Of men and mice

Tired of holding your mouse down? Gentler alternatives...

If you are used to gripping a mouse with your palm facing down, you may like to know that there are alternatives.

The Evoluent Vertical mouse 2, for instance, has a patented shape which supports your hand in a relaxed handshake position. It also eliminates unnatural forearm twisting "" a potential factor in carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) and other mouse-related injuries.

You may hold this mouse just as you do your ordinary mouse, albeit sideways. Evoluent believes the palm facing down position is an unnatural, twisted and tense position for your arm. Sooner or later, you'll feel uncomfortable.

It's hi-tech too, so your cubicle neighbour won't laugh. Its 1,200-dpi optical resolution sensor helps in better tracking. It has five buttons, four of which are programmable with 59 functions "" each with Windows driver, plus special features such as vertical scroll, auto click and click lock. The vertical mouse sells for around $60 in the US, and you get both left and right-handed versions.

If you find your grip a little too tight still, then there is also an AirO2bic grip-less mouse. Pronounced "aerobic", it claims it can prevent and even remedy CTS.

The gadget's shape lets you rest your hand on the base so you don't have to hold anything. It comes with an optical sensor and clickless software, though for hefty $100 apiece, this thing had better sing and dance too.