Optical ADB mouse

posted Nov 27th 2005 11:00am by Eliot Phillips
filed under: macs hacks, peripherals hacks

adb optical

Here’s an easy hack compared to our usual craziness. Reader [Alex Dawson] was having issues with his Apple Pro Optical mouse. The new mouse had broken its USB cable connection internally due to insufficient strain relief. Cases for these mice are epoxied together and working on them is a one-way trip, never to return to their original state. He salvaged an ADB mouse and disassembled it with ease. The optical circuit board fit into the ADB case without any trouble. The button switch on both mice is exactly the same and almost in the same position. The optical sensor does not line up with the hole though. Once the ball ring was fused in place, Alex cut a new slot for the sensor. That’s all it took to end up with modern performance and old school flavor.

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Comments [15]

Reader Comments

off-topic but: di anyone notice that psp linux site is down?

Posted at 11:38 am on Nov 27th, 2005 by weirdguy

I was actually expecting to see an optical mouse with an ADB connection then :( Nevermind though, cool hack! :)

Also: Yes, I did notice that the PSP Linux site was down. How much progress was made? I started looking into them when buying my DS piqued my interest in the new portables.

Posted at 11:56 am on Nov 27th, 2005 by Wafermouse

I noticed the guy’s leg was in one of the shots. The real man’s workbench is his lap. :)

Posted at 12:28 pm on Nov 27th, 2005 by Matthew

“I noticed the guy’s leg was in one of the shots. The real man’s workbench is his lap. :)”

that makes using those pointy jeweler’s screwdrivers interesting. it’s a good thing he didn’t have to solder (ever get a big blob of molten solder on you?)

Posted at 3:03 pm on Nov 27th, 2005 by guy_incognito

actually, he did use a soldering iron; last sentence of paragraph 4.

But we all knew he was crazy to start with since he is using a mac…

Posted at 4:32 pm on Nov 27th, 2005 by rtfm

I did have to solder to fix the cable, but I did that at work on my office table :)

Posted at 6:29 pm on Nov 27th, 2005 by Alex Dawson

http://www.sewardweb.com/applepromouse/

I suppose he never saw that site

Posted at 6:36 pm on Nov 27th, 2005 by usbcd36

usbcd36: No, I saw it. That page’s instructions still require cutting the mouse open and not restoring it to its original condition afterwards.

Posted at 7:43 pm on Nov 27th, 2005 by Alex Dawson

there should be a hack-a-day how-to for complete beginners like me…like how to solder!

Posted at 8:40 pm on Nov 27th, 2005 by Derwin

A lot like my hack :-P
http://www.command-tab.com/index.php/apple-adb-mouse-conversion/

Some nice plastic drill work on the bottom of the case! Awesome job!

Posted at 10:09 pm on Nov 27th, 2005 by Collin

Cool Hack. It’s Nice to see some Mac hacks on the site!

Posted at 11:34 pm on Nov 27th, 2005 by Bradley

Heh that’s pretty neat, don’t see much mac stuff here, especially oldschool stuff like that!

Posted at 6:18 am on Nov 28th, 2005 by Quit Smoking

The plural for a computer mouse is “mouses” not “mice”.

Posted at 12:04 pm on Nov 28th, 2005 by dummy

No, I’m pretty sure it’s mice…

Makes me wonder if I really did get rid of those ADB mice I had lying around the house from my first Performa 6116CD. Picked up a ADB to USB adapter for old-school flavor without the hack, but where’s the fun in that? :D

Posted at 1:37 am on Dec 3rd, 2005 by coreycubed

really cool hack

i was thinkin about taking my color classic and taking out the monitor, putting an lcd in it and putting the guts of a power pc g3 in it, mainly cuz i have nothing better to do =P

Posted at 9:32 pm on Dec 5th, 2005 by qubits4

Optical ADB mouse

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