On the Widespread Misuse of the Mouse

An anonymous reader writes "Recently launched blog "The New Interface Advocate," has an entry about how mice are being applied to situations they are intrinsically poorly suited for. It also has an interesting proposal for how to keep most of the current paradigm of GUIs and still take advantage of the other control devices, such as the keyboard."

Better Yet Would Be a List of Trade-Offs

[eldavojohn]

Well, this is a really interesting article that, I must admit, I'm guilty of just following the crowd in this respect of allowing--no, relying on the mouse to do everything. It's very interesting and refreshing to read about someone suggesting something new and intuitive about user input to a computing device.

However, I found his premise inaccessible and, after reading the first part of this two part idea, I couldn't come up with a concrete advantage for using his method. At first, it seems like this is an argument for speed though I doubt rendering all those options in an overlay to display to the user would be much more efficient than a mouse click on a menu bar. The real estate gain is the obvious definitive advantage his system would have over everything I've used. However, the user must first know how to bring up the options overlay ... and I think he mentions the issues that would be associated with subselections. I tried to imagine the GIMP using this in my mind but the submenus would get out of hand. For example, you would like to use script-fu? Well, there's two submenus under that of a dynamic allotment of add ons that I can structure in directories however I want. Tough to deal with stuff like that.

I guess what I would have preferred in a blog like this is a more comprehensive analysis of trade offs when going against the grain in UI input methods. For example, using method A provides you with the benefits of speed & real estate saving but may be inaccessible for some users who are very used to the point and click paradigm and find new learning curves challenging or scary (there are people like that out there). In my opinion, keeping it as simple as possible and knowing your audience are the two biggest things to remember when designing a UI and I think this blog raises an excellent point that we shouldn't be afraid with re-examining the window system in operating systems but I don't think this is applicable in all situations.

Anyone out there (Edward Tufte students, psychologists, etc.) ever do a trade study on these features for their applications? Being a "form" ignorant engineer something like that would be most valuable to me.

Not having read TFA yet..

[JoeCommodore]

I know of one misuse, is the overuse of popup lists in forms, especially when entering dates (one popup for month, one for day, and another for year)

When people are entering alphanumeric data give them as much keyboard access as possible, leaving the keyboard just adds to the entry time, stress injuries as well as potential for typing errors (reorienting to typing position after mouse usage.)

The second is popups instead of checklists and radio/selection lists, which add to the mouse gymnastics to select one or more options from a single line field.

It may be easier to make the popups (unfortunately many tutorials use date popups as an early example of web programming), either way you still have to validate the information, so take the extra effort to out in a generic text box, checklist or selection list and add a few more lines of validation code.

Cat the Mouse

[Doc Ruby]

I hate the mouse, except as a children's/newbie's teaching tool. If I've got desk space for a mousepad, I want to use that for my display. And why do all that (carpal tunnel inviting) work to move a virtual pointer?

I prefer the trackpad. But why don't I have a touchscreen with stability and accuracy already? There's no reason for a "pointer metaphor" device when I can just move the actual pointer.

Give me a touchscreen and maybe a little rubber pointer fingercap, if I'm freaked out by smudges, or need to see the pointed pixel under my fingertip. Or give me an antiglare screen that doesn't collect smudges, and put a rock-solid pointer just above my fingertip. Put some bumpy, but invisible, texture on the screen, and we've finally graduated from Xerox PARC [wikipedia.org] into the 20th Century.

Hey Apple, can you finally redeem us from the nightmarish little box you cursed us with when you tempted us out of the terminal?

Mouse Gestures

[Romwell]

Just two words to save the mouse: Mouse Gestures. The author tells us how limited mouse is in terms "muscle memory", yet he doesn't know that mouse isn't only for clicking. Mouse gestures can, and are performed automatically from muscle memory. I've learned a copule for Opera, and then I had to LEARN to NOT APPLY mouse gesture (down-right) to close Explorer windows.

And so it goes

[djupedal]

The mouse is simply a proxy by which the user indicates choices. It was just a matter of time before the need for a proxy was removed completely. Touch screens accomplish this. Problem is, no one, clear good method of using touch as the primary input method has presented itself...until now.

What will become clear in time is the role the iPhone will play in the death of the mouse. The version of OS X on the iPhone, not Leopard by the way, is the next big thing - get on board now and enjoy the ride.

Re:Not having read TFA yet..

[dave420]

Do you mean a drop-down list instead of a pop-up? If so, you can use the keyboard to enter data into those (on Windows, anyway - OS X still has some problems with keyboard-accessible forms). They're usually accelerated by the keyboard, so when entering a date, you can type it in, and it'll select the one you type. A good feature on Windows (I know, oxymoron, emphasis on the moron, etc.) is in Explorer, instead of using the mouse to select a filename, you just type it in, and it'll select it.

Using the mouse is intrinsically slower than the keyboard, especially when you switch from one to the other. That's why I can't use OS X, even with the option enabled to use the keyboard for all parts of the GUI, as that still doesn't allow for properly keyboard-accessible use of the GUI.

Re:Using mouse hurts!!!

[jimstapleton]

I tried that, the pain it caused in my thumb was much worse than any write pain a mouse ever caused.

Re:Better Yet Would Be a List of Trade-Offs

[morgan_greywolf]

Now that's where I differ. Depending on the application, I may use the mouse or the keyboard more. If it's a more typing-oriented application (like a word processor, text editor, spreadsheet) than I'm more likely to use the keyboard shortcuts for things like Save, Copy, Paste... If it's a more visual-interface-oriented application (like, say Rosegarden, Blender, or Ardour), then I'm more likely to use the mouse.

