# The Mouse That Would Not DIE!



## BullKurtz (Dec 27, 2014)

For months the original mouse I got with my Dell Dimension E521 had been acting up.  It would highlight part of something I wanted to copy and stop in the middle or the highlight would vanish.  The scroll wasn't right either.  And in the online checkers game I play, it was getting harder to drag my pieces around.  And then a couple days ago, the cursor VANISHED. 

This is an old rollerball mouse with a USB port connection.....I unplugged the cord and plugged it back in....the cursor reappeared....whew.  Then it vanished again.....oh oh.  I vaguely remember how to do "mouse keys" on the keyboard but that was 13 years ago....not a chance.  So I call Best Buy for the geek squad and the guy tells me it's probably the mother-board.  Hmmmm....so I head down there and buy his cheapest optical mouse for $9.20.   After finally ripping the blister pack to shreds I plug it in....HYPER CURSOR....damn the thing was like Pong on meth and bath salts.  

It worked but I didn't like it or the red light under it.....what was going on in there?  So I took my old mouse apart....it was disgusting...full of hair, dirt, goo, and who knows what else after 7 years of getting pushed around on an oak table with the snacks that accompanied my time on online.  I'd kept the ball and rollers clean so how the hell did the crud migrate to the front of the mouse? 

So I start brushing out the crud with an old toothbrush when it falls apart, pieces landing on the floor...now what?  I picked up the two pieces that were where nearby but the scroll wheel was missing....found it after a couple hours of searching some 15 feet away under a shoe in the corner....grrrr..then the odd shaped piece of wire I'd found disappeared....another extensive search....found it stuck in the tread on the bottom of my shoe....miraculously it wasn't bent out of shape and ruined....figured out how the parts went back together....clean now.....tightened the little screw on the bottom, plugged it back in it's USB port and VOILA....it works like the day I first plugged it in...

Took the replacement mouse back to Best Buy, got my refund and blew it on a 12 roll pack of Northern toilet paper at Wally World.  What's the moral of the story?  Hell if I know but I do know this...don't be afraid to try to fix something that you can replace for $9...especially electronics....I bet the dumps are full of stuff that would still have worked if somebody had just looked into what had happened to them.  My old mouse and I had had a blast online....we'd learned and taught many things together....and now my pal is back with me good as new.....I hope.


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## ChrisL (Dec 27, 2014)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> For months the original mouse I got with my Dell Dimension E521 had been acting up.  It would highlight part of something I wanted to copy and stop in the middle or the highlight would vanish.  The scroll wasn't right either.  And in the online checkers game I play, it was getting harder to drag my pieces around.  And then a couple days ago, the cursor VANISHED.
> 
> This is an old rollerball mouse with a USB port connection.....I unplugged the cord and plugged it back in....the cursor reappeared....whew.  Then it vanished again.....oh oh.  I vaguely remember how to do "mouse keys" on the keyboard but that was 13 years ago....not a chance.  So I call Best Buy for the geek squad and the guy tells me it's probably the mother-board.  Hmmmm....so I head down there and buy his cheapest optical mouse for $9.20.   After finally ripping the blister pack to shreds I plug it in....HYPER CURSOR....damn the thing was like Pong on meth and bath salts.
> 
> ...



Most of the new mouses are controlled by laser.  That's what the red light is and why it has no balls.


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## BullKurtz (Dec 28, 2014)

Well, the red light on an optical mouse is an LED light which is actually a tiny camera from what I understand....the neat thing about the Best Buy USB model is that it gets it's power (5v) from the CPU so it requires no batteries...both optical and laser meese use RF technology which I understand from selling wireless alarm systems.  The Infrared beams are similar to how motion-detectors work, sending information back and forth between the transmitter and receiver.  The laser mouse is more expensive because of the DPI (dots per inch?) of screen which is what the gamers need to zap zombies or some shit.  

