I'm the only one crazy enough to buy a Mini Mouse for a standard PC.Apr 26 '01 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line Mice don't need to be fancy, just durable and useful to YOUR needs. Know your system and you'll know what mouse you need.
That's right folks. I've had it up to my eyeballs with those bulky, no good, cheap mice that come with standard computer systems. I've had it up to twice my height with mice that are even more bulky with multiple buttons and functions that you don't need. I purchased a new state of the art Hewlett Packard Pavilion system about six months ago for school, and the mouse that came with it broke this morning. What a piece of junk. I like the system, but HP needs to work on it's mice some more. Sheesh. I'll explain the different types of mice and what brands/models to avoid in a second, but for the moment I'm going to complain some more. Six months? You call that durable? It only had a ninety day warranty on it too. And if it's irony you want, the thing busted on me when I was trying to rate a fellow Game Advisor's review this morning! Sorry skyth. My mouse simply stopped responding and I examined my mouse to find all the teeny pins that plug into the port in the back of my PC falling out or bent or twisted or...oh man, it was horrible. Forgive the sad joke here, but I should have just fed the mouse to the cat when I got it. Okay, so I can't stand using a computer with only the keyboard. It's like going into battle with one boot off. So I made a trip to the local shopping plaza to see what I could find. Allow me to explain what a good mouse hunter should do in a situation such as mine, by explaining what I did. First off, I avoided Wal-Mart. They have a fantastic games section, but their computer accessory selection stinks. I knew for a fact they'd only have one brand available, and that it would be one of those expensive fancy schmancy mice that I don't want. There's one thing I'm smart about, and that's avoiding controls with extra buttons. I'm the same way with joysticks. Folks, you don't need a lot of buttons. When hunting for a mouse, you want a simple design, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Anyway, I went straight to Radio Shack, where I found several brands and several types of outstanding mice for great prices (all under 20 dollars). That's where you want to go for mice folks...a store that specializes in electronics and/or computers. If you go to a department store like Wal Mart, your chances of finding a good mouse are slim. Now came the tricky part...choosing which type of mouse. Again, I avoided the fancy looking mice and searched for simple, 2 buttoned mice. They had plenty. Next, I had to choose where I wanted to plug my mouse into my system. here come the definitons I promised you. You see, each mouse is designed to plug into different ports soemwhere on your PC or PC tower. The first and most common is the PS/2 port. Found in the back of your computer, the PS/2 port consists of a pattern of pin sized holes for a PS/2 mouse to plug into. A PS/2 mouse is the standard mouse that comes with most ready made systems (assuming you didn't buy it custom made.) It is also the type of mouse that failed me this morning. Pins in the end of the PS/2 mouse cord are arranged in the same pattern as your PS/2 port, but if they get twisted...well...Should I send you a picture of what's left of mine? The second is the USB port. USB stands for Universal Serial Bus, and if you have one you'll probably know. USB ports are flat and rectangular in shape and are most commonly found near your floppy disk drive. They are NOT the same as Serial ports, so don't expect a USB mouse to plug into a standard Serial port. USB is the type of mouse I ended up with. Make sure you have a USB port before you buy a USB mouse. The third is a Serial port, as you may have guessed. These are generally found in the back of your PC, and are also rectangular in shape. Make sure you have a Serial port before you buy a Serial mouse. Two brands were dominant at Radio Shack...Radio Shack (duh) and Compaq. I steered clear of Compaq for one reason: the durability issue. I speak from experience when I say I have never known anybody that has owned a durable Compaq product, and that includes myself and all my friends. The brands you want to look for are, in fact, Radio Shack or Logitech. Microsoft makes good mice too, but they make them fancy, and you don't need fancy. Hence, that narrowed my choices down to four mice: A four buttoned, Radio Shack, ergonamic (basically a fancy design that makes mice mroe comfy in your grip), USB mouse with scroll wheel (scroll wheels allow you to scroll down in web page windows simply by turning the scroll wheel); A 2 buttoned PS/2 Radio Shack ergonamic mouse with scroll wheel; a Serial mouse with the same details as the last mouse I listed; and a compact, 2 buttoned, USB Radio Shack Mini Mouse with scroll wheel which is designed specifically for laptops and notebook computers. Can you guess which one I took? I took the Mini Mouse. Why? Because it was USB, meaning I didn't have to worry about the little pins getting twisted and having to go buy another one. It was made by Radio Shack, a brand I trust and respect. It had a simple design, all I needed. And most of all, it wasn't bulky and cost me a mere 20 dollars. The result? I am happy. Although my mouse is like a flea compared to the rest of my system when considering size, It works better than anything. The mouse is so light I can hardly tell it is there, and it responds far better than the cat toy I had this morning. On top of that it came with software that allows me to configure it any way I want. If you can think of a mouse function, it is available through this software I speak of...without all those extra buttons. When shopping for a mouse, the Mini Mouse method may not be right for you, although I recommend it for laptops and/or notebook computers. You have to be crazy like me to buy such a small mouse for a regular system. But hey, it works for me. Just keep the stuff I mentioned in mind like I did, and you'll sound like a pro when that young computer geek salesman (Heh, the guy who walked up behind me didn't look much older than I am...I just said, "I'll take this one.") walks up behind you to ask if you need help. If you hate know it all salesmen as much as I do, you'll thank me for these tips later.  |
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