Mouse Trackball?

[jestermgee]

I've been looking at perhaps using a trackball over a mouse for a while. In some videos it seems people get through things quite quickly especially when jumping around gear, not to mention you don't need that space for a normal mouse.

I would look at the Kensington model because they seem pretty good but is it worth it? Anyone use one? My current mouse works fine though I do get a bit of fatigue in longer sessions when doing a lot of tweaking. I just don't know if a trackball would have the same precise feel but people seem to use them so curious of thoughts from users.

[JES]

I love my trackball. They take some getting used to but are very precise and easy on the hands. As to which one for you--see how they feel. I use a logitech but it's like recommending gloves to a stanger online.

[oblique strategies]

I love my trackball too. Took to it right away. Super easy to use with either hand too. You can switch between using your fingers, or fingers & thumb to control the ball. Super smooth action. On thing that trackballs allow is the ability to "throw" the cursor around the screen. Plus it makes a great controller for Live elements, especially when you clock-lock it to a parameter.

I have a Kensington Expert Mouse:
Features:
- 4 buttons & "chords" (pressing 2 buttons at the same time) for a total of 6 buttons.
- Scroll ring.
- Software for complete customization of trackball parameters (acceleration, click speed, scrolling, buttons)
- Using the previous 'MouseWorks' software (still available) instead if their latest software you can customize all the settings for specific purposes in each of the applications you use.
- Acceleration control settings use 3 sliders to set a speed between slow & fast for these parameters: 1. Pointer speed. 2. When moving ball slowly. 3. When moving ball quickly. That's some precise fine-tuning.
- it's BIG for control.
- SUPER good customer support.
- 5 year warranty!



One technique that would be hard to duplicate with a mouse: start moving the ball with your hand & continue moving it with your wrist & continue with the underside of your forearm! When you've got the ball locked to a parameter in software that can give you a very long, very smooth continuous gesture with no stoping to reposition your hand. I guess you could use your foot too!

[revA]

logitech cordless optical trackman here. works fine for me, it took about a week or so to get used to the trackball and to tune in the speed and acceleration. i like that it takes up so little space and can be placed on nearly every underground, esp. useful when playing live. the batteries hold for about half a year, only drawback with this model is the large reciever, wish logitech would make the next model with unified reciever.

[flowdesigner]

Ok, what trackball are the BEST? Kensington?

[jestermgee]

So it looks like these are a good option.

I have just finished a 3 hour editing session editing recorded sound effects and my hand is cramped. I am really considering this trackball thing.

I will probably look at the Kensington (the one posted above). That's what I have been looking at because of the scroll wheel and additional configurable buttons.

[oblique strategies]

Another cool thing you can do with the trackball is to hold it in one hand while manipulating the ball with the other hand. I do this when I'm standing at my desk -just pick it up & use it.

I also use it while resting it on my leg or in my lap when I'm in an easy chair reclining watching a movie, or surfing the web, or making music. It's portable & self-contained.

Here's a tip: you can rest the side of your hand on the padded wrist-rest & this gives you more options than just holding your hand parallel to the surface of the trackball & desk. More options means less repetitive strain from holding your hand in one position all the time. There are even trackballs designed specifically for this hand position.

I once worked with a fellow who was getting really bad repetitive stress/carpal tunnel problems. I suggested a trackball, he got the Expert Mouse & the troubles vanished. So it can really help.

By the way, I use the wired one because I had problems when using Apple's bluetooth keyboards. I figured why risk it? I want things to work right all the time, not just some of the time! And the troubles I had with Apple's keyboards was so bad it was ridiculous.

The Kensington Expert Mouse is the best trackball I've used, & I've used a number of models over the years. It's a pro piece of gear. I'm curious about Apple's Magic Trackpad, but then I'm back to relying on bluetooth, & that's not very appealing...

[Dragonbreath]

Id consider a apple magic pad instead of track ball... I dont like regular mouse anymore

[jestermgee]

Id consider a apple magic pad instead of track ball... I dont like regular mouse anymore

As in the trackpad you have on a notebook?

I own PC for one and for 2nd, I really hate trackpads.

[Atomic Reactor]

Id consider a apple magic pad instead of track ball... I dont like regular mouse anymore

As in the trackpad you have on a notebook?

I own PC for one and for 2nd, I really hate trackpads.

No one makes a track pad quiet like apple (it's the capacitive touch technology). I've been eyeing that trackpad myself

[invol]

The Kensington 4 button trackball pictured above is the one I've been using for years, ever since (mis)using a mouse messed up my right forearm. Another key is that you do not have to grip it, which is a big cause of repetitive strain issues associated with the 40 year old tech known as the mouse.

[JES]

I've tried the Apple trackpad and while it's good for some things, I like the trackball better for audio stuff.

[jestermgee]

Yeah, i'm not anti-apple or anything at all (I have the phone and their pad) but a trackpad is something I would use in the complete absence of anything remotely mouse related. A mouse to me is and will always be quicker than trackpads.

[invol]

I agree. I will always use a mouse if possible instead of a trackpad for audio work.

[drewbixcube]

+1 for Kensington Expert Mouse. If you go with this one, I recommend using "Mouseworks" instead of "TrackballWorks" for managing it's preferences. It's been a long time since I mucked about with TrackballWorks, but if I recall correctly, you can't assign key commands to mouse clicks. You can do so with Mouseworks. That's part of the reason I like it so much.

Not to mention the scroll wheel works like an endless encoder on most non-native plug-ins. Simply mouse over a parameter and scroll away. No need to click and drag, unless you need to get smaller increments.

One negative about it, and probably many trackballs, is the amount of lint/dust that collects under the ball itself. If it builds up too much, you will most definitely notice a change in performance, but it's an easy fix.