Update....my cursor vanished again, dang it.  So I pulled the plug from it's USB port and plugged it back in ....so far so good.  I know that the cord is crimped where it enters the mouse from age....instead of the wires grounding on an outside surface, they're grounding inside the sheathing so I'm being very gentle with Mr. Mouse and not moving him around like I always have.....fingers crossed.


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## Mr. H. (Dec 28, 2014)

This is the most amusing thread that I've seen in quite a while.


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## XPostFacto (Jan 1, 2015)

I have had 2 wireless mice, and they failed on me. Then again, I'm a gamer and using the mouse to sword fight doesn't make for a long life for them. I prefer using the wired USB kind.


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## BullKurtz (Jan 2, 2015)

UPDATE....I finally pushed the USB connection wire as hard as I could into the front of the mouse...and it seems to have worked....haven't lost my cursor for two days and the operation is quick and crisp!


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## XPostFacto (Jan 2, 2015)

I still use a wireless mouse with my laptop. Whenever I hear 2 bells go off in my speakers, it means that the mouse has dropped out. I just unplug the USB receiver and then stick it back in, and I have the mouse for however long it wants to last, which is usually about 5 minutes or even less. I have gotten to using the touch pad now, and I hate touch pads with a passion. Lately, you can't seem to find a wired mouse. Best Buy, Walmart, and even Rite Aid keep pushing the wireless junk.


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## BullKurtz (Jan 2, 2015)

XPostFacto said:


> I still use a wireless mouse with my laptop. Whenever I hear 2 bells go off in my speakers, it means that the mouse has dropped out. I just unplug the USB receiver and then stick it back in, and I have the mouse for however long it wants to last, which is usually about 5 minutes or even less. I have gotten to using the touch pad now, and I hate touch pads with a passion. Lately, you can't seem to find a wired mouse. Best Buy, Walmart, and even Rite Aid keep pushing the wireless junk.



My Best Buy has a good stock of them....my next caper is speakers....I have one working and one not...the geek squad guy said that tells him the driver is good but there's a capacitor shot in the bad speaker...they have what I need for around $15...the set I have (Harmon Kardon) I got with my W98 computer in 1999....not bad.....15 years.


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## Moonglow (Jan 2, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> BullKurtzUSMC said:
> 
> 
> > For months the original mouse I got with my Dell Dimension E521 had been acting up.  It would highlight part of something I wanted to copy and stop in the middle or the highlight would vanish.  The scroll wasn't right either.  And in the online checkers game I play, it was getting harder to drag my pieces around.  And then a couple days ago, the cursor VANISHED.
> ...


It's an LED, not a laser, hunny....


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## Moonglow (Jan 2, 2015)

XPostFacto said:


> I have had 2 wireless mice, and they failed on me. Then again, I'm a gamer and using the mouse to sword fight doesn't make for a long life for them. I prefer using the wired USB kind.


And they suck battery life so quick...I even used rechargeable but gave up on the constant maint....


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## BullKurtz (Jan 2, 2015)

Moonglow said:


> It's an LED, not a laser, hunny....



The new high DPI ones are lasers.


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## Mr. H. (Jan 2, 2015)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> Moonglow said:
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> > It's an LED, not a laser, hunny....
> ...


Like, *pew!* *pew!* lasers, or optical lasers.


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## Moonglow (Jan 2, 2015)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> Moonglow said:
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> > It's an LED, not a laser, hunny....
> ...


That's why they are more than 9 dollars....


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## BullKurtz (Jan 2, 2015)

Moonglow said:


> That's why they are more than 9 dollars....



You just figure that out did ya Bart?


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## Moonglow (Jan 2, 2015)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> Moonglow said:
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> > That's why they are more than 9 dollars....
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Nah, I've got about a dozen different types. I even have an old bar code reader mouse that had the old CAT-9 plug and is shaped like a mouse...My wife used it to do the old secret shopper type of operation on our old Dell we had with windows 95....


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## BullKurtz (Jan 2, 2015)

Moonglow said:


> You just figure that out did ya Bart?


