mouse and my gaming aim lag has shrunk by about a hundred miliseconds. It might not have fancy scrolling or anything, but it works with a longer advertised battery life and looks robust enough to last more than a year. I'd rather not lease my pointing equipment but own one that stays with me until the buttons fall off.
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by Jarik+C-Bol · 2011-01-22 00:47 · Score: 1

that, and i totally mouse by feel. Unless they have some way of changing the tactile feedback of the lines between the buttons, this is useless. I don't want to have to *look* at my mouse constantly to find all the weird touch screen function buttons.

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Re:Aren't there already products like this? by jpyeck · 2011-01-22 01:18 · Score: 1

Who wants to look away from their monitor to figure out which icon they are clicking? There are plenty of multi-button, context-aware mice out there already. This seems wasteful and distracting.
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by lxs · 2011-01-22 01:21 · Score: 1

I can't wait for Apple to finish the job and include an mp3 and video player in the mouse. And maybe perhaps a phone...
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by chord.wav · 2011-01-22 02:33 · Score: 1

While I agree with you, I can't deny that a big and flashing "Press here" on the mouse would help me a lot when doing support over the phone.
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by Lanteran · 2011-01-22 07:35 · Score: 1

Here's my favorite LCD keyboard, screen under each key: http://www.thinkgeek.com/computing/keyboards-mice/9836/

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"People don't want to learn linux" hasn't been a valid excuse since '03.
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by norttipertti · 2011-01-22 08:47 · Score: 1

_Touch_screen is new, otherwise:
http://metku.net/index.html?sect=view&path=mods/loginoki/index_eng
Mouse with display, that's so 2006...

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Re:Aren't there already products like this? by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · 2011-01-22 11:47 · Score: 1

Novel and non-obvious = Patent Worthy.
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by Phoghat · 2011-01-23 02:30 · Score: 1

Bah, in my day we had mice with just one button, and we liked it! Get off my lawn!

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
Re:Aren't there already products like this? by Wovel · 2011-01-25 03:48 · Score: 1

Good optical/laser mice do not wear out.. Not within 5 years anyway. You still playing with rubber balls?

Ick by catbutt · 2011-01-21 15:58 · Score: 4, Insightful

Terrible ergonomics. Your hand will block the view when using the mouse as it's meant to be used, and so see it you have to take your eyes off the screen. Seems like a bad idea to me.

Re:Ick by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · 2011-01-21 16:12 · Score: 4, Funny

You are holding it wrong.

-S. Jobs
Re:Ick by apoc.famine · 2011-01-21 16:12 · Score: 1

I don't ever look at my mouse, unless it's hung up on something or otherwise not working. I'm not even sure how I'd break 20 years of training on that front, much let alone why I would want to.

Apple has made some nice mice - this just seems ridiculous.

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Velociraptor = Distiraptor / Timeraptor
Re:Ick by CheerfulMacFanboy · 2011-01-21 16:23 · Score: 4, Insightful

Terrible ergonomics. Your hand will block the view when using the mouse as it's meant to be used, and so see it you have to take your eyes off the screen. Seems like a bad idea to me.
Me too. Context-sensitivity can be carried to an extreme. This sounds more like yet another Apple fashion statement than anything particularly practical.
Actually, it sounds like just about all Apple patent stories on Slashdot: something that riles up the haters and isn't ever used in a product from Apple.

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Fandroids hate facts.
Re:Ick by Sarten-X · 2011-01-21 16:28 · Score: 1

My grandmother looks at her mouse all the time, because she still hasn't quite figured out where everything is.
That's how I see this: Sure, it'll take a bit of time to adjust to, but just like learning keyboard hotkeys, each application's function can be picked up fairly quickly. After that, you can return to ignoring your mouse.

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You do not have a moral or legal right to do absolutely anything you want.
Re:Ick by LinkX39 · 2011-01-21 16:42 · Score: 1

I'd be more worried about the comfort than being able to see the "screen." If your mouse would initiate a command when touched, what if you want to use the mouse WITHOUT initiating the command? How would you move it? Dunno how other people use their mouse, but my hand generally rests on the mouse when I use it, meaning I would constantly be touching the screen. Would I be expected to hold the mouse in some awkward position by which my fingers are not touching it......? Just because touch sensitivity works on displays doesn't mean it works for EVERYTHING. I think this is an example of Apple taking an idea a bit too far.......
Re:Ick by Sarten-X · 2011-01-21 16:54 · Score: 1

I expect it'd work just like the Magic Mouse does already. If you're doing something recognized as a gesture, and not touching anywhere else, then it's assumed to be a gesture. Otherwise, if you're touching places that don't make sense, it's assumed that you're just holding the mouse.

