Mouse vs. Keyboard
D1322318589
Astevie
#Perhaps the most common frustration experienced by Unix users when
#trying Plan 9 is that they have to use the mouse more.
#
#The most common complaint is that using the mouse is slow compared
#with cursoring around, whether via arrow keys or via hjkl (in vi,
#etc.). This simply isn't true. The mouse seems slow but is actually
#faster:
#
# *	[http://www.asktog.com/TOI/toi06KeyboardVMouse1.html]
# *	[http://www.asktog.com/TOI/toi22KeyboardVMouse2.html]
# *	[http://www.asktog.com/SunWorldColumns/S02KeyboardVMouse3.html]
#
#The basic summary is cursoring around required a higher level of
#mental planning to organize the interaction, which apparently
#obscures the perception of the passage of time--think of being
#deeply engaged in something and being surprised when you look at a
#clock-- whereas the use of the mouse was done at a lower, mechanical
#level that left the mind free for higher things, such as complaining
#about the mouse.
#
#One common complaint is that moving your hand from keyboard to mouse
#and back takes time and interrupts typing. This is true, but it
#doesn't take as much time as you think. Especially if you're using a
#keyboard without a numeric keypad, the mouse can be close by. With
#or without a keypad, eventually you get to the point where you don't
#need to look for the mouse. Your hand always leaves it in the same
#general place and automatically goes there, often in preparation for
#a mouse operation while the other hand is still typing.
#
#It is true that it is slower to use the mouse for, say, deleting a
#tab from the beginning of every line than it is to use the keyboard
#and type "^xjxjxjxjxjxjxjxjxjxjxjxjxj" in vi. But at that point
#you're basically programming the editor (with a manually unrolled
#for loop) more than actually editing.
#
#When the mouse is properly accelerated, many of us find that it's
#faster and easier to highlight the lines in question and then type
#and execute Edit s/^<tab>//g in acme or just type s/^<tab>//g in
#sam's command window. This is such a common operation that acme
#provides two shell scripts so you can leave |unind and |ind in the
#tag of your window and click on them whenever you want.
#
#Notice the difference between acme or sam and (say) vi in running
#editor commands like search and replace. In acme you can just
#highlight the section you want, type the command, and you're done.
#In vi, you have to cursor to one end, mark it, cursor to the other
#end, and finally type the command. The cursoring takes much longer
#than the mouse. Time yourself.
#
#In the experience of many Plan 9 users, using the mouse in Plan 9
#for an extended period of time and then going back to using vi in
#Unix highlights the amount of time you spend watching the screen as
#you cursor around with hjkl. Having broken out of the hypnosis that
#Tog describes, I just get frustrated beyond belief. Yes, I am
#watching the cursor move so I should be occupied, but all I can
#think is ``damnit, if I could just click where I want to go I'd be
#there by now.''
#
#Another point in favor of the mouse is that it is more expressive.
#Notice how the scroll bars work in the Plan 9 text buffers: left or
#right clicking to scroll moves the window proportionally to where
#you are in the scroll bar. It would be much harder to do this in a
#cursor-based system. Cutting and pasting in acme and rio via mouse
#chording is much faster than the equivalent in cursor-based systems,
#especially if you are moving blocks that aren't line-aligned. Time
#yourself.
#
#It's important to have a good mouse, of course. It needs three real
#buttons, not two button with an intelliwheel in the middle. Plan 9
#makes too much use of the middle button for the wheel to suffice.
#You'll just get RSI in whatever finger you use to click the wheel.
#Logitech makes good three-button mice. Most people seem to prefer
#the triangle-shaped ones over the oval ones. They used to sell for
#$50 apiece. Now you can usually find them for $5-$10 on Ebay.
#
#The most important point is that you need to try using the mouse for
#a week or two before you complain about it. You'll probably end up
#agreeing with us.
#
#You feel more efficient using emacs et al. because you're always
#doing higher level cognition, while acme and sam might feel slower
#since you're acting instinctually but you're actually moving faster.
#
#When one makes a mistake in a search string, in emacs one uses ctl-S
#and ctl-R, it's a pain to correct the mistake; the "Look" command in
#acme allows you to just edit the tag and rerun the search.
#
#SUGGESTED MICE
#
#The following is a list of mice that users have reported to work
#well with Plan 9:
#
# *	[IBM/Lenovo Scrollpoint Mouse (31P7405) |
#	http://support.lenovo.com/en_US/product-and-parts/detail.page?&LegacyDocID=MIGR-43954]
# *	[HP USB Optical 3-button Mouse |
#	http://h30094.www3.hp.com/product.asp?sku=2545791]
# *	[Logitech Scrollpoint 3-button Mouse (M-S35) |
#	http://www.tcocd.de/Pictures/Peripheral/Logitech/ms35_de.shtml]
#
#(updates to this list are welcome!)
#
#------------------------------------------------------ 
#Note: This is an informative page for new users, not a place for
#religious flamewars, if someone wants to discus the issue please
#create a discusion page about it instead of mangling the text in
#this page. Thanks.
#
#This page needs much clean up, feel free to help with it.
#