Nah, I've got about a dozen different types. I even have an old bar code reader mouse that had the old CAT-9 plug and is shaped like a mouse...My wife used it to do the old secret shopper type of operation on our old Dell we had with windows 95....[/QUOTE]

I had one of those too!  Came with my Dell W98 machine...it was actually shaped like a mouse with a nose and ears, right?   I found it a couple years ago and no idea what the hell it was or what it did.


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## Dante (Jan 2, 2015)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> For months the original mouse I got with my Dell Dimension E521 had been acting up.  It would highlight part of something I wanted to copy and stop in the middle or the highlight would vanish.  The scroll wasn't right either.  And in the online checkers game I play, it was getting harder to drag my pieces around.  And then a couple days ago, the cursor VANISHED.
> 
> This is an old rollerball mouse with a USB port connection.....I unplugged the cord and plugged it back in....the cursor reappeared....whew.  Then it vanished again.....oh oh.  I vaguely remember how to do "mouse keys" on the keyboard but that was 13 years ago....not a chance.  So I call Best Buy for the geek squad and the guy tells me it's probably the mother-board.  Hmmmm....so I head down there and buy his cheapest optical mouse for $9.20.   After finally ripping the blister pack to shreds I plug it in....HYPER CURSOR....damn the thing was like Pong on meth and bath salts.
> 
> ...


\
throw the thing away.

jesus!  It has a virus!!!!


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## Moonglow (Jan 2, 2015)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> Moonglow said:
> 
> 
> > You just figure that out did ya Bart?
> ...



I had one of those too!  Came with my Dell W98 machine...it was actually shaped like a mouse with a nose and ears, right?   I found it a couple years ago and no idea what the hell it was or what it did.[/QUOTE]
I know, I finally tossed it after moving it to two different houses..i also has a ton of CD's from that later ninties I can't use, but hate to toss it...Some of my favorite Napoleonic era warfare is on '98 or XP.. We moved to a place where lightning would run down the telephone line and zap the computers...I've lost three computers this way.........Until I fixed the ground on the telephone companies line...


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## Judicial review (Jan 2, 2015)

My mouse needs to be thrown at Fauns face.


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## ChrisL (Jan 3, 2015)

Well, my rabbit chewed through my mouse cord this morning, so I had to take a trip to the store to get a new mouse.  I went to Walmart because it was early, and I wasn't sure any other stores would be open yet.  They had such a terrible selection.  They had exactly ONE model of wired mouse and TWO models that were wireless.  I bought a wireless one (my first) only because the rabbit chews through my cord, and I don't use that computer for play, only for working, so I'm thinking the wireless mouse should work fine for my needs.


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## ChrisL (Jan 3, 2015)

Just hooked up my new mouse.  Works great so far!    I need MORE wireless things.


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## Bleipriester (Jan 3, 2015)

Moonglow said:


> XPostFacto said:
> 
> 
> > I have had 2 wireless mice, and they failed on me. Then again, I'm a gamer and using the mouse to sword fight doesn't make for a long life for them. I prefer using the wired USB kind.
> ...


If you buy a quality product it can work even two years with two AAA batteries. I had a Logitech that could.


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## Moonglow (Jan 3, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> Just hooked up my new mouse.  Works great so far!    I need MORE wireless things.


Like a wireless brain?


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## Moonglow (Jan 3, 2015)

Bleipriester said:


> Moonglow said:
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I had an HP one along with one from Coke rewards...


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## ChrisL (Jan 3, 2015)

Moonglow said:


> ChrisL said:
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> > Just hooked up my new mouse.  Works great so far!    I need MORE wireless things.
> ...



Wouldn't that describe you better?  You don't seem to have much knowledge about any topic, except for posting a bunch of nonsense one liners that are not very clever.  You are a lot more like Homer than Bart actually.


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## ChrisL (Jan 3, 2015)

Bleipriester said:


> Moonglow said:
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Mine has an 18-month battery guarantee, so I don't know what in the hell HE is talking about.  He's probably never even had a wireless mouse before and has no idea what he's talking about.