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You do not have a moral or legal right to do absolutely anything you want.
Re:Ick by nomadic · 2011-01-21 17:18 · Score: 3, Insightful

Yeah, with Apple's terrible track record at UI this will probably bea complete disaster....

How's their track record on mice, though?
Re:Ick by Concerned+Onlooker · 2011-01-21 18:01 · Score: 2

As far as I'm concerned, all is forgiven with the release of the Magic Mouse.

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Re:Ick by VortexCortex · 2011-01-21 18:06 · Score: 1

I already have a number pad that is a mouse.
I don't know about you, but when I'm using a mouse my fingers are resting on the buttons constantly. Asside from the fact that I don't (yet) have transparent fingers, adding a touch screen to the mouse buttons would just make "clicking" strange... Perhaps if the touch screens were just buttons with screens on top it would make sense... I have a keyboard like that... (I use Dvorak and got tired of swapping key-caps.)
I might be able to use the soft buttons when I'm using my mouse in 10-key mode. Honestly, this looks like a solution in search of a problem.
Is it really that innovative to combine a few features of the the two products I already have? Seems like a small improvement, but patent worthy? Psh, when it comes to USPTO, if it ain't patented yet, you can get a patent for it. (I think it's time to get rid of patents.)
Re:Ick by Cwix · 2011-01-21 18:46 · Score: 1

I looked at your keyboard link, is that price right? $2,400 Wow.

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You are entitled to your own opinions, not your own facts.
Re:Ick by Waffle+Iron · 2011-01-21 18:52 · Score: 1

I don't ever look at my mouse, unless it's hung up on something or otherwise not working.
I do look at my mouse fairly frequently because of an obscure interaction between my KVM and my multi-input monitor. Without going into details, the quickest way to see if switching inputs actually happened with this KVM is to look down at my Microsoft optical mouse and see if its otherwise useless bling LED blinks when it gets a reset from the KVM.
From experience, I've found that having to look way down at my hand is *highly* annoying and unnatural, even if it only happens a couple of times per day. It's so far away from the screen that I have to move my whole head to see it, not just my eye muscles. This would be even worse if I weren't switching between computers and had to constantly search for where I was working on the screen after looking down at the mousepad.
IMO, putting any kind of display down on a mouse is just insane. Maybe a touchpad on top of the mouse could be useful (like a wheel button on steroids), but all visual feedback needs to stay on the main monitor.
Re:Ick by Plunky · 2011-01-21 19:37 · Score: 1

Maybe a touchpad on top of the mouse could be useful (like a wheel button on steroids)
It is pretty nice, see the Magic Mouse from, you guessed it, Apple.
Re:Ick by csokat · 2011-01-21 21:15 · Score: 1

can you imagine this on a Logitech Air mouse though? I can see the 2 bits of tech working very well together
Re:Ick by Adm.Wiggin · 2011-01-21 21:42 · Score: 1

You had me right up until:

... Apple has made some nice mice ...
Clearly, you've never tried to use the "hockey puck" or the "bar of soap" for real work. "Nice" isn't even in the right ball park.
Re:Ick by jaminJay · 2011-01-21 22:41 · Score: 1

Forget ergonomics! Your second point was my first thought: the only time I see my mouse is when I first sit down. Someone will come up with something useful for it, but there's no longer any money in it...

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Leela: "Is all the work done by children?" Alien: "No, not the whipping."
Re:Ick by Cheech+Wizard · 2011-01-21 23:16 · Score: 1

Grandmothers as a good portion of Apple's target demographic? I seriously doubt it.
Re:Ick by dwightk · 2011-01-22 00:54 · Score: 1

as far as I'm concerned I've never had an apple mouse I didn't like.

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Like anyone can even know that
Re:Ick by apoc.famine · 2011-01-22 02:59 · Score: 1

You apparently don't know the difference between "some" and "all"...

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Velociraptor = Distiraptor / Timeraptor
Re:Ick by CheerfulMacFanboy · 2011-01-22 03:53 · Score: 1

Those of us who just want to make the mouse pointer go where we want it will keep using regular mice.
Real men use a CLI to tell the mouse pointer where to go.

