CMD SmartMouse Review by Mike Riccobono Creative Micro Designs is the major supplier of new hardware for our C64 & 128 computers. While CMD's SmartMouse is not a new product, having been produced for several years, it is remarkable enough to justify this review. First of all, what makes SmartMouse so "smart" anyway? SmartMouse is not just an input device, it can tell time. With it's built-in battery-backed RTC, (real time clock), SmartMouse allows GEOS to display the connect time and date on the deskTop. These are also "stamped" onto data files each time the file is saved. You can view the Last Modified time and date by choosing file from the Command Menu on the top of the deskTop, then info. Before SmartMouse, most GEOS aficionados used either a Commodore 1350 or 1351. The 1350 was not a true mouse, but actually a rolling joystick of sorts. It cannot keep track of distance like a real, proportional mouse. While the 1351 was a true proportional mouse, it is somewhat cumbersome both in size and in use. SmartMouse is smaller and more stylish, making your Commodore very comfortable to use, and looking much more up to date. You can put SmartMouse into Joystick Emulation Mode by holding down the left button while turning on your computer, for use with programs that require a joystick. SmartMouse has three buttons, all three used by GEOS. The left button functions as you might expect. You use it to click on the icon or menu item you wish to select. Many other programs besides GEOS make use of the left button. The right button is very handy, because it gives a "double click", which GEOS requires to load an application. You no longer have to "click the left button twice in rapid succession" to boot your programs. The center button is also a great GEOS convenience. This is your "Turbo" button. It doubles the distance SmartMouse physically travels, making your pointer (or cursor) very speedy indeed! Press the center button to move your pointer great distances across the screen, then release it for precise placement of the pointer. Left-handed users can reverse the right and left buttons' functions by altering jumpers on SmartMouse's internal circuit board. You can have CMD perform this modification if you're unsure of doing this yourself. SmartMouse comes with a Utilities Disk, with Smart-Tools for setting the RTC, and AutoSmartTime, for updating the GEOS clock. Also included is GEOS 64 and 128 mouse input drivers, as well as programming modules for use by developers of new software. For GEOS non-users, RUN Paint is included on the disk. This is a great multi-featured paint program originally from RUN magazine. The only negative thing I could find about my SmartMouse is the rather short (42") cable attached to mine. The cable is just a little too short to run behind my desk and down to my keyboard drawer. A DB9 Male/Female "extension cord" is the quick fix for this problem. CMD includes a detailed User Guide with SmartMouse, with instructions for programmers, and a 90 day limited warranty. Some may consider the $49.95 price tag a bit steep, but when you consider that Commodore hardware is usually produced in low numbers, and also what goes into the SmartMouse, it's really a bargain. I recommend SmartMouse for all GEOS users, and anyone who uses software that allows usage of a 1351-type mouse. (From The First Byte, December 1998 via Keywords (Commodore Users Group of St. Louis), August 1999, via the Commodore Information Center, http://home.att.net/~rmestel/commodore.html)