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## edthecynic (Jan 3, 2015)

I've been using a bluetooth mouse for a couple of years now and I've had no problems with it. Battery life is good too. It turns itself off if it isn't being used for a length of time and all you have to do is wiggle it a couple of times and it turns itself back on.


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## ChrisL (Jan 3, 2015)

I don't play any games or anything on this computer.  This is my work computer.  The only other thing I do is, when things are slow at work, I might come here and browse a bit, but I don't play games while at work at all, so that issue of wearing it out playing too many games wouldn't be a problem for me.  I only play on my lap top.


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## BullKurtz (Jan 3, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> Well, my rabbit chewed through my mouse cord this morning, so I had to take a trip to the store to get a new mouse.  I went to Walmart because it was early, and I wasn't sure any other stores would be open yet.  They had such a terrible selection.  They had exactly ONE model of wired mouse and TWO models that were wireless.  I bought a wireless one (my first) only because the rabbit chews through my cord, and I don't use that computer for play, only for working, so I'm thinking the wireless mouse should work fine for my needs.


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## ChrisL (Jan 3, 2015)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> ChrisL said:
> 
> 
> > Well, my rabbit chewed through my mouse cord this morning, so I had to take a trip to the store to get a new mouse.  I went to Walmart because it was early, and I wasn't sure any other stores would be open yet.  They had such a terrible selection.  They had exactly ONE model of wired mouse and TWO models that were wireless.  I bought a wireless one (my first) only because the rabbit chews through my cord, and I don't use that computer for play, only for working, so I'm thinking the wireless mouse should work fine for my needs.



  That's adorable!


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## BullKurtz (Jan 3, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> That's adorable!


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## XPostFacto (Jan 5, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> Bleipriester said:
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Fortunately for me, I have several wired mice around the house so that is what I will use. It is regretful that the world has moved to wireless everything, but I am old school and will continue to resist the use of wireless devices. They are not what they claim to be.


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## BullKurtz (Jan 5, 2015)

UPDATE...my mouse staged another rebellion over the weekend....I thought I'd fixed him it but he fooled me....no cursor again.....I really didn't want to take it apart again because it's difficult to line up the front clips and one push against the tiny little components could kill it permanently....but I did....and this time I decided to use a tiny piece of electrical tape on the frayed wire sheathing.   Too thick....wouldn't close back up....this was at 8:25 pm.....Best Buy closes at 9 and I'm 15 minutes from them....so I told Mr. Mouse he had 15 minutes to live if I couldn't fix him.....I stared at him....he avoided eye contact....I figured I had one move left....to twist the wire a half turn and hold it tight while I fit the top back on with my other hand.....after half a dozen attempts the cover finally closed with both clickers clicking.....I told him this was it.....zero dark 30.....either he was fixed or he was junk....which would it be?  I snapped the business end into the USB port and moved the mouse....the screen-saver vanished....the mouse was once again....ALIVE!


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## Moonglow (Jan 5, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> Bleipriester said:
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I use mine for gaming so it sucks a load of juice...


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## ChrisL (Jan 6, 2015)

XPostFacto said:


> ChrisL said:
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Why is it regretful?  Who wants all of those wires all over the place?  Not me.  Maybe you just don't like change?


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## ChrisL (Jan 6, 2015)

Moonglow said:


> ChrisL said:
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Really?  Because mine works great.


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## ChrisL (Jan 6, 2015)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> UPDATE...my mouse staged another rebellion over the weekend....I thought I'd fixed him it but he fooled me....no cursor again.....I really didn't want to take it apart again because it's difficult to line up the front clips and one push against the tiny little components could kill it permanently....but I did....and this time I decided to use a tiny piece of electrical tape on the frayed wire sheathing.   Too thick....wouldn't close back up....this was at 8:25 pm.....Best Buy closes at 9 and I'm 15 minutes from them....so I told Mr. Mouse he had 15 minutes to live if I couldn't fix him.....I stared at him....he avoided eye contact....I figured I had one move left....to twist the wire a half turn and hold it tight while I fit the top back on with my other hand.....after half a dozen attempts the cover finally closed with both clickers clicking.....I told him this was it.....zero dark 30.....either he was fixed or he was junk....which would it be?  I snapped the business end into the USB port and moved the mouse....the screen-saver vanished....the mouse was once again....ALIVE!