In some applications, I take a hybrid approach. For example, when using Inkscape or Corel Draw (which have similar interfaces and shortcuts), I might click on an object, and then say, press Ctrl+D to duplicate. Or I might click on text and then hit Ctrl+T to bring up the text editing dialog.

I don't think that the author's interface has to be all or nothing ... it depends on the application. You can keep both methods and allow the user to turn off the toolbars, etc., while turning on the keyboard overlay for user that want that.

Re:Stop being such a geek

[kannibal_klown]

Yeesh.

Your post reads more sardonic than sarcastic, but I could be wrong.

There's a difference between holding your arm out in front of you and actually doing something with your arms. I've done the whole physical labor thing; working outside, using tools all day, and carrying heavy loads of crap around; it's not bad. But holding your arm straight out (or pivoted) is oddly draining in comparison. Personally I'd rather be a blacksmith than just hold my hand face-level for 8 hours.

As for the paper thing, I wasn't saying it was a bad thing but some people just wouldn't like it. At least w/ a vertical LCD it's easy to stare at it at 90 degrees, which makes the picture look correct. Flat against a desk, you'll be more inclined to look at it at an angle, which some (cheaper) LCDs have a problem with.

The guy has a point and a 1/2

[gurps_npc]

He basically has two ideas. One of which is BRILLIANT, the other is questionable.

Idea 1: Hide the non-essential icons/user interface tools behind a control key

That idea is brilliant in my opinion. Take the Internet Browser. When reading the pages on the internet you do NOT need the three or four or more menu bars. When you add in the file set, my links, the back etc., the address bar, and any google/yahoo/ etc. menu bar, that can add up to quite a lot of space not always neccessary. I have two hands, I see no reason why we can not implement his concept of HIDING that all away until you press the Control key.

Idea 2: Making all those controls key controlled. Now, I am in favor of more/better key commands. But honestly, I see no reason not to also button up those same commands. If we write "Alt-S: Save document" then why not draw a line around it and allow a mouse click as an alternate way to save the document.

Re:Better Yet Would Be a List of Trade-Offs

[ShieldW0lf]

The thing that the article doesn't appear to touch on, and the real reason for the fact that you can perform most actions using both a pointing device like a mouse and a button/chord device like a keyboard, is that the most time consuming part of operating a computer is switching back and forth between them.

If you really wanted to sit down and build yourself something that would be highly efficient, you'd use a chording keyboard on the one hand, a pointer with gesture support on the other hand, and never take your hands off either until you were ready to step away from your machine.

Having a trackball embedded into the lower section of the keyboard where you could manipulate it with either thumb without having to take your index fingers off the home row would be pretty efficient too. I'd buy one.

Re:Article Text

[Corporate Troll]

You can always get crap mice. Heck, ball-mice are still sold. My last Logitech mouse was around 20€, and that was one of the cheap ones. I know insane people (ehm, sorry, "Gamers") that shell out up to 100€ for a mouse.

Now, I do realise that Joe Sixpack won't shell out big money for his pointing devices, but he's hardly the person that optimizes his input-device usage. He's the person that (as described below in another post) clicks on a textfield, fills out the text, moves the mouse to click on another textfield.... all that instead of using tab.

The tablet prices I quoted came straight from Wacoms online shop. So, you don't even have to take my word for it.

Re:Using mouse hurts!!!

[zero_offset]

I've never understood the trackball crowd (and I tried one for awhile). Simply put: the way our thumbs work is very sub-optimal for pointing. It's also the reason most current game-console controllers suck so much. I still think one of the best mouse-replacements was the old IBM "eraser" thing between the TYGH keys...

Here is an even better design:

[master_p]

Just remove any options from the screen and put everything in the context menu.

You want to save? right-click on the document, save.

You want to change the color of the text? select the text, right-click, change the color.

You want to apply a new style? select the text, right-click, select style, apply.

You want to load another document? right-click on the MDI form empty space, select 'open' and load the document.

etc.

Re:We already tried that

[smellsofbikes]

>because no one wants to do that except geeks.

Where 'wants' == 'spends enough time using the tool to make learning the shortcuts worthwhile.'

Using a mouse is nice because someone who only uses the tool once a month, or who just started using it, can use it successfully and somewhat efficiently. However, people who use the program all the time, for hours a day, run into a whole other set of problems: their wrists hurt, and if they have keyboard shortcuts they learn to use them much more efficently than doing the same work with a mouse.

I think it's like learning to touch-type. Yeah, it's a big pain in the butt to memorize a keyboard and force the keybindings into your muscle memory, and a lot of people refuse to do it, but once you DO, it's much more efficient.

Now, it's entirely possible that anyone who uses programs enough to get to the point where learning and getting comfortable with keyboard shortcuts is, by virtue of that amount of use, defined as a geek. But I think that that's an effect, not a cause.

Re:Using mouse hurts!!!

[Dillon2112]

Meh, I use trackballs at all my workstations, but thumb-trackballs are no good, I agree. I use the Logitech Marble Mouse [logitech.com] on my laptop and at work, and the Logitech Cordless Trackman Optical [logitech.com] ($60) at my home workstation (KVM'd between Windows and Linux). Neither use the thumb for pointing, they use the pointer and middle finger for pointing, the thumb for clicking and the ring finger for right-click. They have solved all my RSI issues in short order.