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Fandroids hate facts.
Re:Ick by ScrewMaster · 2011-01-22 04:34 · Score: 1

Grandmothers as a good portion of Apple's target demographic? I seriously doubt it.
No, not grandmothers per se, but people that really don't know much about computers, don't want to know much about computers and will never know much about computers ... but want to do some things that require a computer.

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The higher the technology, the sharper that two-edged sword.
Re:Ick by Adm.Wiggin · 2011-01-22 10:32 · Score: 1

So which ones are decent?
Re:Ick by apoc.famine · 2011-01-22 11:39 · Score: 1

I'm fairly impressed with the "Magic Mouse" - in the things I use daily, I often need a side-to-side scroll. It's pretty darn slick for stuff like that.

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Velociraptor = Distiraptor / Timeraptor

Who uses Apple's crap devices anyway? by Stormwatch · 2011-01-21 16:18 · Score: 2

I love Apple's OS, I love their computers' style, but they have not produced a decent input device since they introduced the iMac. If I got an iMac right now, I'd put the keyboard and mouse aside, and get some quality stuff by companies like Unicomp, Cherry, Steelseries, Razer, or Logitech.

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Circumcision is child abuse.

Re:Who uses Apple's crap devices anyway? by Y-Crate · 2011-01-21 18:13 · Score: 2, Insightful

I think you haven't given their keyboards a chance. As far as I'm concerned, the Apple keyboard is the best keyboard on the market. My typing speed increased by ten words per minute after I got used to it. They do take a while to get used to because the flat keytops don't center your fingers for you like concave keys do, but I think that in the long term this leads to more accurate typing.
Their mice, on the other hand, are terrible.
A million times this.
The current Apple keyboard looks like it would be a throwback to the shitty keyboards of the early '80s. I avoided using one for years, preferring loud, clicky keyboards that inherited the legacy of the Type M. Then I got a Macbook and had no choice in the matter. Turns out I was wrong all this time.
The flat Apple keyboard is the best I've ever used, and I can't explain why. It does do wonders for your typing speed, and doesn't lead to wrist strain as easily as more traditional keyboards. I've got major arthritis thanks to a bad injury, and it doesn't get aggrivated as easily as it once did.
The only drawback is that Apple refuses to produce a wireless keyboard with a number pad. Thankfully, those of us who want to stick with wired models don't have to deal with that nonsense.
And yes, Apple's mice suck. Badly.
Re:Who uses Apple's crap devices anyway? by Darinbob · 2011-01-21 18:30 · Score: 1

It break easily. That mouse ball collects dirt faster than any other mouse I've used. It's not just me either, quite a few people at work have the same problem. A quality product should last more than half a year. Even worse, being an Apple product you can't fix it. They've glued it together, not just put a label over screws, so no easy way to clean it (yes, I've tried, following all the online hints I found). It looks nice, but it's badly designed, like many of the newer Apple products.
Re:Who uses Apple's crap devices anyway? by jo_ham · 2011-01-21 18:48 · Score: 1, Informative

The Magic Mouse does not have a ball - the top surface is entirely a touch sensor. You're thinking of the Mighty Mouse, which did have a problem with the ball - it was too small and it gunked up too quickly and was hard to clean. The Magic Mouse is excellent though, and is what the Mighty Mouse should have been. The only time it falls down is as a gaming input device, but I have a regular Microsoft two button mouse with scrollwheel for that.
Re:Who uses Apple's crap devices anyway? by onefineline · 2011-01-21 21:01 · Score: 1

Agreed. I love the current Apple keyboards. They did take some getting used to, but doubtfully more than a day.
Re:Who uses Apple's crap devices anyway? by Graff · 2011-01-21 21:07 · Score: 1

The only drawback is that Apple refuses to produce a wireless keyboard with a number pad.
Here's a kinda cool solution for that problem:
Cropmark LMP Bluetooth Keypad
Other than that I'd say just send in your suggestions to Apple. Believe it or not they have been known to listen to suggestions.

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Sapere aude!
Re:Who uses Apple's crap devices anyway? by zippthorne · 2011-01-22 01:40 · Score: 1

I like the magic mouse, but the feet are terrible. They're noisy and have high friction.
If they'd fix the feet before going on ridiculous adventures with displays (I never look at the mouse when using it anyway, does anyone do this?), it'd be almost perfect.

