Recommend limited-mobility pointing device options?
February 9, 2010 10:46 PM Subscribe
I have limited mobility, and my current pointing device isn't working for me. What options do I have?
I have a disability that limits my hand mobility. I currently use a Logitech Trackman Wheel to control my mouse cursor, but my thumb has lost some range of motion; the movements I can make are so small that it takes several strokes to get from one end of my (Ubuntu) netbook's screen to the other, and doing the same on my (Windows) desktop is an arduous journey, even at full sensitivity on both.
So what I'm asking for is any way I can get more leverage from my smaller movements, either through a decent mini-trackball or using some software utility to yet further increase the mouse sensitivity. I know it's asking for a lot, but I wanted to try you guys before asking an occupational therapist (who will likely suggest something that is very suitable, but also officially labeled "adaptive technology," which is usually very expensive.)
PS I hope I haven't offended any members who are occupational therapists. I've benefited a great deal in my life from the help of several OTs--it's actually the equipment manufacturers I have it in for.
I have a disability that limits my hand mobility. I currently use a Logitech Trackman Wheel to control my mouse cursor, but my thumb has lost some range of motion; the movements I can make are so small that it takes several strokes to get from one end of my (Ubuntu) netbook's screen to the other, and doing the same on my (Windows) desktop is an arduous journey, even at full sensitivity on both.
So what I'm asking for is any way I can get more leverage from my smaller movements, either through a decent mini-trackball or using some software utility to yet further increase the mouse sensitivity. I know it's asking for a lot, but I wanted to try you guys before asking an occupational therapist (who will likely suggest something that is very suitable, but also officially labeled "adaptive technology," which is usually very expensive.)
PS I hope I haven't offended any members who are occupational therapists. I've benefited a great deal in my life from the help of several OTs--it's actually the equipment manufacturers I have it in for.
I have had limited success with using the gui interface for mouse sensitivity in ubuntu... but you can do it "manually." Im no expert, so Ill give you limited advice, but if you (sudo) edit your xorg.conf file, you can get a higher sensitivity, as well as acceleration and other settings.
Ubuntu Forums link
Hopefully this will let you get the settings you want.
posted by rosswald at 5:24 AM on February 10, 2010
Ubuntu Forums link
Hopefully this will let you get the settings you want.
posted by rosswald at 5:24 AM on February 10, 2010
A few things to look into, any of which might help:
- Investigate the world of "presentation remotes" and see if you can find one that fits your hand. These are meant to control a computer without much hand shifting, so it could work.
- A small analog stick like those found on gamepads would probably be fantastic, but finding one that isn't attached to a huge peripheral could be difficult -- but if you see one, definitely try it.
- A tiny track ball might be the easiest/cheapest answer. I have one of these one finger mice that I've sometimes used with my laptop, and while it takes a bit of getting used to, it takes VERY little motion to control a cursor and single button with it.
posted by Pufferish at 9:53 AM on February 10, 2010
- Investigate the world of "presentation remotes" and see if you can find one that fits your hand. These are meant to control a computer without much hand shifting, so it could work.
- A small analog stick like those found on gamepads would probably be fantastic, but finding one that isn't attached to a huge peripheral could be difficult -- but if you see one, definitely try it.
- A tiny track ball might be the easiest/cheapest answer. I have one of these one finger mice that I've sometimes used with my laptop, and while it takes a bit of getting used to, it takes VERY little motion to control a cursor and single button with it.
posted by Pufferish at 9:53 AM on February 10, 2010
I don't know whether it will fit your specific needs, but I often recommend Kensington trackballs because it is easy to isolate the movement of the ball from operating the buttons. This a larger trackball, a bit smaller than a tennis ball, whose mass is very effective both for spinning to cross a larger distance, and for staying put while you click. You could roll the trackball with whatever finger/s works best for you, and you should be able to customize the tracking speed to your liking, if not with Windows' mouse control panel, then with a 3d party driver/controller - Kensington's Mouseworks on Windows. Interested Apple users might try USB Overdrive - a very customizable mouse prefpane.
posted by TruncatedTiller at 2:56 PM on February 10, 2010
posted by TruncatedTiller at 2:56 PM on February 10, 2010
I also came in to recommend a Kensington trackball, the Kensington Turbo Mouse. I think that a larger trackball will enable you to make the cursor travel longer distances before you have to move your hand/finger again.
And with any device, you might want to go into the settings and look for the "acceleration curve" setting. This will speed up the cursor the longer it's in motion, so that you still have fine control for small motions, but larger motions move it further than a straight ratio would dictate.
posted by timepiece at 1:22 PM on February 11, 2010
And with any device, you might want to go into the settings and look for the "acceleration curve" setting. This will speed up the cursor the longer it's in motion, so that you still have fine control for small motions, but larger motions move it further than a straight ratio would dictate.
posted by timepiece at 1:22 PM on February 11, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by bigmusic at 1:17 AM on February 10, 2010