Coffee break- to mouse or not to mouse
Back with a new coffee break here on jkOnTheRun, this time sitting in a Starbucks doing a little work and blogging as usual. I am using my Fujitsu P1610 (Miyagi) in laptop mode, typing happily away on the integrated keyboard and using my ThinkOutside Bluetooth mouse. I’m not a fan of either tracksticks like Miyagi has nor of trackpads like most notebook computers. I’ll use either in a pinch but as a rule give me a real mouse for precise cursor manipulation and I’m a happy dude…
Oops, sorry for the interruption, just had a guy stop by and ask me how I like the Fuji. Turns out he uses a tc1100 Tablet PC and he’s a big fan of jkOTR and the OnTheRun with Tablet PCs podcast I do with buddy Marc Orchant. It was really funny, when he found out I’m JK he went crazy! He’s a big fan and he was so excited everyone in the shop was looking at us trying to figure out who I am. Pretty funny stuff. Now back to the coffee break:
We were chatting about mice and mobile PCs. I find it interesting that most of the notebook users I see in coffee shops are using external mice. Usually wireless, either Bluetooth or using one of those RF dongles. I think I’m not alone in my disdain for the trackpad.
Parting shot- this is so rare and so cool I have to share it:
Woot!
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I’m surprised you didn’t bring up the touchscreen as an option. I hate trackpads and keep mine turned off. At the desk, I use a mouse, but away, it’s all pen for me, even in laptop mode. Feels no different to me than using a mouse. With the touchscreen, I’d think it’d be very natural to move your fingers from the keyboard to the screen.
I do use the touchscreen quite a bit in laptop configuration but for selecting text the old mouse wins out.
“he was so excited everyone in the shop was looking at us trying to figure out who I am.”
ah ha, thats funny. they were probably all quietly gossiping to eachother thinking some sort of huge international celebrity was in there little local coffee shop. imagine how frustrated they were when they couldn’t figure it out!
i just hope when you got up to leave you put on your oversized black shades & baseball cap, then walked out with your head facing down.
I’ve got to say that was a great laugh to go with my morning coffee! The visual image I got was hilarious, probably because I could see myself reacting the same way. :-)
I think it all depends on the person. I’ve been a track point person since my first laptop ThinkPad 760 series. Take me a while to get use to touch pad. On most cases, I do not bring any external mouse (since usually my bag is pretty small to carry any external accessories). But that is just me :)
I find this enthusiasm for the mouse impossible to understand. Admittedly, I’ve always used the wired variety, which has an additional disadvantage over the bluetooth kind, in that the wire tends to catch on things, such as the corner of the desk. But even wireless meeces are dreadful: they take your hands away from the keyboard (and your eyes away from the screen, when you have to reach for them), they cause pain and fatigue in your arm and hand — even RSI if you’re really unlucky. They increase the footprint of your computer and require a smooth clean surface beside it. They tend to wander off, so that you’re reaching further and further away. My least favourite software is a program that doesn’t provide keyboard shortcuts for many commands, so that I’m forced to make repeated complex manoeuvres with the mouse.
Trackpads, in contrast, are just great, except when you need to click and drag, and even that’s manageable.