mouse

Adesso rolls out two keyboards with unique touch pad system

These two keyboards from the input kings at Adesso combine the functionality of a desktop keyboard with the scrolling power of a laptop touchpad. Both keyboards feature a built-in Cirque two-button touchpad meant to take the place of your mouse and clean up your desktop.

While we were a little hesitant to accept a touchpad instead of a point-and-click mouse, the Adesso touchpad is actually very intuitive to use. First, you can easily activate vertical and horizontal scrolling simply by swiping your finger along the edge of the square, and the GlideExtend feature gives you three seconds to reposition your … Read more

Makeover for Apple's Mighty Mouse?

Is it time for Apple's Mighty Mouse to get a tune-up?

That's the question many people on the Internet are asking as MacBlogz has published images of what it expects Apple to do with the multibutton mouse. Extrapolating from Apple's patents on multitouch, MacBlogz's prototype features a sleek profile and aluminum body.

The report notes that a 2007 patent application calls for an "arbitrary shaped grippable member" that would utilize positioning and multitouch detection to interpret a user's movement. Basically, it appears that the button would be replaced by a multitouch trackpad. "… Read more

Orbita mouse lets you rock 'n' scroll

The Orbita mouse from Cyber Sport is a wireless puck that rotates, letting you use the whole device for scrolling, zooming, jogging, or object rotation.

It's an uncommon approach to traditional mousing, unless you've used a SpaceNavigator 3D mouse. But it is wireless and it does look cool.

Look for it in January 2009 for about $100.

A minuscule optical mouse

If clicking multiple buttons is too strenuous an activity, check this mouse out.

The Z Nano Optical Mouse, which bills itself as the "world's tiniest" optical mouse, is, at 1.65 inches by 0.83 inches by 0.69 inches, barely larger than a human finger tip. It plugs into any PC via a USB cable, and instead of right and left click buttons, the user needs only to roll a finger to the left or right instead. And in the case of scrolling, you click buttons on the mouse's side.

The Z Nano has clear … Read more

Pimp out your desktop with these handy accessories

Surprise! Geeks and models actually have something in common: they're both obsessed with finding the perfect accessory. In the world of couture fashion, a subtle or blingy accessory can complete an ensemble. The same holds true for a desktop setup; third-party accessories are a simple way to add to your system without actually gutting your computer to install extra components. We've rounded up our favorite printers, speakers, hard drives, keyboards, and mice to give your computer a much-appreciated makeover.

Peep a slide show of our favorite accessories for your desktop computer.

Buzz Out Loud 868: Joogle and the Spindle

We rename Google's boring-sounding Native Client project to let you know what it really is: Java from Google. You know, Joogle. Also, HP unveils flexible paper using e-ink and a roller design that inspires version 3 of the Kindle: the Spindle. In non-funny-word related news, we also engage in a nice long conversation about music piracy and college campuses. Feels just like old times. Listen now: Download today's podcast Episode 868

The mouse hits 40-year milestone http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7768481.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7761262.stm http://news.cnet.com/2300-1041_3-6248261.html… Read more

Photos: Marking 40 years of 'personal' computing

If you use a computer, it's almost certain you owe some thanks for the "personal" nature of the device to Douglas Engelbart. Tuesday is the 40th anniversary of a day that should mean a lot if you enjoy the interactivity of your machine.

On December 9, 1968, Engelbart, director of Stanford Research Institute's Augmentation Research Center, wowed the computing world with a presentation in which he unveiled, for the first time, the work he and his SRI team had been doing.

Among the innovations Engelbart showed that day in San Francisco were the world's first … Read more

40th Anniversary of "Mother of all demos"

Today is the 40th anniversary of what came to be known as "The Mother of All Demos", Doug Engelbart's presentation to the Fall Joint Computer Conference in San Francisco. In this one 90 minute presentation he showed, in working form, for the very first time all of the following technologies:

The mouse Graphical user interface with point and click and menus Intermingling of text and graphics within a document, styling of text in a document Hypertext and linking between documents Remote collaboration plus videoconferencing

That's a pretty astonishing list. It basically described the landscape of computing … Read more

White Bread Wrist Rest: Without it, your hands are toast (get it? TOAST)

The current generation of compunerds is totally screwed. We (yes, I'm one of you) spend at least eight hours surfing the Internet on a daily basis, weekends included! Those YouTube videos aren't going to watch themselves, right?

That's why ergonomics is so important. We need specific keyboards and mice to angle our wrists properly and alleviate all that unnecessary stress--I can't think of a bigger weekend downer than the dreaded "mouse arm."

Thanks to the brilliant minds at Brando Workshop, we now have another ergonomic tool at our disposal. The White Bread Wrist Rest … Read more

Does your Mac need a special mouse?

To be totally honest, mice are generally platform-agnostic devices. Pretty much any USB, wireless, or Bluetooth mouse will work on both PCs and Macs. That, of course, doesn't stop savvy marketers from designing products with an Apple-inspired look and feel. These are some of the MacBook-themed mice we've checked out this year.

Targus, known as a top-notch accessory maker of mice, bags, and other computer add-ons, released a whole line of Mac-themed mice shortly after the new MacBook revisions hit (even though the latest MacBooks are all aluminum, white is still the universal Mac color in many minds). … Read more