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BOOT CAMP 350 (02/11/04)
Mice and Keyboards
Here’s a couple of
interesting but useless statistics. In a typical year the mouse on my work PC
travels around 88 miles at an average speed of 50.9mph (see Tip of the Week);
during the same period I estimate that I pressed the ‘E’ key on my keyboard
around 300,000 times. Your mileage may differ but the point is these two
components work incredibly hard and for the most part they are very reliable and
often outlive the computers they are connected to.
Considering how much
time we spend using these devices I am always surprised by how many people use
the mouse and keyboard that came with their PCs, which are often the cheapest
and sometimes the nastiest models manufacturers can get away with.
Keyboards in particular
play a vitally important role in your comfort whilst using your PC and for those
of us who spend the best part of the working day sat in front of a computer
screen, using the wrong keyboard can also have health implications. I speak from
experience and for several years suffered from painful wrist and finger joints,
which disappeared within days of changing to a different
keyboard.
Awkwardly shaped mice
can also add to the strain but the biggest problem has to be the progressive
jitter and stagger in ‘ball’ type mice as dust and fluff accumulate on the
internal movement sensors. If you haven’t already done so I recommend that you
switch to an optical mouse, preferably a ‘wheel’ type that lets you scroll
rapidly through documents and menus. Basic models like the Genius PowerScroll
Optical can be found for less than £12. However, with several hundred and
possibly thousands of different models of mouse and keyboard on the market
choosing the right ones for your way of working can be a daunting
prospect.
It’s not simply a
question of ergonomics, over the past three or four years mice and keyboards
have undergone a minor technological revolution with added functionality,
ostensibly to make your life easier…
In practice some
innovations are just more things to go wrong or conflict with Windows but in
amongst the gimmicks there are some genuinely useful features. Wireless or
cordless operation is a case in point and eliminating the tangle of wires and
cables frees up more space on your desktop and helps reduce coffee cup spillage.
Early cordless mice and keyboards are best avoided as they suffered from a whole
range of drawbacks, including awkward installation, interference to and from
other devices and short battery life but most of the problems now seem to have
been ironed out and recent models like the Vivanco Optical FM ‘Hot Rod’ wheel
mouse (around £35) is small, comfortable and easy to install using a tiny
receiver module that plugs into one of your PC’s USB ports.
Aside from reducing
desktop clutter cordless keyboard and mice also allow you sit further from the
screen, and with PCs now migrating into the living room and in some cases using
the TV as a display device it means you can surf the web or check your emails
from the comfort of your armchair (though I wouldn’t recommend this kind of
setup for serious work). Incidentally, if you do decide to go for cordless
connectivity for both the mouse and keyboard I suggest that you buy both items
as a matched pair to avoid interference problems.
On a more general point,
when buying a new mouse don’t be swayed by lots of extra buttons, the standard
right and left keys and a scroll wheel are all that you really need. You will
probably never get around to programming or customising the buttons and more
often than not, you will waste time cancelling windows or menus that pop up as
your fingers accidentally click the function buttons.
Keyboards, whether wired
or cordless are very much a matter of personal taste but it is essential to try
before you buy, ideally on a desk with you seated in an office chair at the
correct height. Split-field, curved panel ergonomic keyboards are undoubtedly
more comfortable to use for long typing sessions but they can take a little
getting used to as your fingers learn to adapt to the new key positions.
Nevertheless, if you’ve ever experienced any kind of hand or lower arm
discomfort whilst typing they really are worth trying. Key pressure and ‘feel’
are also very important. Short travel keys with little or no cushioning increase
the impact on finger joints and may leads to RSI they can also become tiring to
use after quite short periods. Models with built-in wrist support are worth
shortlisting or try a ‘gel’ type wrist pad, though these can become a bit sweaty
in hot weather.
At the moment the choice
of ergonomically shaped keyboards is a little limited as this style seems to
drift in and out of fashion but I am a big fan of the Microsoft ‘Natural’ range
and they’re not expensive with prices starting at less than £20 from on-line
retailers. In common with many recent keyboards designs they incorporate a
number of extra function keys including dedicated buttons for launching your
browser or email programs, accessing multimedia files and adjusting the
volume.
When was the last time
you changed your mouse pad? When they
get dirty or frayed at the edges most of reach for the nearest advertising
freebie or novelty mat bought for you last Christmas but these are often poorly
made or the shiny surface allows the mouse to ‘skate’, making the pointer more
difficult to control. Plain fabric covered surfaces are much better for
precision mousing. The traditional rectangular shape is also less than ideal
since mouse movement tend to be more side-to-side, in a gentle arc, rather than
up and down. Rounded kidney-shaped mats are a lot easier to use and you will
find a range of designs in many computer retailers for between £5 and
£8.
Next week – Online games
JARGON FILTER
OPTICAL MOUSE
Speed and direction of movement is measured using a image
sensor chip that analyses changes in patterns of light, emitted by an LED in the
base of the mouse, reflected from the mouse pad
RSI
Repetitive Strain Injury -- painful condition resulting from
damage to joints bought about by frequent or continuous physical impact
SPLIT-FIELD
Keyboard with the keys divided into two sections, angled
slightly to better match the position of the fingers
TIP OF THE WEEK
A!K Mouse Off-Road is a fascinating little freeware utility
that monitors mouse movement, measuring the distance it travels (metric or
imperial) and its speed across your mouse mat. The program sits unobtrusively in
the System Tray and you can get an instant readout by hovering the pointer over
the icon and you can change the colour and opacity of the optional desktop
display window. The program works in all
versions of Windows and the download is only 380kb. For your copy go to: www.sixfiles.com/dbase/mof
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