I didn’t think I was going to need a mouse when I bought my new MacBook Pro laptop. I’m used to being “mouseless” whenever I use a laptop, and most of the time I’m never in a place where I can really use a mouse. But working as a graphic designer requires a more meticulous touch. I need better control and there are times when using the scroll pad just doesn’t cut it anymore.
One of my co-workers recommended that I should get
Apple’s Mighty Mouse. At a quick glance, it looks like a regular Apple mouse with an added scroll wheel. But upon closer examination, it is so much more than that.
One-Button or Four-Button but No Belly Button
It’s hard not to tell what is and isn’t an Apple product. Everything that they create has a smooth, simple and sleek look. The Mighty Mouse is no exception. It’s a nice, clean looking white mouse. Quite honestly, it looks too simple. But that’s the beauty of it. Looks are very deceiving.
Everyone knows that using a mouse for the Mac means one-button clicking. This makes PC users go nuts as they are so used to their two-button clicking. To be honest, I almost wished Apple gave its users that choice as well. This is where the Mighty Mouse comes into play. It has the option of being a single-button wonder or a four-button monster. That’s right, I said four buttons. At first I thought this was overkill. Two buttons was sufficient. Boy, was I ever wrong.
That first thing that comes to mind is
“Where is the second button?” The Mighty Mouse looks and feels like a single-button tool. Here’s the secret: it isn’t. The smooth shell hides a touch-sensitive technology under it so it detects which part of the mouse you are clicking whether it is the left or right side. It may have seemed weird at first for me but I got used to it pretty fast. For the purists who love their one-button feature, the Mighty Mouse will allow you to keep it that way as well. The configurations of the mouse can be changed to suit your personal needs through the Mac OS X system preference.
Another beautiful feature is the Scroll Ball positioned neatly for your finger to roll smoothly over it. I take back my previous comment.
This feels weird, mostly because of its unique feature. Those who are familiar using a scroll wheel on their mouse know that it can scroll up and down through a page. But what if you could scroll left and right as well. Mighty Mouse’s Scroll Ball does just that with its 360-degree scrolling capability. This can also be modified with the following options:
360-Degree, Vertical and Horizontal, Vertical Only or just turning
Off the entire feature. Even better, if you click the Scroll Ball it becomes the third button on the mouse accessing Mac OS X Tiger features such as Spotlight, Dashboard, Application Switcher or Exposé
(you can set it to whatever preference you desire).
The fourth button(s) are on either side of the Mighty Mouse. When a person squeezes them together, it activates any Mac OS X features like the Scroll Ball, or any customized feature that suits your need. Apple advertises these buttons as force-sensing side buttons, but you really do have to squeeze a bit harder than you realize in order to activate the button.
The Mighty Mouse also has an optical sensor that allows it to work on almost any surface. No roll balls that will get gunk and require cleaning nor is a mouse pad needed in order for this to work.
But How Mighty is This Mouse?
I was a bit hesitant in buying any mouse at all, especially the Mighty Mouse in particular. What put me off from actually purchasing this was the price. At $49.99 a pop, this mouse had better be worth the money. But I knew I needed to get one just for the sheer fact that it would make my life easier.
Mac aficionados will attest that the combination of using a one-button mouse and computer key commands is what makes a Mac user very proficient and successful, and I agree with that statement. With the inclusion of the Mighty Mouse in my repertoire, I find I’m even faster.
My set-up is actually quite simple but very effective. My left-click is for my primary use and my right-click is for my sub-menus and tools. I never realized how more and more I’ve been relying on the right-click for getting my projects done faster. When using programs such as
Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign and
QuarkXpress, there are a lot of tools and features listed under the menu items. I always forget where they are most of the time and usually have to rely on my memory for the keyboard shortcuts in order to find them. With the inclusion of the right-click, I have them at my fingertips making my life so much easier.
I use my Scroll Ball quite frequently without even realizing it. And it’s great when I need to switch applications. With a click of a button, a menu pops up with all open applications and I just choose the one I need at the moment. Because I have so many applications open at the same time, the amount of windows opened as well is insane. The side buttons allow me to minimize all the windows that are open so I can see which one I am looking for. This is the ultimate timesaver for me.
I have heard many stories on how the Scroll Ball won’t work properly after a few months. The main problem is that it won’t scroll down, as my co-worker has informed me with his mouse. It’s a nuisance, to say the least, but for now I haven’t had that problem. I think knowing about it in advance will help me become more conscious on how aggressive I am with the Scroll Ball.
I also opted to go with a wired mouse as opposed to the wireless for a couple of reasons. First, the wireless requires batteries. That can become problematic given the amount of mileage I get out of my mouse. I don’t have the time to keep recharging or replacing the battery. And second, because it requires batteries, it makes the mouse heavier. I don’t want to feel weighted down with the device and tire out my wrist any faster than it needs to be. Luckily, the wired Mighty Mouse only needs to be plugged into an available USB 1.1 or 2.0 port in order for it to work.
Mac OS X is required in order to use the Mighty Mouse. Those who have Mac OS X Tiger v 10.4.2 can customize their buttons to access Dashboard, Spotlight, Application Switcher or Exposé.
Even PC users can use the Mighty Mouse. Those using Windows XP or Windows 2000 with an available USB 1.1 or 2.0 port will have a fun time with it. All software needed to operate the Mighty Mouse is included on the CD that comes with it. No additional software is needed besides that.
The
Mighty Mouse is really a fun tool to have and I’m really enjoying my experience with it. I know there are Mac users who can’t get into having so many different options on their mouse, and I understand that feeling. It can be intimidating and it can be annoying. For me, it has been a godsend and I’m glad that I have this in order to be even more productive in my work.
That and it just looks plain cool.
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A mouse is usually considered to be cat food, especially if a cat actually gets its prey. Just another "Connecting the Dots" review.
