Posted by Bart on 30, 2000 at 11:48 PM:
In Reply to: Re: Optical Mouse w/ trackball? anyone try it yet? posted by itchy on 30, 2000 at 9:11 PM:
Actually, they are just a sensor pointed out the bottom of the mouse (no ball needed). It works by sensing the pattern on the surface you are using it on. If you have a patternless surface (like a solid color trackball), it would probably pick up no movement. I have heard that they don't work well on glass either.
While it doesn't have an encoder wheel, the principle is still the same. Instead of "seeing" the teeth on the wheel, it "sees" changes in the pattern of the surface that you are using.
: Dont these only work with the ball that they have installed? I thought they worked by bouncing light off of the ball to sense movement. I would be worried a hack would not work properly =/