I needed another corded mouse and this time around I thought of @PKL@mastodon.social and @pronk@mastodon.social instead of Logitech’s shareholders. These guys make open source mice among other open source hardware under the brand Ploopy. You can order one from them, assembled or as a kit, or you could print and build it entirely by yourself.
The mouse itself is pretty great. Coming from a long line of Logitech (MX518/G5/G500/G502), it’s a bit larger than what I’m used to but I think I’m getting accustomed to it.
Here’s another shot of it:
This stuff is nice. Are there any plans for a vertical mouse for those of us with cranky old man wrists?
Does anyone remember the Microsoft Sidewinder X8 mouse? It had vertical thumb buttons instead of horizontal, and I loved that layout, but it’s literally the only mouse I’ve ever seen like it. But now that I know there’s open source mice out there, I might have to mess around and learn CAD so I can alter one of these mice to have vertical thumb buttons
I had the sidewinder keyboard with magnetic numpad that worked on either side. Loved that thing. Used the R.A.T. 7 Mouse
though, fucking amazing. Best thing mad catz ever put out.
I want an open source mouse with electromagnetic resistance wheel like one in Logitech MX Master 3S.
Might not be too difficult to achieve by connecting a small electric motor to the scroll wheel axle. Then you could vary the resistance by changing a pot hooked the motor’s terminals.
3D printed stuff looks so uncomfortable to hold.
Isn’t there severe issues with micro plastics doing this? Serious question. I’ve just heard in general on 3d prints that they’re more prone to shedding.
I would literally eat a spoon of microplastics if it meant I got a mouse that was comparable to my G602. Not saying this mouse does that but there certainly aren’t any commercial options I could find.
need to take it real old, print it in abs and do a vapor smoothing in acetone.
You could also print this in a goo printer and not have the issue.
Interesting. I always wondered if the same rule applied to the ‘goo’ type as my friend has one.
If you do the smoothing steps it can be OK, especially if you sand it in a sealed environment or with a HEPA vacuum handy to suck up all of the particulates. Once it is sanded you can do a short acetone treatment and the surface will be melted smooth. It can take some practice, but you can seal it up pretty well without sacrificing quality. Just be mindful of air quality and filtering at each step so you don’t undermine your goal.
Also, no matter what the microplastic impact on the environment is less than a mouse made in a factory thar doesn’t pay attention to any of its air quality standards.
Gotcha. Thanks for the type up!
This is pretty cool. I make and 3d print pieces for my G502 to make it fit better for my hand/nubs. This seems like it has a lot of potential to design something better for me. That price is steep though but being disabled that’s nothing new to me.
I’m waiting for my MX to die to get one! I really like the idea of open hardware and this looks like a good mouse.
I am also a big fan of the MX518 lineage mice, so I hope someone make a version that has that shape. When Logitech released an updated MX518 several years back I bought a couple of them, so I will be good for years hopefully.
Ew
Those layer lines look like a perfect place for all sorts of shit to gather and stick to.
If one has sweaty hands - stay away from 3D-printed / soft plastic shell mice.
I couldn’t agree more. I also hate when mice or keyboards can not be easily disassembled to be properly cleaned. In this case I guess it’s a matter of printing precision and/or material (don’t have my own printing experience, so maybe somebody else can comment on it)
Many people will say “just sand it down”. But the extruder-printed plastic is still going to be porous as heck. A perfect place for germs.
Personally, I’d use the 3D model to create a negative mold of sorts, and then cast it out of something more human-friendly. But I haven’t looked at the complexity of this model, this would have to be designed accordingly.
Your mold idea makes me wonder if cast aluminum could be practical for a shell for this.
How do you usually do that?
Do you create a negative of the model digitally or take a mold of the printed parts?
What kinds of human-friendly materials do you use? And do you need any special equipment for it?
The adult toys community would have some guides. You print the object, cast the mold around it and then fill the void with silicone afaik.
I’ve been using this mouse for almost a year now. No complaints.
Super cool and I totally see the appeal, but at nearly 3x the price of my Logitech g502 for a 3d printed mouse with a technically inferior sensor, it’s a big ask.
I hope someone makes something like this that looks just like IO1.1
Now do printers.
I often wonder how difficult it would be to create an aftermarket control board for existing printers.
pretty stupid that we can print in 3 dimensions well, while 2-dimension remains locked behind capitalism.
I have written a more detailed comment on it before, but 2d printing is much more technically complicated than 3D printing, and the resolution is literally an order of magnitude difference (0.2mm vs <42um) and the printer has to print full color on any surface with microdots in a very very short time. People would throw the printer out if it took 10 minutes for a single paper like a large first layer takes in 3D printing.
We were ok with dot matrix printers. We are and will be ok with black and white prints. Open Source community will be ok with a slow and ugly print. The company just need to allow their monopoly to be broken. I don’t think they will.
Yes please!