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Can you be Even More Awesome?!
Re:Who uses Apple's crap devices anyway? by nine-times · 2011-01-22 04:54 · Score: 1

I really only have 2 problems with their mice. First, the fact that they don't have two separate buttons means that you can't click button1 and button2 at the same time. This isn't much of a problem until you do something like place a FPS where button2 is used for aiming and button1 for firing, and you need to press them at the same time.
My second problem is specifically with the magic mouse, which is that it lacks a 3rd button. I find that, because the 3rd button is usually mapped in web browsers to opening links in new tabs, I use the 3rd button more than the second in my day-to-day computer use.
Re:Who uses Apple's crap devices anyway? by willy_me · 2011-01-22 09:49 · Score: 1

Take a look at MagicPrefs. It lets you do just about anything with the MagicMouse. Lots of different gestures can be enabled - swipes, taps, etc. It's free.
Re:Who uses Apple's crap devices anyway? by gatzke · 2011-01-23 23:21 · Score: 1

To the Apple Fanboi that modded me troll for my honest and accurate comment, I will always hate you and your kind. You managed to help solidify my thoughts about all things apple.
And I was just warming to the idea of an iPad, but I would hate to join with those thin-skinned folk...

I like it by Sarten-X · 2011-01-21 16:20 · Score: 1

This interests me greatly. Think of how many games have a "left to select, right do do whatever seems more or less appropriate at the time" dynamic, and consider what they'd be able to do if your mouse could reconfigure itself on the fly. Some other ideas off the top of my head:

Games: Pick up an item, and gain new abilities that weren't even alluded to before. Old abilities are still equally accessible with the same gestures.
Emulators: Emulate a handheld controller.
Word processing: Convert almost the whole mouse to a small representation of the document. Touch any point on the mouse, and appear right at that place in the document.
OS interface: Common applications can be launched with a touch (probably multifinger), supplanting or augmenting the OS X dock.
Multimedia: A bluetooth mouse is now a fully-functional remote control.
General: Add buttons for common actions at will.

This could turn into something very good indeed. Of course, it'll cost $69 at an Apple store, and come in a lovely shade of white or aluminum, but the potential is huge.

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You do not have a moral or legal right to do absolutely anything you want.

Re:I like it by mangu · 2011-01-21 18:31 · Score: 1

consider what they'd be able to do if your mouse could reconfigure itself on the fly.
Like what? Grow new buttons?
Every GUI since the multi-button mouse was invented has functions to reassign dynamically the function of each button. Apple's problem is that they are still groping with the concept that a mouse can have more than one button.
Re:I like it by Sarten-X · 2011-01-21 20:12 · Score: 1

Not only grow them, but get rid of 'em, too. The ludicrous 18-button mouse is always an 18-button mouse, whether it makes sense for the current application or not.
Apple's input devices have had "two buttons" for a long time. Click with one finger, and it's button 1 (left, usually). Use two fingers, and it's button 2 (right, usually). The Magic Mouse adds multi-touch gestures, but as I've never used it I don't know exactly what they are.
Apple's goal has (almost) always been to use the latest technology to have a simple design provide the most functionality possible. Take a look at the Magic Trackpad. It's a metal slab. No markings, no (visible) buttons, and yet it's a fully-functional multi-touch input device. The folks I know who've used it prefer its abilities over a mouse.
This latest patent is just an extension of the "more function" goal. Typically, assigning functions to buttons is either done by the user, tediously by hand, or by the application with a faint hope that the user figures out what to do. With a display on the mouse, automatically-changing functions can be shown visually. That means more dynamic functions, less user confusion, and a clean appearance. It sounds good to me.

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You do not have a moral or legal right to do absolutely anything you want.

so it's an iphone with a laser on the bottom? by moglito · 2011-01-21 16:28 · Score: 1

.. or are they just going to forget about the laser in the future and just use the accelerometer for that purpose? Sorry, but to me that doesn't seem quite patent worthy "a device with a motion sensor and a touch screen"? come on! I believe there are even already apps for that (using your touch-screen phone as a mouse).

Link to PDF containing figures (images) by PatPending · 2011-01-21 16:32 · Score: 3, Informative

The link in TFS is to the "full text" provided by the USPTO--"full text" does not include any figures (images)--to see the figures via the USPTO, a suitable browser plug-in for viewing TIFF is required. If that's not for you, this link (PDF) includes the figures.

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What one fool can do, another can. (Ancient Simian Proverb)

Mouse by dragonhunter21 · 2011-01-21 16:38 · Score: 1

Personally, I dislike the design of the Apple mice. No right click is annoying, but tolerable- but I keep hitting the side button, which is quite annoying.

