For desktops:
1. Optical mouse of just about any type, except the awful iMac style "iPuck" (what were Apple thinking!).
2. Ball Mouse. The Apple ADB ones with the larger, much heavier gray ball were excellent. Can't stand the old Apple ADB mouses with the really light, small black ball though.
3. Trackball. Like Bunsen, I'm quite partial to the old Kensington trackball with the "billiard ball" - they are particularly good for a computer with cramped space or that has to be used while you are standing up. In addition, the older ones are shaped to "match" the Mac Plus keyboard, so they look like they belong.
For laptops:
1. Large-ish trackball like the Mac Portable. PowerBook 140, 170, 180 etc trackballs are not bad either. The Duo trackballs were too small to be effective though, and as for those weird, tiny little trackballs Compaq used to put up the side of the display... ewwww! Obviously, their user testing did not involve any of us left-handed people!
2. IBM style trackpoint. Takes some getting used to, but very good - especially since you can use it with without moving your hands away from the keyboard "home" position.
Hate, loathe and detest track pads. They are a scourge upon the Earth. I've given them a fair go over the years, having had a PowerBook 520 as my main "work" computer for five years back when they were current. I've also had various WinTel laptops with trackpads over the years and the more I've used them, the more I hate 'em.
1. Optical mouse of just about any type, except the awful iMac style "iPuck" (what were Apple thinking!).
2. Ball Mouse. The Apple ADB ones with the larger, much heavier gray ball were excellent. Can't stand the old Apple ADB mouses with the really light, small black ball though.
3. Trackball. Like Bunsen, I'm quite partial to the old Kensington trackball with the "billiard ball" - they are particularly good for a computer with cramped space or that has to be used while you are standing up. In addition, the older ones are shaped to "match" the Mac Plus keyboard, so they look like they belong.
For laptops:
1. Large-ish trackball like the Mac Portable. PowerBook 140, 170, 180 etc trackballs are not bad either. The Duo trackballs were too small to be effective though, and as for those weird, tiny little trackballs Compaq used to put up the side of the display... ewwww! Obviously, their user testing did not involve any of us left-handed people!
2. IBM style trackpoint. Takes some getting used to, but very good - especially since you can use it with without moving your hands away from the keyboard "home" position.
Hate, loathe and detest track pads. They are a scourge upon the Earth. I've given them a fair go over the years, having had a PowerBook 520 as my main "work" computer for five years back when they were current. I've also had various WinTel laptops with trackpads over the years and the more I've used them, the more I hate 'em.