Badly behaving Meece (was: Public Web Terminals)

On Sat, Dec 01, 2007 at 10:39:27AM -0800, Aaron Baer wrote:

> I would highly recommend finding some better mice or at least some mouse
> pads. I was in there a couple weeks ago and could hardly use one of the
> terminals because the mouse behaved some HORRIBLY I almost pulled it off and
> threw it out in the street and I didn't continue use of the terminal. That
> concrete counter wasn't kind at all for those mice.

Badly behaving ball mice almost always improve after the rollers are
cleaned.  Part of my ritual before using any roller mouse on a public
terminal is to open it up and clean off the rollers with my pocket knife.
There is usually about a half millimeter of asphalt-like crud, topped
with another half millimeter of fibrous crud, on the center of each
roller.  When the crud deposits unevenly, the result is a mouse that
jerks and pops its way across the screen, and feels like it is running
over gravel.  The crud scrapes off pretty easily, though you have to
turn the rollers a few times to make sure you have gotten all of it. 
I do a last polish with a finger, then wipe my hands off.  Fingernails
will work as well as a pocket knife, but I don't want to collect that
crud under them.

I have spent 30 to 60 seconds on perhaps 100 public mice over the past
few years, and all but one became smooth and usable again.  The one
exception had a broken button.  I pick up used mice at the Tektronix
surplus store for 50 cents each, and I carry a few in my car in case
a public mouse needs replacement, but I've always managed to get the
job done with a cleaning.  Mice are actually pretty indestructable.

Mousepads are a good idea, though.  A pitted concrete surface will
work badly with any mouse, and concrete will wear away, adding to the
roller crud a lot faster than just dust and skin oils do.  The Tek
surplus store often has used mousepads for a dime (often with really
strange logos).  I can start grabbing them if somebody wants to store
and distribute them.  Carry a magic marker to label the mousepad tops
with the public terminal location, so they are less likely to sprout
legs and wander off.

Opportunity:  PTP could print and sell mousepads.  The mousepads 
could have the locations of all the PTP businesses that wish to
pay for a few lines of advertising and location information, to help
reduce the cost of printing them.  Perhaps some of the PTP businesses
could sell them or give them away as advertising gimmicks.

Keith

-- 
Keith Lofstrom          [email protected]         Voice (503)-520-1993
KLIC --- Keith Lofstrom Integrated Circuits --- "Your Ideas in Silicon"
Design Contracting in Bipolar and CMOS - Analog, Digital, and Scan ICs

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