Mouse Maintenance By Robert Morris Do you feel like beating your mouse against the desk instead of moving it gracefully along its own personalized pad? When your mouse starts skipping, operating erratically, or not at all, it's time to take action. The first step to restore some semblance of normalcy is to clean the mouse as outlined below. You can clean the ball and the rollers the ball contacts inside the well in which the ball resides with some denatured alcohol and cotton swabs. Be advised this may not help, as dirt on the ball is only part of the problem. The rest of the problem is inside the mouse, behind the covers that warn you will void your warranty if you mess with it. If your mouse is out of warranty, or you're in a pinch (. . .ever try to use Windows without a mouse?) and have to get back to work, then use this procedure to restore your mouse. CAUTION: DENATURED ALCOHOL IS EXTREMELY FLAMMABLE AND HIGHLY POISONOUS. DO NOT USE NEAR FIRE, FLAME, OR WHILE SMOKING. USE ALL PRECAUTIONS NECESSARY TO ENSURE THE SAFETY OF YOURSELF AND OTHERS. STORE UNUSED PORTION IN ITS ORIGINAL TIGHTLY-CAPPED CONTAINER AWAY FROM PETS AND CHILDREN (U.S. AIR FORCE). First step - find some denatured alcohol, some clean cotton swabs, and a clean, dry lint-free rag. Then, after disconnecting the mouse from the computer, roll the little fella over so you can inspect his belly. You will probably find a circular locking plate holding the ball in place. This plate can usually be removed by either sliding it toward one end, or rotating it either left or right until the lock is opened. When this retaining plate is loose, cup your hand over the plate, roll your hand and the mouse over, and the plate and ball will drop into your palm. Use the alcohol and swabs to thoroughly clean the ball of dirt, grease and whatever else (coffee, soda, mayonnaise and mustard) that your mouse has ingested. Use some alcohol on a swab to clean the little plastic rollers inside the ball well. Be gentle here. If you use too much pressure, you won't need the rest of these cleaning procedures, just the recommendation for a new mouse. Be sure to rotate the rollers to clean its entire contact surface. After you have cleaned the ball and the rollers, you need to use the lint-free rag to wipe the residue of the alcohol from all surfaces. This is the part where most people will try to cut corners. It is not the hardest part of the procedure, but very a necessary one. After you have finished buffing the residue off the ball and the rollers, drop the ball back into its well and replace the retaining plate. Reconnect the plug to the computer, and test your work. You should notice a considerable improvement in the operation. Part of the problem with mice is an inherent design deficiency. The ball rolls on a dirty desk or mouse pad, picking up dust and dirt mixed with skin oils, smokers residue (of course, not in the Pentagon), coffee, tea, and whatever else you have consumed at your desk. As the ball rolls, it can throw these minute particles past the rollers that contact the ball, up inside the body of the mouse. Here it can stick to the thin Mylar disks that have concentric copper rings plated onto them. These copper rings contact minute spring fingers. When dust and dirt lodge between the tiny fingers and the concentric rings, your mouse won't work. No cause for alarm. If you are even minimally mechanically inclined, you can successfully perform open mouse surgery. WARNING: If your mouse is still under warranty, you will probably void that warranty by peeling or removing the label. As before, remove the mouse from the computer, and the ball from the mouse. Now inspect the belly to find the small screws or plastic locking clips that hold the top of your mouse (the part with the buttons) to the bottom of the mouse. If you don't find them exposed, you may have to remove a label. If you still have it, check the documentation which came with your mouse to see if any cleaning or disassembly instructions were included. OK - now that you are inside the mouse - You should find two thin circular disks mounted on shafts connected to the rollers that protrude into the ball well. On one side of each disk are plated copper rings that contact up to four tiny springs. Don't try to move the springs or bend them to increase pressure. As a matter of safety, try not to touch them, either. Changing the pressure of one spring affects the pressure of the others. If all springs don't contact the rings with the same pressure, your mouse will probably not work correctly again! Tilt your mouse so that you can put a drop of alcohol on one of the disks, then spin the disk by turning the roller in the ball well. This will distribute the alcohol under the spring contacts. Roll the rollers in both directions to clear any dust or particles of dirt that may be trapped under the springs. Now, while the alcohol is still wet , very gently clean the alcohol from the disk with a cotton swab. Do not use much pressure that will cause the disk to flex. After you have removed the alcohol, use a clean (emphasize clean) dry swab to remove as much of the alcohol residue from the disk as possible, spinning the roller to reach all of the areas covered with copper. Again, use a very light touch, and avoid touching the springs! When the first disk is clean, repeat all steps for the other disk. Don't forget the precautions! After you have finished cleaning, inspect the disks thoroughly, checking for a warped disk, bent springs, bits of lint from the cotton swab, etc. When you're satisfied that all is well, reassemble the mouse, reversing whatever steps were required to open the little rascal. You're almost finished - but not quite. Before you go slamming your newly cleaned mouse down for a test run, take a close look at the mouse pad. Would you let your kids play on a carpet that dirty? I think not! Take that scuzzy thing to the sink and wash it thoroughly with a mild detergent and warm water, be certain to rinse it thoroughly (soap left in the pad will attract moisture which will trap dust and dirt that your mouse can pick up). After it's dry, you're ready to check your refurbished mouse.