Still, I'd love to see something like this become mainstream. Maybe then the prices for customizable keyboards will come down.

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Sent from my CR-48

Re:Mouse by jo_ham · 2011-01-21 18:54 · Score: 1

I think what makes you think "no right click" is that if your index finger still rests on the left hand surface and you right click it sometimes interprets this as a left click. You have to train yourself to lift your index finger up (not ideal) or shift it slightly right when you go for right click. You could also remap the right click to a different gesture if you wanted, or a different location. I know a friend who has swapped over the right click to the left side of the trackpad on her MacBook Pro since she kept clicking it accidentally when dragging or swiping which she does with her right hand, so favours sweeping from top left to bottom right. You could do something similar on the Magic Mouse if it was problematic.
Re:Mouse by dragonhunter21 · 2011-01-22 03:28 · Score: 1

Not a Macbook, a iMac. I don't own one, but my school has a computer lab with them and they're used for the journalism classes. I'm thinking more the single-button numbers with the scrollwheel and the two ultrasensitive thumb buttons.

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Sent from my CR-48
Re:Mouse by jo_ham · 2011-01-22 05:15 · Score: 1

I know it was an iMac, I was just illustrating an anecdote on remapping the location of the touch surface that also applies to the Mighty Mouse - not one of their best I agree. The ball is too small and the side buttons are too sensitive to be bound to anything useful.
Re:Mouse by Brett+Buck · 2011-01-22 05:28 · Score: 1

My Apple mouse supports right, left and center clicks, works fine.

From one button to how many? by holophrastic · 2011-01-21 16:46 · Score: 1

So they've gone from one-button-is-the-best-interface to something rediculous.

The mouse is already context sensitive -- welcome to the concept of soft-buttons.

The only reason to re-arrange the mouse buttons is for those times when I re-arrange the growth of my fingers.

As for the display itself, I'm sitting in front of three 30" monitors. You expect me to look at my mouse?

Re:From one button to how many? by holophrastic · 2011-01-21 19:04 · Score: 1

Erm, learn the definition of the work "from".
Re:From one button to how many? by holophrastic · 2011-01-21 19:06 · Score: 1

heh, "word".
Re:From one button to how many? by Graff · 2011-01-21 20:57 · Score: 1

They have, essentially, a very large number of buttons on the Magic Mouse because the entire surface is multitouch. It can take gestures and provide many virtual buttons. This new patent adds a display so that the surface can reflect state and button images, adding to how the multitouch works.
Certainly a mouse with physical buttons does provide some advantages over one with virtual buttons, such as better tactile feedback, but it's also not as flexible. There's tradeoffs in everything.

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Sapere aude!
Re:From one button to how many? by gatzke · 2011-01-22 04:23 · Score: 1

What is the deal with Steve? Why does he hate buttons so?
If I have a button, I have tactile and even audible feedback when I push the damn thing. It helps me use the interface to know that the thing probably is getting some sort of input from me.
I have a Moto Droid. The "buttons" on the home screen are soft buttons. I hate it. I would much have my old Treo/Palm Pilot hardware buttons so that I know I am pushing something and it probably is the right one.
Of course you can go overboard. My wife has a mouse with seven buttons plus a wheel-button combo. LR+Wheel scroll is enough for a mouse, methinks, but maybe I don't play enough FPS games...
Re:From one button to how many? by holophrastic · 2011-01-22 05:13 · Score: 1

No, it's your hand that's not as flexible, and your eyes that aren't as flexible.
A mouse, when properly used, is near-completely covered by your hand, with each finger poised over a button (occasionally over two), you absolutely never look at the mouse nor at your hand, and you operate the mouse cursor not the mouse and not your hand.
That's the cognitive shift that needs to occur to make any pointing device the extension of one's mind & body.
What they've done is to bring ye ol' hunt-and-peck to the mouse the same way it is for many on the keyboard.
That's a bad idea. As usual, in the consumer world, it's a profitable idea for the seller, and a hurtful idea for the consumer.
You know, like free baby formula to new mothers in the hospital. And that's become illegal -- giving away free samples of a particular product -- because stupid mothers forgot that they won't have any breast milk if they don't start using it right away.
Re:From one button to how many? by sznupi · 2011-01-24 22:35 · Score: 1

...but your wife does? O_o

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One that hath name thou can not otter

Cool: mouse-display recursion! by Kaz+Kylheku · 2011-01-21 16:58 · Score: 5, Insightful

They should put a little USB port on this display mouse, where you can plug in another mouse, to control a little pointer on host mouse's display, as an alternative to using it as a touch screen.

