Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Former Apple Engineer Recalls Steve Jobs' Great Displeasure with Multi-Button Mouse Concepts
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Evolution of crap
Even die hard Mac fanboys that I know all HATE Apple mice.
Apple mouse designs are a clear example of placing form over function. I mean that old puck style mouse was absolutely unusable. Every time I sat down to do work I always held the mouse slightly off its proper orientation always causing me to re-grip the mouse properly. Every form of mouse since then looks clever, but has serious usability issues. The stupid ball nub would not work well after a time, nobody ever used the "squeeze" buttons except for a few graphic's apps, and while the current generation of touch and gesture recognizing mouse is a nice idea, they repeated the same mistake as the puck mouse by creating something without any clear orientation. I mean you sit down and realize you are holding a mouse upside down is one of the basic design flaws EVERY other mouse manufacturer figured out 30 years ago.
This is one case where Apple trying to be different has created a product that has evolved through generations of crap rather then to a superlative device. There is a reason why even Microsoft sells more mice to Mac users then Apple does. Its the reason why Apple keyboards and Mice are optional when buying a Mac today.
This was one area where someone at Apple needed to grow a pair of balls and tell Steve to shut the hell up and let them design a mouse that was both functional and ergonomic rather then something that gets tossed aside the moment the Mac comes out of its box. Jobs may have been brilliant in many ways, but in other areas his arrogance and blindness to the obvious churned out generations of ridiculous failures.
But hey, at least Apple's poor mice and keyboard designs are what kept Logitech alive all these years.
Even die hard Mac fanboys that I know all HATE Apple mice.
Apple mouse designs are a clear example of placing form over function. I mean that old puck style mouse was absolutely unusable. Every time I sat down to do work I always held the mouse slightly off its proper orientation always causing me to re-grip the mouse properly. Every form of mouse since then looks clever, but has serious usability issues. The stupid ball nub would not work well after a time, nobody ever used the "squeeze" buttons except for a few graphic's apps, and while the current generation of touch and gesture recognizing mouse is a nice idea, they repeated the same mistake as the puck mouse by creating something without any clear orientation. I mean you sit down and realize you are holding a mouse upside down is one of the basic design flaws EVERY other mouse manufacturer figured out 30 years ago.
This is one case where Apple trying to be different has created a product that has evolved through generations of crap rather then to a superlative device. There is a reason why even Microsoft sells more mice to Mac users then Apple does. Its the reason why Apple keyboards and Mice are optional when buying a Mac today.
This was one area where someone at Apple needed to grow a pair of balls and tell Steve to shut the hell up and let them design a mouse that was both functional and ergonomic rather then something that gets tossed aside the moment the Mac comes out of its box. Jobs may have been brilliant in many ways, but in other areas his arrogance and blindness to the obvious churned out generations of ridiculous failures.
But hey, at least Apple's poor mice and keyboard designs are what kept Logitech alive all these years.
I love the Magic Mouse. I love touch scrolling much more than the physical wheel scrolling. The only thing I hate about it is that I can't left-click and right-click at the same time, so it's a total no-no for games. The ergonomic isn't bad for me - not the best, but not very uncomfortable either. I wish it had more gestures.
Not true - take it from a non-switcher who has always used Macs, right from the very first Macintosh. Having a secondary button is necessary, and Apple's "solution" to use multi-touch (swipes and gestures) is a poor substitute for an actual button. The Magic Mouse would be awesome if it weren't for that one glaring omission. Most people don't want multi-touch, they want something that is simple and familiar. No one feels "forced" to use the second button. They use it because they want to - because it is convenient.
I like reading people's posts about how they hate the Magic Mouse. Makes me laugh since we all have different likes/dislikes. I for one LOVE the Magic Mouse. And the right-click is turned off on mine because I don't hold the mouse in a traditional way, so I would right-click when I wanted to left-click. So to each their own. But in my opinion, Apple has it right!
Download BetterTouchTool for more gestures. Using Magic Mouse, I can:
open itunes, open safari, open dashboard, start expose, open mail, start genius shuffle on iTunes, open new tabs (on safari and finder), close tabs, refresh tabs, do middle click, open any third party app, change spaces, go to next music track, open notification centre, quit apps, close windows etc. all using swipes or taps. These are my own preferences, but you can choose your own.
I'd have a really hard time going back to a trackpad.
I take back the nasty things I say about y'all always defending Apple or going with their party line even when it's wrong. I think we've found the one magical Apple product fanbois allow themselves to hate.
Well done.
/And why is the cable always too short on the mouse? Again, form over function, it looks cool on your desk but you spend all your time fighting it for slack.
Well done.
/And why is the cable always too short on the mouse? Again, form over function, it looks cool on your desk but you spend all your time fighting it for slack.
Must be a problem with the dimensions of your batteries. Or you can try to clean the contacts. Sometimes the plus poles get a little oxidised. The battery compartment is what I like the most about the Magic Mouse. Just compare Apples design versus the industry standard.
For all the talk of the hockey puck mouse, it was really the mighty mouse that was an atrocity. That thing is completely unusable, and don't even get me started on the side buttons triggering for like, no reason at all. I don't even consider it to be a mouse. In my mind it's a torture device.
The pro mouse was fantastic... for a one-button mouse. I ended up replacing mine when it fritzed out, with a multi-button logitech model, and I've never used another Apple mouse in any serious context again. I have extensively used the magic mouse for a mac mini media center, though. It's not a terrible mouse, but I wouldn't use it for a proper desktop.
