[OT] "The Condescending UI" (was: Do we need Win95/98/Me support?)

[Andrew Wiley]

On Thu, Jan 26, 2012 at 6:59 AM, Nick Sabalausky <a at a.a> wrote:
> "Andrew Wiley" <wiley.andrew.j at gmail.com> wrote in message
> news:mailman.40.1327562674.25230.digitalmars-d at puremagic.com...
>>On Wed, Jan 25, 2012 at 3:31 PM, Nick Sabalausky <a at a.a> wrote:
>>> "Steven Schveighoffer" <schveiguy at yahoo.com> wrote in message
>>> news:op.v8nbixzyeav7ka at localhost.localdomain...
>>>>
>>>> I must rave about the trackpad on the macbook pro. The interface is so
>>>> damned good, I hate going back to my linux laptop (which I must do for
>>>> work).
>>>>
>>>
>>> A good trackpad?!? That seems difficult to believe. Whenever I use a
>>> laptop,
>>> I just grab/carry-around a trackball (or at least a mouse). I can barely
>>> use
>>> those touchpad things, and IBM's "clitmouse" is only a little bit better.
>>>
>>
>>YES, I'm not the only person alive using a trackball! Thumb-ball,
>>marble, or one of those giant pool-ball things?
>
> http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Trackman-Wheel-Optical-Silver/dp/B00005NIMJ
>
> (I don't know why the price there is so high, though. They're only around
> $35-ish in stores.)

It's that high because Logitech has stopped selling them. They've been
replaced by this:
http://www.logitech.com/en-us/mice-pointers/trackballs/devices/wireless-trackball-m570

I use the Trackman Wheel as well, and when I saw what they replaced it
with, I thought it would be terrible (dunno if you ever tried the
Wireless Trackman, but I own one and I think it's vastly inferior to
the wired version). Fortunately, the company I interned at last summer
was kind enough to buy me one of the new ones when I mentioned I was a
hardcore trackball user, and I think it's probably better than my
Trackman Silver. The wireless works flawlessly (unlike its
predecessor) and there's a lot less slop in the ball.

On the other hand, it's $60.
>
> I absolutely love it. It's my primary pointing device on *any* of my
> computers.
>
> Around 5-10 years ago I started getting wrist pain. I heard that trackballs
> were better for the wrist than mice, so I got one (this logitech one). It
> was really awkward the first, but I got used to it after a couple days.
> After two weeks it felt 100% as natural as a mouse, even for games.
> (Touchpads, by contrast, I was never able to get past the "really awkward"
> stage, even after several years with the laptop I used to have). And I
> haven't been having any more wrist pain since.

I never got to wrist pain, but I noticed my wrist tingling at one
point and the local electronics gigantostore was trying to get rid of
their stock of the Silvers. My experience pretty much matched yours.
>
> I don't even like actual mice all that much anymore (They need so much more
> surface area! And so much more movement. The trackball is just - ZIP!
> Awesome :) ).
>

The only downside I've found is that when I'm showing someone
something on my computer, there's always an awkward moment when they
try to move the trackball on the desk and notice that nothing happens.
:D