Who the hell looks at their mouse that often? by Pezbian · 2011-01-21 17:08 · Score: 2

This is like hunt and peck for your mouse. Memory and touch is the rule with typing and you still have those home row locator bits on the top of the keys to let you know where you are. I don't see any locators on a shiny Apple mouse. "It would ruin the look."

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In a world of the blind, the one-eyed man is king--and the two-eyed man is a heretic.

Re:Who the hell looks at their mouse that often? by zippthorne · 2011-01-22 01:42 · Score: 1

there is no middle click, so you don't need locators: the edges of the device are the locators.

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Can you be Even More Awesome?!

Now if only they could patent by rsilvergun · 2011-01-21 17:25 · Score: 1

the second mouse button.

I kid, I kid!

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Hi! I make Firefox Plug-ins. Check 'em out @ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/youtube-mp3-podcaster/

Deja vu by NicknamesAreStupid · 2011-01-21 17:45 · Score: 1

Does anyone remember the Prohance PowerHouse 100, a 40-button mouse? Apple just patented a virtual version. Good luck with that.

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.boingboing.net/images/muce/8-1.jpg&imgrefurl=http://boingboing.net/2009/11/10/the-original-40-butt.html&usg=__vzpYEMvDvKwWTuS17CCzw9-Asc4=&h=333&w=477&sz=25&hl=en&start=0&sig2=ifyQLt1ZZR0KGTs3q5gEYA&zoom=1&tbnid=wEEjTjBQ-oMo3M:&tbnh=134&tbnw=192&ei=G246TYWeIIaqsAPVo7SHAw&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dprohance%2Bpowermouse%2B100%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DN%26biw%3D1177%26bih%3D741%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=130&vpy=86&dur=2765&hovh=187&hovw=269&tx=178&ty=106&oei=G246TYWeIIaqsAPVo7SHAw&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=5&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0

Re:A square wheel would in fact be superior by RyuuzakiTetsuya · 2011-01-21 17:51 · Score: 1

Disagree on keyboards, kind of agree on mice.

However, have you used a Magic Track Pad? Those things are phenomenal. The only thing holding me back is the fact that I really do not enjoy the idea of either recharging batteries all the time or throwing out batteries.

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Non impediti ratione cogitationus.

Can I jailbroke it? by hotfireball · 2011-01-21 18:17 · Score: 1

So can I jailbroke it and make a phonecall from my mouse, using FaceTime?..

Re:Can I jailbroke it? by Anonymous Coward · 2011-01-21 18:24 · Score: 1

Jailbroke? Is that the past tense for Jailbreak?
Re:Can I jailbroke it? by rts008 · 2011-01-21 21:29 · Score: 1

Well, he/she has just gone broke from too many times getting the 'go past GO, directly to jail and not getting $200' card.
Luck of the draw and all that in the game, you know.
Or the poster is only semi-literate, as is common in the 'digital age'.
Obligatory: 'Get off my lawn, punks!' is needed here.
Loose/lose, its>it's>their/there/there's, etc...

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Down With Slashdot BETA!!! I've been around the corner and seen the oliphant; you can only abuse me from your perspecti

About Time. by Steauengeglase · 2011-01-21 18:43 · Score: 1

Not a big fan of Apple hardware, but I'm glad to see they are finally addressing the lack of a num pad (other than suggesting I go out and buy an extra keyboard). Even your average liberal arts major has to do their taxes.

Prior Art by triffid_98 · 2011-01-21 18:44 · Score: 1

There's plenty of prior art, but just to throw some gasoline on the fire, my Microsoft Sidewinder mouse has 11 buttons, customizable weighting, a scroll wheel, macros and an LCD display.

Once upon a time I had an Apple with a 1 button mouse and it was the best thing ever, but that was a Mac 512e (with 2 floppy drives!) and it was the year 1988. Times have changed.

Who ever looks at his mouse?!? by moxsam · 2011-01-21 19:30 · Score: 1

I know I don't. Oh no, I just did... But usually you look at the screen, if you can't type you might be even looking at the keyboard from time to time. But you never look at your mouse unless there's something wrong with it or it starts to feel sticky. Or if someone someone might tell you to look at it.