Just euthanize the poor thing and put it out of its misery once and for all!


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## XPostFacto (Jan 6, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> XPostFacto said:
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I can embrace change if the new item lasts longer than a farting spell.


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## BullKurtz (Jan 6, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> Just euthanize the poor thing and put it out of its misery once and for all!



NO!  he's doing fine now.....


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## ChrisL (Jan 6, 2015)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> ChrisL said:
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> > Just euthanize the poor thing and put it out of its misery once and for all!
> ...



He's suffering!


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## ChrisL (Jan 6, 2015)

XPostFacto said:


> ChrisL said:
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   Well, like anything else, I'm sure it will improve with time.  I'll let you know how mine works out.  So far, it works really good, and I absolutely LOVE not having a wire.


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## BullKurtz (Jan 6, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> He's suffering!



is not.  

I only have one free hand    on hold with phone co. over 50 mins now   grrrrrrrrrrrr


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## ChrisL (Jan 6, 2015)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> ChrisL said:
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## BullKurtz (Jan 6, 2015)

ChrisL said:


>


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## BullKurtz (Jan 6, 2015)

He's even put a little weight back on compared to last week


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## XPostFacto (Jan 6, 2015)

I'd buy one of those wireless printers, but with my luck, my neighbor would be sending me her print jobs.


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## BullKurtz (Jan 6, 2015)

XPostFacto said:


> I'd buy one of those wireless printers, but with my luck, my neighbor would be sending me her print jobs.





When I was with Protection One I had an incident where a guy's remote activated and deactivated his next door neighbor's alarm system.  The odds of two identical codes sent from an alarm CPU are maybe 250,000-1 but it happened.  Anything wireless can be mis-routed, drowned by a passing car's alternator, and hacked.


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## ChrisL (Jan 6, 2015)

XPostFacto said:


> I'd buy one of those wireless printers, but with my luck, my neighbor would be sending me her print jobs.



I want a wireless keyboard next.


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## BullKurtz (Jan 6, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> XPostFacto said:
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> > I'd buy one of those wireless printers, but with my luck, my neighbor would be sending me her print jobs.
> ...



I should report you to PETA for cruelty to bunnies...how DARE you leave nothing for the poor little guy to chew on?  Somebody get a rope....


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## Judicial review (Jan 6, 2015)

We've all had a mouse that wouldn't die.  Try glue pads.


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## ChrisL (Jan 6, 2015)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> ChrisL said:
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He has plenty of things.  I gave him an old blanket, a towel, and he has a cardboard box that he likes to chew on, not to mention all the food and snacks I give him.  He is spoiled!


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## BullKurtz (Jan 6, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> He has plenty of things.  I gave him an old blanket, a towel, and he has a cardboard box that he likes to chew on, not to mention all the food and snacks I give him.  He is spoiled!



Someday you'll come home and discover you have 10 rabbits....then 80....then 2,000......carrot money alone could be in the thousand$....you better make a little chastity belt for her.


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## ChrisL (Jan 6, 2015)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> ChrisL said:
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> > He has plenty of things.  I gave him an old blanket, a towel, and he has a cardboard box that he likes to chew on, not to mention all the food and snacks I give him.  He is spoiled!
> ...



I only have the one rabbit.    I don't even really know if it's a boy or a girl, not that it really matters.


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## BullKurtz (Jan 6, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> I only have the one rabbit.    I don't even really know if it's a boy or a girl, not that it really matters.



Look under it's tail....it matters....they're little whores I tell ya.


