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Internet appliances—devices designed for easy Internet access and navigation—are all the rage. And hardware developers are bending over bac... (more)

The House of Doolittle specializes in making calendars, organizers, and other desk products from 30- and 100-percent post-consumer recycled materia... (more)

Surfing the Web just got a little easier. Now you can launch your favorite sites at the touch of a button, thanks to mysmart.com's "smart" mouse pa... (more)

SAN DIEGO -- MouseMattres.com has released MouseMattress, a foam mouse pad contoured to sit on a person's thigh to prevent and alleviate stretch an... (more)

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I'm following several big stories, and if they develop punch lines, I'll be writing about them. There's the next version of OS/2 Warp, code-named Mer... (more)

Vaccination with DNA of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis 85B Antigen Protects Mouse Foot Pad Against Infection with M. leprae1 DNA vaccines are a new ... (more)

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I'm following several big stories, and if they develop punch lines, I'll be writing about them.

There's the next version of OS/2 Warp, code-named Merlin. Code-names are not always what they appear to be. For example, the next generation of Windows NT, Cairo, is named after a tiny town in southern Illinois.

For all I know, there's someone at IBM named Doug Merlin, but I rather think the code-name refers to the magic IBM thinks it has up its sleeve with this release.

Every version of OS/2 from version 1.0 up to the current Warp 3.0 has disappointed me in one way or the other but I get the feeling that Merlin represents a breakthrough product.

Merlin has IBM's VoiceType technology which means that you will be able to dictate a letter or memo as well as issue voice commands to control your computer.

The Internet will be easier to access and better integrated with the operating system whose interface will be improved with an eye to making it easier to use.

IBM feels that Merlin will change how people interact with computers. Maybe. We'll see.

Equally important is IBM's new technology that simplifies the task of creating native OS/2 applications from 32-bit Windows applications.

If this works as claimed, it will lead to a greater choice of OS/2 applications and thus address one of the major and chronic shortcomings of the OS/2 environment.

There are other big developments on the horizon but I feel the need to write about something less weighty, although not necessarily less important.

I would like to write about the mouse and some issues related to it.

Since January, I've been using the 3M Precise Mousing Surface. Although it's rather expensive at over $15, it's worth every penny.

Most of us, as we build the computing environments in which we spend so much of our time, give excessive attention to the speed of our CPU and the size of our hard disk.

We should spend more time on some of the little things that really matter.

The kind of mouse most of us use depends on the characteristics of the surface it glides over. Some surfaces are better than others. We have all noticed that.

It stands to reason that inventive engineers should be able to design a near-optimal surface. That is what 3M engineers appear to have done. If you use a mouse, you should try this high-tech pad. Despite its excellence, I don't always use the 3M pad. The reason has to do with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, a seriously debilitating overuse condition that afflicts users of mice and keyboards.

I know people with cases severe enough to require surgery. I had a mild form of this myself, but I recognized it soon enough to take steps to minimize its seriousness.

I split my work between two computers. On one, I use a trackball, set up for left-handed operation. Since I am naturally sinister, this is quite comfortable. (For what it's worth, I find that a trackball is less stressful than a mouse).

On the other, I use a right-handed mouse. I am able to spread the load between my two hands, reducing the stress on each one.

Another benefit: I'm prepared to use computers in the outside world, which is predominantly right-handed.

COPYRIGHT 1996 Transcontinental Media IT Business Group
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group

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