Groundbreaking by cOldhandle · 2011-01-21 19:40 · Score: 1

This sounds like a great idea. I'm off to patent my "touch display chair seat" invention. It just requires you to get out of the chair and turn around to see the display and interact with it. Imagine the possibilities. One could even use it to display data, instead of the monitor.

My Pointing Keyboard Patent Was Approved by input.expert · 2011-01-21 19:43 · Score: 1

Good news.

I was told by my patent agent today that my pointing keyboard patent was approved.

U.S. Patent Application No. 11/254,452 COMPUTER KEYBOARD WITH POINTER CONTROL

My keyboard allows the user to have all fingers on the home row for typing and with the fingers on the home row one can also point, click, type, scroll, backspace, delete, and esc.

The click buttons and scroll wheel are below the space bar and operated with one's thumbs.

My keyboard gives the user total control of the computer screen.

No more reaching over for the mouse.

My pointing keyboard has the precision of an optical or laser mouse, because it uses the same components.

A user will also be able to ten key from the home row in one version.

The whole keyboard moves.

It is a high performance, high productivity, and comfortable keyboard.

The world's fastest keyboard.

The world's fastest gaming keyboard..

I will try to put up a youtube of it in operation under " pointing keyboard "

For my supporters and my patent agent Hal Bennett at Seed IP.

Thank you.

the ”father of the perfect keyboard”

gokeyboard.com inputexpert.com

.

Patent Monkeys flinging poo?.... by rts008 · 2011-01-21 20:59 · Score: 1

This sounds more like yet another Apple fashion statement than anything particularly practical.

This struck me the same as Apple announcing the display having a CCD/WebCam replacing some pixels in the center of the screen some years back....announced and then abandoned(?).
Whatever came of that tech, I wonder?
I'm seeing this as another thing thrown against the wall to see what sticks.
I guess we can wait and see...

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Down With Slashdot BETA!!! I've been around the corner and seen the oliphant; you can only abuse me from your perspecti

Apple Optimus Maximus by Kensai7 · 2011-01-21 21:11 · Score: 1

Personally, I would love to see Apple collaborate with Art Lebenev to bring an up-to-date Optimus Maximus keyboard at €200-300. First see if optical feedback technology sells at the right price and only then try it with flat surfaces and tactile feedback as well.

Right now, it's too much of a jump. Anyway, it's just a patent. I doubt we're gonna see anything before 2013-14.

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"Sum Ergo Cogito"

I'll stick with my Logitech trackball, thank you.. by rts008 · 2011-01-21 21:16 · Score: 1

Head A Splodes.
When I need a mouse and GUI, I'll stick with my trackball; but most of the time I use my keyboard and a CLI.

Now a reliable, efficient, and SECURE neural interface would be welcome for me though.(my typing skills suck donkey balls since I've had a stroke 1.5 years ago!)

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Down With Slashdot BETA!!! I've been around the corner and seen the oliphant; you can only abuse me from your perspecti

Too late for prior art though... by SuperKendall · 2011-01-21 21:34 · Score: 1

That says the idea was from a 2010 competition, but the way patents work the patent itself was probably submitted well before 2010, so I don't think that would help invalidate this one.

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"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley

Re:Too late for prior art though... by CheerfulMacFanboy · 2011-01-22 03:45 · Score: 1

The idea used in the competition was probably thought of well before 2010 also.
And the idea used in the patent was probably thought of well before the patent was submitted.

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Fandroids hate facts.

Do mice really wear anymore? by SuperKendall · 2011-01-21 21:36 · Score: 2

My many year old Logitech works just fine, in fact I don't know of a single optical mouse dying amongst all my friends that use them.

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"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley

Re:Do mice really wear anymore? by Patch86 · 2011-01-21 23:38 · Score: 1

A few of the cheap £5-from-PC-World optical mice I've had over the years have broken, developing skips or twitches after a couple of years of use.
I've never had a decent quality one break on me though. My Logitech MX 518 has put in 4 years or so solid service and shows no sign of letting up yet.
Re:Do mice really wear anymore? by Zancarius · 2011-01-22 07:53 · Score: 1

My many year old Logitech works just fine, in fact I don't know of a single optical mouse dying amongst all my friends that use them.
All of my old optical mice (10+ years) still work just fine to this day, so I can certainly agree with this statement. The only thing that seems to have "broken" are the microswitches for the buttons. They still half-work, but they don't always register clicks. The scrollwheels still work, however.

