Mouse for a lefty?

Question

As a programmer, I'm fairly particular about my keyboard and mouse. One thing I've only recently noticed is that the mice I tend to prefer don't work well for my five-year-old. He's left-handed, but ends up mousing with his right hand on the computer because (a) that's where the mouse is, and (b) most mice are designed for right-handed people anyway.

So, a couple of questions:

• If you're left-handed and you mouse with your left hand, do you have any recommendations on good mice?

• If you have a lefty in your household (whether or not it's you), is there an easy way to swap settings between left-handed and right-handed mouse buttons? One way is Control Panel > Mouse > Check the box on the first tab > OK. Do you know of anything faster? Or, better yet, what I'd really like is a way to reverse those settings on only one particular mouse, which would be designated as my son's mouse.

Answer 1

Don't do it.

I am left handed and I would highly, highly, highly recommend continuing to use the mouse in a right-handed configuration. The short period of awkwardness he experiences now will be nothing compared to a lifetime of never being able to effectively use anyone else's computer without significant re-configuration.

As others have pointed out, ergonomic mice are almost universally configured for right-handed people. I work with several left-handed people (including myself) and have not experienced any loss of dexterity once I became accustomed to using my computer the "normal", mainstream way.

Computers are often shared. Computers in school. Computer terminals on the job site. Friends. What is he going to do when he is older and his brain is hard-wired to use only the custom computer setup his dad built for him? His brain is much more flexible now and he will learn quickly. Don't disadvantage him so early on.

Answer 2

Being left-handed myself here is my insight.

I prefer to use the mouse with my right hand leaving my left hand free to write notes, draw, etc. I know of many right handed people who mouse with their left hand to achieve the same setup.

If your son would prefer to use the mouse with there are some good options. The Logitech Wave is the standard here at work for both right and left-handers as the mouse body is symmetrical. If you look through the mouse product list on their website you will see a lot of options that are symmetrical. An example of something to avoid would be the Performance Mouse MX also by Logitech, or a lot of the Microsoft mice, such as the Mobile Memory Mouse which are designed for right-handed people.

My other suggestion would be to avoid switching the mouse buttons so that when he has to use computers in school he can simply move the mouse to the left side without having to go into the various settings to swap the buttons.

Answer 3

Please don't teach your kids to use the mouse right handed only. I use mine left handed and when we first had a computer the mouse was on the right side of the keyboard and I still used it with my left hand. I don't think I would have been able to do my photoshop work if I only used my mouse with my rather uncoordinated right hand. Right hand mousing is fine for web browsing but not for precision work.

My advise would be to teach your child to use the mouse with both hands. That way they are prepared for everything. Also, a 5 year old with an ergonomic big mouse isn't that ergonomical at all as it doesn't fit in their hands yet. Get a small laptop mouse that fits much better in their little hands.

Answer 4

You should use a left-handed mouse, like the Logitech MX 610 Left-Hand Cordless Laser Mouse (if you still can find it).

According to an answer on this thread:

I have both a right handed and a Logitech left-handed mouse installed. The left-handed mouse is automatically configured backwards. When you use it, the buttons are reversed, so that it operates correctly. No mucking with control panel is required!

This is different, and better, than having to switch the handedness of the mouse with a hotkey, as suggested here, although it could be a solution if you don't find a left-handed mouse.

Recently, Razor has released a gaming mouse for lefties: the Razer DeathAdder Left Hand Edition.

Answer 5

AFAIK the only normal left handed ergonomic mouse is the Logitech MX610 left handed model. There are some companies selling corded non-ergonomic mice with mirrored buttons in hardware but they're all priced at gratuitous markups while Logitech only charges a very small premium on their left handed mouse.

AFAIK there isn't a way to tell one mouse from another in windows; so your only option would be to do it in hardware.

Answer 6

Mice shaped to fit a left hand tend to be hard to come by.

I'm right handed but use a mouse with my left at work to avoid straining my right arm. I use a mouse right handed at home. But I don't swap the buttons over so I left click with my second finger and right click with my index.

Therefore I look for symmetrical mice. The one I'm using at the moment isn't ideal as it's a little small for me. My ideal mouse would be something like the Microsoft Wireless Laser 5000 mouse as it is symmetrical and large enough for me. You might want something smaller for a 5 year old though.

If you set your son up with his own user account (which you should do anyway) you'll be able to set the mouse buttons up for a left handed person just for that account.

Answer 7

I'm right-handed but use my mouse with my left hand most of the time. I haven't switched the buttons or anything. I find it equally easy to use on the left. I would say get used to using it on the opposite side of your normal hand just so you can.

Answer 8

I use MS intellimouse optical left handed at work and right handed at home. Takes a little bit of effort to get effective with both but it spreads the RSI nicely!

Answer 9

I right-handed, but know left-handed man who only place mouse on left but not switch mouse buttons function.

Any symmetric design mouse suitable for left-handed.

Answer 10

I am a fan of using mice that work boths ways. Some days I just get fatigued mousing with my right hand all the time.

For my kids I have found the VX Nano mouse is perfect. It is small, wireless and will work both ways.