jsl@potomac.UUCP (02/14/86)
Has anyone come up with a different keyboard for the Mac? The one on it is
virtually unusable (to me) for typing anything substantial. The best thing
would be a Wyse-50 keyboard interfaced, but I'd settle for just about
anything else. I don't think it would be too difficult to do.
Also, the Mac mouse seems to die pretty quickly. Everything about it seems
to be built very shabbily. Is there an alternate mouse, with a more robust
button and a better design for the mouse-ball (or whatever you call it)?
The Microsoft mouse (for the PC) is really nice, but I don't know how
difficult it would be to interface. I heard a rumor once that the Apple IIc
mouse (optical?) could be connected, but I've never found any place that
stocks it.
--
John Labovitz ..!{rlgvax,seismo}!bdmrrr!potomac!jsl
--
I've got you under my skin where the rain can't get in
And if the sweat pours out, just shout,
I'll try to swim and haul you out. -- The Themrl@oddjob.UUCP (Scott R. Anderson) (02/17/86)
In article <3093@potomac.UUCP> jsl@potomac.UUCP writes: >... the Mac mouse seems to die pretty quickly. Everything about it seems >to be built very shabbily. Is there an alternate mouse, with a more robust >button and a better design for the mouse-ball (or whatever you call it)? Also, has anyone ever used/seen in action the "KAT" device from Koala? It's some sort of touch pad; does it actually replace the mouse completely? -- Scott Anderson ihnp4!oddjob!kaos!sra
sam@ccitv3.UUCP (02/17/86)
> Has anyone come up with a different keyboard for the Mac? The one on it is > virtually unusable (to me) for typing anything substantial. The best thing > would be a Wyse-50 keyboard interfaced, but I'd settle for just about > anything else. I don't think it would be too difficult to do. > > Also, the Mac mouse seems to die pretty quickly. Everything about it seems I would think that the keyboard style is an extremely personal matter and that NO ONE should dictate to ANYONE else what may be a good feel and a bad one. I use the Mac-Turbo-Touch from Assimilation and find it great. It takes a day or so to get used to, but after that, you won't want to go back. MY DESK IS FREE! Sam Mantel -- Roch, NY
fbr@utastro.UUCP (Frank Ray) (02/19/86)
A friend of mine has an optical mouse running on his Mac. It has no (0) moving parts, and is an exact replacement. I'm in the process of finding out where he got it. fbr@utastro.UUCP
royt@gatech.CSNET (Roy M Turner) (02/22/86)
In article <389@utastro.UUCP>, fbr@utastro.UUCP (Frank Ray) writes: > > A friend of mine has an optical mouse running on his > Mac. It has no (0) moving parts, and is an exact replacement. > I'm in the process of finding out where he got it. > > fbr@utastro.UUCP We have some Xerox lisp machines here, and they have optical mice. They are pretty nice mice, but the problem is that they have to sit on a special (in this case 8 1/2 x 11) mousepad, or they don't work. I assume the optical mice for the Mac operate the same way. The thing I notice about this is that 1) you have to have the special pad--this means that you either mount it on something heavy enough that moving the mouse about doesn't move it, or that you glue it onto the surface of whatever is supporting the Mac, and 2) that it is a real pain in the rear to *always* have to use the same, small, area as a mousing area. This isn't a flame against Xerox Lisp machines (although, if you really *want* flames about them, send e-mail to me), or against the optical mouse for the Mac...just thought you folks might like some info on optical rodents. Roy
bill@crystal.UUCP (Bill Cox) (02/27/86)
> > A friend of mine has an optical mouse running on his > > Mac. It has no (0) moving parts, and is an exact replacement. > > I'm in the process of finding out where he got it. > > ... the problem is that they have to sit on a special > (in this case 8 1/2 x 11) mousepad, or they don't work. I assume the > optical mice for the Mac operate the same way. > > The thing I notice about this is that 1) you have to have the special > pad--this means that you either mount it on something heavy enough that moving > the mouse about doesn't move it, or that you glue it onto the surface of > whatever is supporting the Mac, and 2) that it is a real pain in the rear to > *always* have to use the same, small, area as a mousing area. I have a Mouse Systems "A+" optical mouse, and like it very much. The mouse pad has four rubbery squares on the bottom so you don't have to glue it down (I have a Formica desk top). I like having the mouse always in the same area of my desk, so I don't have to spend too much time looking for it ... ( :-) ) The best feature is the lack of mechanical slop; single pixel movements are easy. I clean the pad (it's aluminum) with detergent and warm water about once a month. Mouse Systems has made these optical mice for a while. Unfortunately, I've seen at least four different metal mousepads; you may need to try a different one if your pad is rough, or doesn't seem to work right. A good argument for buying from a local dealer. I paid $80 or so for mine, 6 months ago. MacConnection shows it (under hardware) for $59 plus $2 shipping in the March MacWorld. bill cox -- William Cox Computer Sciences Department University of Wisconsin, Madison WI bill@wisc.crys.edu ...{ihnp4,seismo,allegra}!uwvax!bill
david@ztivax.UUCP (03/04/86)
have been using them Xerox (Siemens here in Europe) machines that Macs are a rip-off of. Some have optical mice, some don't. The optical mice will work on seemingly any surface: formica, wood, paper... I don't know how they work either... One complaint is they sometimes freak-out and send the cursor racing off somewhere, but usually they are very precise. I only wish Apple had retained many of the features of the Xerox developed system on the Mac! I am amazed by the ultimate flexibility of this thing (Xerox calls the system XDE or Tajo or several other names - they seem rather disorganized about pushing the system outside of Xerox). David Smyth Free and proud of it