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He who has no .plan has small finger. ~ Confucius on UNIX

Mice might be terrible but trackpad is awesome. by SuperKendall · 2011-01-21 21:39 · Score: 1

For FPS gaming, I like mice.

For everything else, a trackpad is way nicer - and the Apple desktop trackpad is fantastic.

I tried the Mighty Mouse but didn't really take to it, where gestures work great on the trackpad and it makes scrolling so much easier on the hands...

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"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley

Worst mice ever. by Posting=!Working · 2011-01-22 01:30 · Score: 1

After using the latest apple computers for two weeks, I have to say they have the worst mouse and trackpad on the market.
It desperately nees a second button. All of their shortcuts and methods for simulating it are horrible. Everybody I have ever seen use a mac for more than 20 minutes has fumbled over a right click - even the 'expert' users who've had nothing but Macs for years (although they will argue stridently that they didn't do what you just watched them do). To my knowledge, I have never seen anyone miss an actual right mouse button. There are currently no acceptable substitutes to an actual button, magic mouse included. Why they've perpetuated this particular bit of idiocy for at least 15 years since everyone has known it's needed is beyond me.
Their trackpad has the absolute worst feeling texture. It makes the skin on my back crawl to drag my finger across that surface. I don't know what it is, but I really would be happier if I never encountered that substance again. I'm probably in the minority here, but it's revolting to me.
Also, the click wiggle on the trackpad is infuriating. No matter how carefully I try to click, the mouse pointer moves slightly just before the actual click, since you press the entire pad down. I,fortunately, wasn't doing anything that needed precision with the pointer, but if I were I couldn't do it with a iBook/Macbook.
Until they get actual buttons, I will be much happier never using a Mac again. And I really, really wanted to get one until I used them.

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This sentence no verb.

Re:Cool: mouse-display recursion! by AstroWeenie · 2011-01-22 01:44 · Score: 1

They should put a little USB port on this display mouse, where you can plug in another mouse, to control a little pointer on host mouse's display, as an alternative to using it as a touch screen.

Great idea! But I want to plug in a little USB keyboard instead and use the mouse display for a command line interface.

Re:A square wheel would in fact be superior by zippthorne · 2011-01-22 01:47 · Score: 1

I bought one a week after they came out, stuck in alkaline batteries, and just had to replace them for the first time last week. Even if you go with rechargeables, you're going to go weeks between chargings.

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Can you be Even More Awesome?!

Re:Cool: mouse-display recursion! by chord.wav · 2011-01-22 02:31 · Score: 1

Bluetooth

You know what this means right? by chord.wav · 2011-01-22 02:36 · Score: 1

P0rn on the mouse!

Yo Dawg by AxeMurder · 2011-01-22 05:58 · Score: 2

They should put a little USB port on this display mouse, where you can plug in another mouse, to control a little pointer on host mouse's display, as an alternative to using it as a touch screen.

Yo dawg, I heard yo' liked scrollin' so I got yo' mouse a mouse so now yo' can scroll, while yo' scroll.

The point... by odirex · 2011-01-22 06:25 · Score: 1

I think people are missing the point. I have a kensington mouse that has media control buttons on the back side. When I sit back from the desk and watch movies, or try to play music from the bed, this is incredibly useful. If their touchscreen mouse turns into a remote control like that, it'd be handy. More importantly, the reverse of this would be making a touchscreen phone that acts like a mouse. I mean with buttons and a scanner beam like a real optical mouse, not as a touchpad.

This will be launched along with a new app store by adcm · 2011-01-22 06:46 · Score: 1

That's right, the new apple magic mouse will have apps and an app store available for it. For only a few bucks you'll be able to purchase games to play on your mouse...

touchscreen by Cyko_01 · 2011-01-22 09:34 · Score: 1

make it a touch screen and you could have as many buttons and button layouts as you like.

Prior art from 2006 by riflemann · 2011-01-23 00:32 · Score: 1

Back in '06 (prior to the '09 filing date), this guy modded a mouse with a nokia lcd screen. I wonder how many of apple's patent claims are invalidated by this?

http://metku.net/index.html?path=mods/loginoki/index_eng

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Sparks:Gadget:Beer Maker

I saw touch screen mouse DIY project 2 years ago by mobilemodding.info · 2011-01-24 03:37 · Score: 1

I saw touch screen display on mouse DIY project 2 years ago... how that is innovative? Again somebody with moue just grabbed somebody idea and patented as its own!....

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Apple Files Patent For Display Mouse

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