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For decades I've struggled with various wired versions which inevitably fail within a year or so, suffering from broken wires in the cord that attaches them to my PC.

It seems that the constant flexing just causes fatigue that eventually results in the mice becoming intermittent and then finally dying.

So now I have a little box of broken mice -- some more broken than others, mainly because they've been hurled across the room and smashed into a hundred pieces as they hit the wall. Trying to use an intermittently operative mouse when working to a deadline will drive one to such acts of violence occasionally.

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The other problem with my wired mice was that they relied on a mechanical ball and rollers to translate movement into an electrical signal.

This simple arrangement works well, most of the time. However, there are occasions when a little bit of flotsam sticks to the ball and movement in one axis becomes decidedly erratic.

Despite using a mousepad and keeping my desk scrupulously clean, this problem seemed to arise with monotonous regularity, perhaps a result of using the cheapest mice I could. These mice inevitably have very lightweight balls (unlike my trusty old Microsoft Mouse) that prefer to slide rather than roll when encountering even the smallest foreign body on the mousepad.

But my new mouse is not only wireless but also optical -- and that's great.

Now I can cruise all over my desk (and even the walls, floor or ceiling if I felt so inclined) without worrying about intermittent wiring or skidding balls -- it's bliss I tell you!

I guess many other people already use wireless optical mice and are saying "what's the big deal" - but I have to say that this device is the best investment I've made in computer technology for years and I'm kicking myself that I didn't get one ages ago.

In the wake of this purchase, I've been wondering what other little bits of technology could be considered as *great*, as opposed to just "good" or "okay".

I have to admit that I've not bought a lot of new gizmos in the past couple of years (for obvious reasons) but I still wonder if most of the hi-tech things we spend our money on fail to make the *great* category.

So I'm asking readers (that's you!) to divulge exactly what is the best bit of technology you've spent money on in the past couple of years -- and why is it so good?

I expect many will say it's their iPod but maybe there are a few surprises that we should all know about.

Lighten Up
Time for some blatant self-promotion this time. Most readers will have seen me being a lunatic and rocketing along on my jetkart. Well that's *nothing* compared to what I've been doing recently or will be doing in the coming months.

For a bit of insight, take a look at my InterestingProjects website.

Am I crazy or what?

Aardvark Forums
The forums are back up at: www.aardvarkforums.co.nz/forums, have your say on today's column

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