Touchpad, Mouse, Trackball, Joystick, etc.

[AceGambit]

So, I'm not going to lie, I do my best Photoshop work on a touchpad.  I'll admit, I've never spent more than $29.99 on a mouse so it's not like my technology has been amazing, but I find that I can do better on a touchpad.  I've never owned a trackball but I've heard good things about them.


So tell me Design & Development community, what kind of pointing device hardware do you prefer?  Logitech's latest and greatest mouse?  The 'stolen from a Golden-Tee game' trackball?  What I like to refer to as the nipple mouse, that for some reason is still included on laptops?  Or do you do all your computer on a portable PC and have grown so accustomed, like me, to the touchpad?

[Kanped]

Everything portable, only use a trackpad for just bout everything.  I still prefer mice but I'm not fussed enough to plug one in, even for gaming.

[Curt]

I have always been a PC gamer and more specifically an FPS (first person shooter) player, so I am a huge fan of the mouse. I currently own a Razer Deathadder mouse, that has on the fly changeable sensitivity but I usually just leave it at the highest settings. Saying that, no one else that has used my computer can actually use the mouse comfortably and I always have to turn the setting down so they can click on stuff.

Even though the mouse is #1 for me, I do enjoy the touchpad that is on my Macbook Pro. The way it works with the OS, using intuitive gestures and how accurate everything feels is really nice and much better than any touchpad I have used on a windows based laptop. I am not saying its hands down the best, but simply I have just not used one that is better functioning.

[xela]

Track pads are inconvenient for desk work, in my opinion. This is my mouse/keyboard set up:




You can't beat those portability-wise. The receivers never come out of my laptop because they're so tiny, and the keyboard never requires batteries and as a result, it weighs under a pound. The mouse is amazing, and works on any surface. I've used it on my lap, on the armrest of my chair, on my bed, anywhere - it's extremely precise. The keyboard allows for insanely fast typing. You can press any number of keys simultaneously, they will all appear on screen. This means gaming is flat out better, because while not all of us are 100+ wpm typists, anyone that plays a game knows how important it is for a keyboard to be able to register as many as 5-10 keys at the same time.

For designing, I have to admit I can do much better work with the pen tool for vector graphics via touchpad, but right now I am saving up for a tablet to take my work to another level.

As always if you are using a keyboard/mouse for a laptop you have to make sure you disable your laptop's touch pad to ensure true precision.

Right now I have my laptop connected to my 24" HDTV along with my Xbox. It's amazing being able to do everything in one place, and to switch from gaming to browsing to movies within seconds. No more desktops for this guy!

[IAmTheChin]

I've become incredibly efficient at doing most things via trackpad due to personal laziness, but seriously? Mouse or tablet hands down. You're severely limiting your work and efficiency by working with a 3"x2" pad. I own a $20 laser mouse that I've had for 6 years.

[Joshua Robinson]

I've used it on my lap, on the armrest of my chair, on my bed, anywhere 

on your bed aye? feeling a bit lonely at time i see!! lol joking

[xela]

I've used it on my lap, on the armrest of my chair, on my bed, anywhere 

on your bed aye? feeling a bit lonely at time i see!! lol joking

More like designing while bed-ridden, but sure whatever floats your boat. 

[Don Boyer]

I like the trackpad on my MacBook, particularly the multi-touch gesture features.  It feels like waving a magic wand at times!  I was never fond of pushing a mouse around and having to take a hand away from the keyboard.  But then again, I'm not a designer, nor am I a gamer, unless you count stuff like Solitaire, Texas Hold Em, Angry Birds and the like.  When I want to game, I bust out the PS3.

@Alex. - you mentioned that was your mouse/keyboard setup.  I don't see a mouse - is it a touchpad built into the keyboard that I don't recognize?

[AceGambit]

@Alex. - you mentioned that was your mouse/keyboard setup.  I don't see a mouse - is it a touchpad built into the keyboard that I don't recognize?

Didn't you know?  That's why the Vortex cards look so great, he's actually mentally attuned to his PC.  He draws with his brain.

[xela]

Don, where do you not see a mouse? Is the image just not appearing on your screen?

[Kanped]

Don, where do you not see a mouse? Is the image just not appearing on your screen?

It's not appearing on mine; just right click and open the image in a new tab.

[Don Boyer]

Don, where do you not see a mouse? Is the image just not appearing on your screen?

It's not appearing on mine; just right click and open the image in a new tab.

Ah.  Darn thing looks like a black inchworm!  It's cuuuuuuute!

[Paul Carpenter]

I tend to use both a multitouch trackpad and a mouse.  Most tasks I use the trackpad but for fine detail work I'll usually grab the mouse, it's just a little easier to finely control anchor handles in illustrator, or do pixel-level fixing with a mouse IMO.

Multitouch in general is awesome for productivity, once you work it into your brain. Flipping between desktop spaces with a quick gesture is wonderfully intuitive.

I've considered getting a small Wacom for the illustrator work, but haven't really found the need yet. They are cheap enough, might try one out for the heck of it at some point.

[moonexe]

I'm also a gamer in possession of a Razer DeathAdder. A premium mouse is like quality headphones: before you've used them, it may seem pointless, but after you get used to them everything you've used before feels like crap.

Well, either way, after christmas I'll be using a tablet for photoshop work.