Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by theshrike79 1116 days ago
I moved to an external touchpad years ago on macOS and haven't looked back.

I can just rest my wrist on my table and move my fingers, it's also (IMO, YMMV) easier to find with my hand without looking.

With a mouse, the movement comes all the way from my shoulder and elbow, it's not practical to move it just with your wrist -> neck pain (again, for me, YMMV).

I do have a mouse I connect for gaming and 3D work, those are a huge pain for touchpads, mostly because they often require right-clicking + panning, which isn't really something a touchpad can do. A trackball might work, though?
1 comments
kazinator 1116 days ago
> it's not practical to move it just with your wrist

Really? I'm trying it. I have my wrist planted on the table and just moving the mouse. Over the span of about an inch, it goes from one end of the 1920 pixel desktop to the other.

Tweak the mouse parameters, maybe?

I have a tiny Logitech M187 mouse. I sometimes work in tight places on the go; tiny desks in recreation centres and such.

link
theshrike79 1116 days ago
I've tried but I cant hit anything with a mouse that sensitive, maybe it's a lack of practice but I've never bothered to try it for that long.
link
kazinator 1116 days ago
I think, the OS is supposed to do something to improve the accuracy of small movements, while letting you whip across the desktop without using a lot of room on the physical desk.

I often do screenshot edits where I'm doing a rectangular select with pixel precision. It's not easy to click without it moving off by a pixel, but I manage.

The mouse itself is a factor! There is a difference!

I didn't pay attention to this this before, but I'm doing a direct A/B comparison. I plugged an old Dell wired mouse into the laptop, using it side-by-side with the tiny Logi M187.

The M187 covers the entire width of the desktop in about 1/3rd of the physical movement compared to the old Dell wired mouse. I don't even have to rotate the palm of the hand; if I just move it left and right with movements of the thumb and ring finger, it covers the desktop.

However, I can still cover the desktop on the Dell without lifting my wrist. The movement is larger; I hate it. :)

The mouse settings in effect must be the same for both; there are no independent mouse settings per device.

link