The Mouse from Never-Neverland

[MacUser_Since_1986]

This story is bizarre...

The better part of a decade ago, I purchased a Kensington PocketMouse Pro (model #72116) for an iBook. This mouse had a compact shape, built for travel with a laptop, but it was USB. (Pre-Bluetooth; this mouse had a small, thin, retractable USB cable that could be stored in a snap-shut pocket on the side of the mouse.)

For years, this mouse served reliably in concert with its Kensington Mouseworks software. The mouse had an LED optical tracking mechanism, scroll wheel, and left and right clicking buttons. Kensington didn't update the driver software often, but they did supply a driver so faithfully that it was easy to take for granted.

Recently, I bought a refurbished late-2012 iMac after my aged MacBook Pro died on my suddenly. I love the iMac, but a mishap while running Setup Assistant revealed a problem. While copying the user folders of my dead MacBook Pro's extracted hard disk, the computer tried to go to sleep and the Apple-issue Bluetooth keyboard and mouse would not respond. I was really bummed by this, even though I did eventually get the Setup Assistant to finish the job.

The real shocker was when I got the bright idea to plug-in a mint-condition white Apple Extended Keyboard and the Kensington PocketMouse Pro. The keyboard worked just fine. The Kensington... not so much. The Kensington would point okay, and it would right-click to give me contextual menus, but it would not left-click. It simply would not do it. No matter how many times I would left-click on something, the iMac acted as if there was nothing happening.

I contacted Kensington technical support, and, of course, the other shoe has dropped:

[mooblie]

I would suspect that, if it's an old mouse, the left-click microswitch (which gets heaviest use) has failed. Contacts finally corroded with age? Or the metal flexing/snapping parts aren't flexing/snapping as they should?

Not a driver, nor OSX, issue. You shouldn't need drivers for a USB mouse anyway.

Or does the left-click work with the mouse in another PC? (which shoots my theory down in flames!)
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Martin at HeadSpin HD now on Blu-ray

[MacUser_Since_1986]

I'm sorry to say but so far it doesn't look good for the PocketMouse Pro.

I took the Kensington to another machine (white Macbook running MacOS 10.6. and plugged it in. Pointer works. Right-click works. Left-click non-responsive.

Oh, well.

Can anyone recommend a good-quality USB mouse at a bargain price?

I just want it in case there's ever a problem with the Bluetooth mouse. I don't want to get caught without it.

[Smithcraft]

If you just need an emergency use mouse, then any generic $10 mouse at Staples/Office Depot/Frys/Amazon should do you.

SC
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Grumpy old man of computing.

[Desktop] G4 mini - 1.5Ghz 1GB 80GB HDD - Newer miniStack v2 500GB - 10.5.8

[Media System] Intel i5 mini - 2.33Ghz 8GB 500GB HDD - 4 x Hitachi 2TB HDD in a qBOX-SF - 10.7.5 (Thanks Phil!)

Make sure it has pins!