Gulliver. (computer mouse) (Hardware Review) (Evaluation)
by J. Blake Lambert

If you need a small nimble mouse for use on the road with a laptop or on a clutered dwsk, Gulliver could be for you. It's an unusual but interesting half-size mouse with some nice software driver options.

Gulliver is about half as long as most mice, and a little slimmer and lower. The far edge slopes away like a sports car hood with the primary button across the front edge, a secondary one just behind it, and a small turbo button father back (it's a gain button that toggles the mouse's speed).

The software driver for Windows includes a couple of nice touches: You can swap the primary and secondary buttons, and you can turn the mouse upside down and use it as a hand-held minitrackball. With the buttons on the bottom, though, clicking in trackball mode is a drag. Another feature lets you reprogram "north" so that you can hold the mouse at any angle that's comfortable.

The mouse has a short cable for use with a laptop; it also includes a long extension cable, a mouse-port converter plug, and a small soft sided case. The Gulliver package includes a no-sound version of Animated Desktop, a program for creating and installing regular or animated icons and cursors.

Gulliver doesn't work well on very slick surfaces, but it works fine on others, including wood and fabric--even your pants leg. The mouse tips forward if you press on the front button too hard. The cable could stand to be a bit more flexible, and double-clicking is tricky sometimes. The manual is a bit too brief and could be improved with additional illustrative graphics.

In spite of these small objections, the Gulliver mouse is nice once you adjust to it. You might find that Gulliver makes your ergonomic mouse seem like a heavy old clunker.