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> mice aren't usable unless you're sitting at a flat surface with the room to hold one Trackball mice a good solution to this problem. I had work on a bed with

> mice aren't usable unless you're sitting at a flat surface with the room to hold one Trackball mice a good solution to this problem. I had work on a bed without a table for 2 weeks last year, and a trackball mouse ended up working great (I didn't like using the trackpad, since switching from the keyboard to trackpad on a laptop is fairly uncomfortable if you do it often enough).

BugsJustFindMe 6y ago
> a trackball mouse ended up working great (I didn't like using the trackpad, since switching from the keyboard to trackpad on a laptop is fairly uncomfortable Switching from the keyboard to something an inch away is uncomfortable for you, but switching from the keyboard to something a foot away is not? I don't get it.
- kayodelycaon 6y ago
  The angle on the trackpad can be uncomfortable when it’s sitting on your lap.
  - BugsJustFindMe 6y ago
    I find that the larger trackpads on newer macbooks help with this a lot because the upper right corner of the pad is easily accessible at exactly the same angle of inward rotation by just pulling your elbow back along the side of your body. The Apple magic, I guess, is being able to have that without constant phantom palm touches. See https://imgur.com/a/qeRQIFD https://imgur.com/a/qeRQIFD An offset trackpad would also work, though obviously would be less friendly to lefties.
- neilparikh 6y ago
  Moving to the mouse is a movement where the distance from my hand to the body stays the same, while moving to the trackpad is a movement where I need to being my hand closer. For whatever reason, I find the second easier. Additionally, when I'm using it on my lap, the trackpad is basically next to my body, which makes my wrist position a little uncomfortable. Looking back, I think it's not really the switching, but rather the comfort when using one for a prolonged period, for which I found the trackball easier.
wiredfool 6y ago
Trackball mice are thick, and inevitably got schmutz in the bearings and got slow. Then you'd have to open them up and clean them out. Trackpads were a great upgrade to laptops when they happened, even though at the time, excessive moisture screwed up the trackpad, to the point that I needed to have a dime handy to put my finger on for a half hour after getting out of the shower. (Source: I've used mac portables since the PB 100, including most of the major versions)

BugsJustFindMe 6y ago

> a trackball mouse ended up working great (I didn't like using the trackpad, since switching from the keyboard to trackpad on a laptop is fairly uncomfortable Switching from the keyboard to something an inch away is uncomfortable for you, but switching from the keyboard to something a foot away is not? I don't get it.

kayodelycaon 6y ago
The angle on the trackpad can be uncomfortable when it’s sitting on your lap.
- BugsJustFindMe 6y ago
  I find that the larger trackpads on newer macbooks help with this a lot because the upper right corner of the pad is easily accessible at exactly the same angle of inward rotation by just pulling your elbow back along the side of your body. The Apple magic, I guess, is being able to have that without constant phantom palm touches. See https://imgur.com/a/qeRQIFD https://imgur.com/a/qeRQIFD An offset trackpad would also work, though obviously would be less friendly to lefties.
neilparikh 6y ago
Moving to the mouse is a movement where the distance from my hand to the body stays the same, while moving to the trackpad is a movement where I need to being my hand closer. For whatever reason, I find the second easier. Additionally, when I'm using it on my lap, the trackpad is basically next to my body, which makes my wrist position a little uncomfortable. Looking back, I think it's not really the switching, but rather the comfort when using one for a prolonged period, for which I found the trackball easier.

wiredfool 6y ago

Trackball mice are thick, and inevitably got schmutz in the bearings and got slow. Then you'd have to open them up and clean them out. Trackpads were a great upgrade to laptops when they happened, even though at the time, excessive moisture screwed up the trackpad, to the point that I needed to have a dime handy to put my finger on for a half hour after getting out of the shower. (Source: I've used mac portables since the PB 100, including most of the major versions)