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## edthecynic (Jan 6, 2015)

XPostFacto said:


> ChrisL said:
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I hear you. I tried a couple of the 2.4ghz wireless mice and they didn't last very long, only a few months, but then I tried bluetooth mice and have been using one at home for over 2 years and one at work for over a year with no problems with either so far. Knock on wood!


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## HenryBHough (Jan 6, 2015)

Apple's wireless mouse has been working good for 4+ years on this Mac.  Tried a wireless keyboard - it sucks.  All recent Apple keyboards are crap.  Just ordered a high-end wired "Selectric" type and will see if that's as good as the one that came with a white "football" iMac back when Apple knew how to make kbds.


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## ChrisL (Jan 6, 2015)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> ChrisL said:
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> > I only have the one rabbit.    I don't even really know if it's a boy or a girl, not that it really matters.
> ...



But I only have the ONE rabbit.  It can't do itself, or maybe it can, but it can't make baby bunnies that way!    That's right, I know about these things!


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## ChrisL (Jan 6, 2015)

HenryBHough said:


> Apple's wireless mouse has been working good for 4+ years on this Mac.  Tried a wireless keyboard - it sucks.  All recent Apple keyboards are crap.  Just ordered a high-end wired "Selectric" type and will see if that's as good as the one that came with a white "football" iMac back when Apple knew how to make kbds.



Why did the wireless keyboard suck?


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## HenryBHough (Jan 6, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> Why did the wireless keyboard suck?



The wireless aspect was good.  The solar powering was good.

The touch was lousy (on a Selectric keyboard I typically can do 120+ WPM) with no real tactile feedback and so soft that keys repeated.  S-L-O-W and error-prone.  Had been using some cheap Selectric type keyboards from a Canadian outfit that were nice but lasted only about 6 months each.  I ordered two at a time twice and would do so again but they've been discontinued.

Right now using a dirt-cheap iHome chicklet-keyed Apple clone that's marginally better than the spendy wireless.  Still a hair better than the one that came with the computer.


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## ChrisL (Jan 6, 2015)

HenryBHough said:


> ChrisL said:
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> > Why did the wireless keyboard suck?
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Oh, thanks for that.  I know now that I probably should not get a wireless keyboard because I have to be able to type fast for my job.


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## HenryBHough (Jan 6, 2015)

ChrisL said:


> Oh, thanks for that.  I know now that I probably should not get a wireless keyboard because I have to be able to type fast for my job.



I believe the outfit that makes the one I ordered has a wireless version.  I'll try to send you a link by PM.....


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## ChrisL (Jan 6, 2015)

HenryBHough said:


> ChrisL said:
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Thanks!  I appreciate that!


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## XPostFacto (Jan 7, 2015)

edthecynic said:


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I bought some cheap ones. Maybe I should invest in the $100 ones. Fat chance of that. As long as I can get the wired ones, I'm wired.


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## BullKurtz (Jan 7, 2015)

UPDATE DAY 3:  My mouse is back to full and robust health.  Twisting the wire in his nose to defeat the short was the cure.....it's almost unreal how well it's working and looking back, how long I put up with it acting up.  My computing experience is carefree again.  My advice for anybody reading this with mouse issues is to simply take it apart and look at it...if it's acquired as much crud as my did over 7 years, simply clean it up.  Just be careful....look at it before you go to work on it so you remember how it goes back together.....I know one guy who takes things apart inside a clear plastic bag so flying parts can't escape.


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## edthecynic (Jan 7, 2015)

XPostFacto said:


> edthecynic said:
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I bought one bluetooth mouse, a Dell, at a flea market for $2.98, I figured at that price it couldn't be any worse then the Logitech 2.4ghz ones I tried, which weren't cheap. It is the one I've been using at home for over 2 years, so I think I got my money's worth. Because of my success with that, I got a used HP from Ebay for $7.44 with shipping to use at work.


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## ChrisL (Jan 7, 2015)

edthecynic said:


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That's what I have, a wireless Logitech mouse, and so far no problems.