The pro mouse was fantastic... for a one-button mouse. I ended up replacing mine when it fritzed out, with a multi-button logitech model, and I've never used another Apple mouse in any serious context again. I have extensively used the magic mouse for a mac mini media center, though. It's not a terrible mouse, but I wouldn't use it for a proper desktop.
Last edited:
Look cool, not functional
Most of Apple's mice have been cool to look at, but they all have problems in the functionality department, even the current one.
Try to use the magic mouse with Google Maps or an Excel Spreadsheet and you will know what I mean. Incredible that they are getting away with it.
Most of Apple's mice have been cool to look at, but they all have problems in the functionality department, even the current one.
Try to use the magic mouse with Google Maps or an Excel Spreadsheet and you will know what I mean. Incredible that they are getting away with it.
I like them. I guess I must not be a part of the same universe layer as you. Tell me, whats it like in your causality? Steampunk? Thats kinda cool.
----------
I was curious, so I went and tried both of those just now. Im a little ashamed to admit I dont know what you mean. What are they getting away with? Im afraid youll have to be a bit more specific.
Style over usability and / or functionality.
A common Apple trait.
I like my Magic Mouse, despite this. Logitech mice are fantastic. Just a shame the ones I like aren't bluetooth.
Also, I like to observe people trying to use the magic mouse for the first time. Its interesting, they way the perceive it should be used. It is often confusing to them.
A common Apple trait.
I like my Magic Mouse, despite this. Logitech mice are fantastic. Just a shame the ones I like aren't bluetooth.
Also, I like to observe people trying to use the magic mouse for the first time. Its interesting, they way the perceive it should be used. It is often confusing to them.
Last edited:
I foget that the side buttons existed since I ALWAYS disabled them in the mouse settings. The whole idea of squeezing the mouse to activate a mouse 3 button was just lame. I still like the idea of a scroll ball if it didn't get dirty so easily...
The magic mouse is simply way too flat to be used comfortably. On the other hand, the track pad rocks.
No that the 'backspace' key. The key labelled 'delete' is not found on laptops/wireless keyboards.
Think of them as forward delete and back delete.
On that topic, Apple make only two variants of keyboards and yet pointlessly shift basic keys around which plays hell with muscle memory. I had less confusion swapping between a Mac + and PC keyboard.
Also despite what people teaching how to use software keep wittering on about, there is no 'Option' key on the Mac. It's been called the 'alt' key for years now. I'm typing this on a six year old KB which has no 'option' key to be seen.
----------
It wouldn't be so bad if the Mac keyboard USB socket faced backwards. As it is now, the cable gets in the way of the mouse itself, unless trained otherwise.
wow, I had no idea you couldn't simultaneously right- and left-click on the magic mouse...! I was thinking about getting one for my mac mini but I guess not. Looks like I'll be sticking with my current Logitech.
I've always liked the ergonomics of apple mice & I absolutely love my Magic Mouse, I've never understood why it gets such a bad rap from some?
I have a Pro Mouse and Mighty Mouse that I still use on a daily basis. They are the only mice I've ever owned without the "ball", which is probably why I enjoy them so much.
I just don't see the need of investing into a better mouse when I'm jumping from computer to computer anyway.
I just don't see the need of investing into a better mouse when I'm jumping from computer to computer anyway.
I agree. They have all been beautiful though. The Pro mouse was beautiful, but it never felt great to use, and after many many years I never got used to it. I only ever put up with it because of it's aesthetics.
"Farag believed Apple was the first to create a mouse that used an LED for optical tracking in place of a rubber ball, as the team looked toward building a successor worthy of the Apple Pro Mouse."
Believed incorrectly as I was using PCs back then and I recall Apple launching their 'revolutionary' [or some similar overegged superlative] optical mouse as an fantastic innovation. Which may have come as a surprise to Microsoft and others who had sold such things for quite a while. Plus they had multi-buttons so were far more user friendly.
I never understood Jobs hatred of buttons or cursor keys. Single button mice and keyboards without cursors are inferior in use to those that are not crippled.
Insisting on a mouse with one button whilst it sat next to a keyboard with over a hundred seemed a bit daft really. Particularly as you had to use one of them to make the mouse work properly, meaning a single button mouse needed two hands to use.
As the the dreadful puck mouse, I know people with permanent RSI as a result of using that abomination.
Early optical mice used laser diodes and not LEDs. This may just be them claiming the first LED mouse, and not the first optical mouse. I used a laser based mouse on an Apple II in the mid '80s. So optical was around for a long time before the pro mouse.
It is easy to complain about the design, but it is much harder to force the issue until a better solution presents itself. Basically Steve kept the mouse simple until there was a simple way to do advanced interactions. The magic mouse is really nice. I have moved on to the magic trackpad though as not pushing a mouse around is even better. The gestures and simplicity of use is great.
----------
That is a laser diode in there and not an LED.
----------
You can get ADB to USB adaptors.
Beautiful, yes, but there was a huge design flaw... the space between the front of the mouse (which needs to click down because the whole front of the mouse is the button) and the surface it's on is just large enough for the cord to get underneath, preventing the mouse from clicking... maybe not a problem for pro users, but I had to move the cord for my students all the frigging time when we had them in the lab.
Personally, when I was buying mac desktops I never unpacked the mouse. I find them all bizarrely unusable, and not just because of the button issue... they're all so small and flat...