I'm contemplating buying a new rodent for my PC, and am seriously contemplating a new trackball. Any suggestions or pros and cons for trackballs versus mice?

A friend of mine got one about a year ago, and he loves it. Having tried it out, I can say it takes some getting used to.

Given the types of motions involved, I can't say if it will improve the RSI problem at all, but I can say that most of the benefits of a good trackball device can be achieved with a quality optical mouse (such as the Logitech Optical Mouse).

Having tried an optical, I'll never go back - no more cleaning mouse balls, or cursing the sticky cursor when DeathMatching. :D

I'm using a Logitech optical right now, but on a 22" screen I find that I often have troubles moving the mouse from one side to the other even with all of the acceleration and speed controls set at their highest.
I use a Logitech trackball at work and find that with just a flick of my forefinger I can scoot the pointer to the opposite side of the screen quite effortlessly, but that's on a 19" monitor.
The part I'm unsure about is home use. For spreadsheets and documents the trackball is the cat's ass, but I'm unsure about the occasional game or general browsing.

My friend, who is an avid gamer and uses his machine extensively for video editing, has zero problems with it. I think you could take that as a recommendation. :D

I would think that the trackball would give you enough control to avoid any sensitivity problems.

Thanks, I appreciate your input. [img]smile.gif[/img]

I used a trackball to mix an album once. I hated it. Really annoying. The ball was on the side, just for the thumb. Really really annoying.

I use a Logitech Dual Optical Mouseman--awesome!

Also, I use a Wacom 9x12 Graphics tablet--REALLY cool for drawing, but also for surfing the web [img]smile.gif[/img]

I am using a Logitech wheel mouse optical (red) and it is very good so far. I am currently playing NOLF2 and the mouse works quite well.

[ 01-12-2003, 03:26 AM: Message edited by: Paladin2000 ]

The size of the monitor has nothing to do with moving your mouse. Its all about screen resolution (which, admittedly, you can set higher on large screens and still see it)

I have an MS Intellimouse Explorer (optical, 4 button + wheel), and I can't use other mice anymore (well, ones with balls anyway). if you're going to have a mouse, definately go for optical, reguardless of what PC mag reviewers say.

On the trackball side, they take a lot of getting used to. My mate loves trackballs, I hate them. I'd recomend getting a cheap one if you wanna try it, use it for a while to see if you can deal with the weird movements and then get a good one if you like it. otherwise, MS intellimouse explorer, or Logitech dual optical are probably the best choices out there (but you pay for them)

I suppose it depends on what programs you intend to use it for. It should work well for most any application with one notable exception. Any game that requires lightning mouse reflexes (I refer mainly, but not exclusively, to 1st person shooters) is unplayable with anything more (less?) than a good ol' fashioned mouse. Optical and track balls just don't cut it.

That said, you could always keep that sodding grime collecter tucked away for those special homicidal holidays. Unless, of course, you're not a quaker, in which case you could say farewell to your old mouse and lovingly carress your new digital input and use it to create pretty flowers and love hearts and fairies (yeah! lots of those!) all over your screen and live happily ever-

Erm..

Time for my holiday.

Ive got an $8 radio shack track ball mouse and I love it!! The ball is set on the top for the index finger and your Left click button is off to the side where your thumb sits.The 2 Right click buttons are under your ring and pinky fingers and the 2 scrol wheels are under your middle finger. Makes playing FPS games where the L-click is the "fire" button and scroll button is movement a breeze. Also the thing is HUGE so its easy to use if you have big hands.

<font color="#ffccff">I absolutley looooove my Logitech Trackman Marble+ I wish I oculd find more of them, but Logitech doesnt seem to make them any more. I have three at home and one at work, but need another one at work.

Anyone who knows where to get older Logitech products let me know :D Im not happy with their newest trackman wheel :( </font>

Actually, that is why I bought the DUAL optical Logitech mouseman--it doubles the resolution to like 900. It' works lightning fast in any FPS.

IMO trackballs rule! They put less strain on your wrist, can offer better precision, and they take up less space. That said I think alot depends on the quality of the thing, I have never bought anything other than Kensington, but they seem to make the best- their driver software is comlpetely customable for any app. I have a Kensington Orbit trackball, it only has 2 buttons but it has worked flawlessly for over 3 years, pretty good I think! Kensington stuff does cost a bit more, but you get what you pay for [img]smile.gif[/img]

Check em out

http://kensington.com/html/1436.html

Actually, that is why I bought the DUAL optical Logitech mouseman--it doubles the resolution to like 900. It' works lightning fast in any FPS.</font>[/QUOTE]Is this due to your playing style? I have tried a trackball and optical (not dual though) and found that i had developed certain quirks with the old fashioned mouse that made playing FPS much quicker. Little tricks like the lift and flick can not be duplicated by the optical and is awkward to try with the trackball. Given time, i suppose it's possible to relearn your style but (if you're stubborn like me) you generally don't want to spend frustrating hours developing techniques that you've already mastered.

That said, There are many other types of games that i enjoy which could quite easily be played with optical or track. This would greatly reduce time spent on mouse maintenance (can only be good [img]smile.gif[/img] ) Tell me, Z. What advantages does the dual optical have over the single?

Here is the description of my mouse on the logitech website:

Here's the mouse for people who need extremely precise, extremely smooth performance: gamers, graphic designers, and other power users. Its two 800-dpi optical sensors and patented microprocessor calculate surface microstructures at lightning speed, delivering greater precision and twice the speed of typical optical mice.

Click here to see image and more information

Here is some information on NON-Dual Optical Mice:

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The increasing popularity of large 17 and 19-inch monitors has created a problem for mouse users. The large screen settings used with these monitors mean the mouse must be moved farther than normal to point at something across the screen. The problem is, large movements can be physically uncomfortable.

Most optical mice have a resolution of 400 DPI (Dots Per Inch), meaning that without software compensation, the cursor will move 400 pixels across the screen for every inch the mouse is moved on the desktop. For small screen settings this is fine, but for large settings it means the mouse must be moved abnormally far.

To compensate for this, mouse software drivers include speed and acceleration controls (accessed in the mouse properties dialog) to amplify how far the cursor moves in response to how fast the mouse is moved.

For example, these controls could be set so when the mouse is moved slowly across the table for one inch, the cursor will move 400 pixels across the screen. As the mouse is moved faster, cursor movement will be increasingly magnified up to the point where it will travel 800 pixels or more per inch of mouse movement.

The problem with this is, as the settings are increased, pointing accuracy is decreased and the cursor becomes more difficult to control. In the example above, when the mouse is moved quickly for one inch, the cursor effectively skips every other pixel in order to travel a screen distance of 800 pixels. Thus pointing accuracy is reduced.
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Cheers for the Link, Z.

I, Like MagiK use, and love, my Trackman marble plus. The plus means it has a scrolly wheel, and the ball is for the thumb. My friend has a newer Logitech, and it has a billiard size ball for first and second finger movement, I can use it, but I have to think about it. The trackman doesn't have to move, so I plant it, and surround it with junk on my desk, and I can still lay the smack on most FPSs

Mouse, definitely. I just bought an optical one. Had a trackball before, and REALLY didn't care for it.