Before the mouse, there was the trackball. Built for DATAR in 1952, DATAR turned out to be a complete failure. The next user interface device that used a ball was the mouse at Xeroc Parc in 1972. Trackballs are a dying breed of interface devices. But sometimes a trackball just seems more natural choice for certain applications - not so obvious for others. Would you sit on one?
posted by bigmusic on Jun 17, 2009 - 65 comments

Xenon-gas-ignited, high-intensity-discharge (HID) headlights for cars have stired up some controversy, but should they be banned? I wouldn't mind one bit if they were outlawed!
posted by Sal Amander on Jun 7, 2001 - 19 comments