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## XPostFacto (Jan 10, 2015)

BullKurtzUSMC said:


> UPDATE DAY 3:  My mouse is back to full and robust health.  Twisting the wire in his nose to defeat the short was the cure.....it's almost unreal how well it's working and looking back, how long I put up with it acting up.  My computing experience is carefree again.  My advice for anybody reading this with mouse issues is to simply take it apart and look at it...if it's acquired as much crud as my did over 7 years, simply clean it up.  Just be careful....look at it before you go to work on it so you remember how it goes back together.....I know one guy who takes things apart inside a clear plastic bag so flying parts can't escape.



I doubt that was a short, but more like the circuit opening and not allowing electrons to flow normally. If you have to wiggle a wire, then it's time to either fix the recurring problem, or throw it away in your nearest trash can.


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## ChrisL (Jan 10, 2015)

edthecynic said:


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Mine was cheap.  It was only like 15 or 20 dollars.  I got it at Walmart.  It works well so far.  I've had it for a week now.  But again, I have to say that I don't play games with it.  It's for my work computer, and I mostly just type on it, so I think a wireless mouse is fine if someone needs it for a similar purpose.  

If you are going to be gaming, and slamming it down and getting around, maybe throwing it across the room, then a wireless mouse may not be the best choice.


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## Ringel05 (Jan 10, 2015)

I have a M$ wireless mouse I picked up on Amazon (cheap) three years ago that works fine.  My only complaint is if I don't turn it off every evening it will drain the battery in a couple of weeks.


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## ChrisL (Jan 10, 2015)

Ringel05 said:


> I have a M$ wireless mouse I picked up on Amazon (cheap) three years ago that works fine.  My only complaint is if I don't turn it off every evening it will drain the battery in a couple of weeks.



Interesting.  Perhaps I should start turning mine off too.  I didn't even think of that, but I did notice it has a little on/off switch.


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## BullKurtz (Jan 10, 2015)

XPostFacto said:


> I doubt that was a short, but more like the circuit opening and not allowing electrons to flow normally. If you have to wiggle a wire, then it's time to either fix the recurring problem, or throw it away in your nearest trash can.



It was a short...nothing to do with "electrons"....frayed wire sheathing, working great now.


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## BullKurtz (Jan 15, 2015)

UPDATE:  Today I used my massive savings ($9.20) on a new mouse to invest in a new pair of speakers.  My Harmon/Kardon set from the last century(1999) finally gave up on me...YES I tried to fix them but the short is in the board....
a gallant effort but it was their time....

So I'm in Target to find a calender and I walk past this set of GE 2.0 multimedia speakers for.....get this $12.89 with tax....YES! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




Got em home, plugged them in, went to the Youtube Cream reunion at Albert Hall and clicked play.....not bad, not bad at all....no bass/treble control but the slants put a pretty good middle ground in the mix.....Once again I've shown my remarkable savvy about bargains; what is, and what ain't one.  Heh.


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## BullKurtz (Apr 23, 2015)

I couldn't slam the old mouse around anymore....it's been suffering and didn't deserve the indignity after serving me for 7 years.  It still kinda works but it's time has come to rest.  He's been replaced by a Logtech M-100 USP model I bought at Wally's for a sawbuck.   These new-fangled optic jobs take some getting used to...I already miss my old rollerball buddy.   I pointed his nose away from the computer so he wouldn't have to see the new guy on his desk.


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## iamwhatiseem (Apr 24, 2015)

BullKurtz said:


> My Best Buy has a good stock of them....my next caper is speakers....I have one working and one not...the geek squad guy said that tells him the driver is good but there's a capacitor shot in the bad speaker...they have what I need for around $15...the set I have (Harmon Kardon) I got with my W98 computer in 1999....not bad.....15 years.



Both Harmon Kardon and Cambridge Soundworks  made upgraded speakers in the 90's. If I remember right the upgrade was only about $15 more. What a bargain...today speakers this good cost $150-$200.
They are fantastic speakers...I still use my Soundworks pair also. Pretty sure I bought them in August '99


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