_______ __ _______
| | |.---.-..----.| |--..-----..----. | | |.-----..--.--.--..-----.
| || _ || __|| < | -__|| _| | || -__|| | | ||__ --|
|___|___||___._||____||__|__||_____||__| |__|____||_____||________||_____|
on Gopher (inofficial)
URI Visit Hacker News on the Web
COMMENT PAGE FOR:
URI CERN Animal Shelter for Computer Mice
b3lvedere wrote 1 hour 9 min ago:
Awesome site. Great pictures. It solved a very important logical
mystery for me: Where the front/mouth of a computer mouse is and if we
really cover its mouth with our filthy paws when we plug its long tail
into our computer when we are browsing cat video's. :)
Theodores wrote 52 min ago:
In the 1990s I needed my mum to check something on my dad's computer.
So I phoned her up and talked her through the arduous process of
turning on the computer and clicking on a few icons.
However...
This was going nowhere, and, after about half an hour of struggle, I
asked my mum which way the mouse was in her hand. She had the 'tail'
coming out the back, which made sense to her.
Before working this out I was wondering if the light from the window
was making it through the flimsy plastic of the mouse, to prevent the
sensors from working. Or maybe something else was plugged in, robbing
the MS-DOS PC of enough interrupts. Or maybe the ball was clogged
with cat hairs.
We got there in the end, however, it was a lesson in not jumping to
conclusions. I had just been temporarily defeated by my mother's lack
of computer literacy.
account42 wrote 1 hour 5 min ago:
Don't be fooled, the mouth is obviously the opening on the bottom
where the ball (tongue) sits, like a facehugger or headcrab.
b3lvedere wrote 1 hour 1 min ago:
Thanks for this insight.
Now i have new questions about how laser mice consume... :)
Findecanor wrote 1 hour 19 min ago:
Oh, some classic mice of a previous generation.
I can spot two three-button Logitech PilotMouse. It was OEM'ed for many
brands (SGI, DEC, ...) and also very common standalone.
The Sun mouse is probably an optical one made by Mouse Systems. I think
it is the one in the same style with ball that is rare.
yardie wrote 1 hour 45 min ago:
This is the Internet of whimsy I grew up with and I miss it constantly.
Thank you, poster.
whitehexagon wrote 1 hour 48 min ago:
Rock n roll. They are welcome to my brand new M100. She doesnt sit
level on my desk, and arrived with a squeaky scroll wheel.
I dread buying a new model of anything these days, knowing that the
MBAs will have found some way to shave a cent off a million units, or a
millionth of a meter from a poor mouse foot. But I guess I'll replace
her before there are only smart maice avAIlable.
Oh and CERN is an amazing place to visit if you ever get a chance.
Plan well ahead since I waited a long time for a visitor slot last time
I was in CH.
EbNar wrote 39 min ago:
> I dread buying a new model of anything these days, knowing that the
MBAs will have found some way to shave a cent off a million units, or
a millionth of a meter from a poor mouse foot.
So true... Generally speaking, quality of anything from a reputable
brand was taken as granted just a couple decades ago... Now, every
time I buy something there's some detail showing how the people in
charge wanted to save a few cents making it.
hn_throw_250915 wrote 14 min ago:
There was an article not too long ago about someone taking the old
thumb wheel Logitech mouse and upgrading its electronics by adding
a usb charging port and changing the switches used to make it
easier to press. My perspective is heavily skewed in saying this
but moving forward I foresee the ranks of people like that, as an
entity unto themselves whether a minority or not irrelevant,
upgrading and improving stock products for sake of durability,
usability and serviceability. That last one in particular Iâm
reminded of things like relays and door locks in washing machines
which are designed to last for approx. the duration of warranty,
but it can extend to many other things also. While this hacker
spirit has always been a thing, I suspect itâs been predominantly
concentrated in developing countries where incomes are too thin to
afford throwing things out, and so a repair may in fact fix a
blemish of the stock product and extend life as if it is an upgrade
unto itself. I think it will become more mainstream.
keiferski wrote 2 hours 15 min ago:
In high school twenty years ago, my IT class teacher told me that
technically speaking, a collection of computer mice of different styles
(that is, not all the same brand/shape/color/etc.) are actually called
mouses, not mice. I always thought he was joking, but apparently it
is/was considered correct at some point:
URI [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_mouse#Etymology
opminion wrote 1 hour 42 min ago:
Isn't it similar to fish vs fishes?
serpent wrote 34 min ago:
Or schemata/schemas, indices/indexes�
6LLvveMx2koXfwn wrote 2 hours 56 min ago:
Not sure the Panicking pick depicts panicking though
witnessme wrote 4 hours 1 min ago:
Oh CERN folks, you beautiful people
spiritplumber wrote 4 hours 44 min ago:
I miss the internet when it was like this.
FuriouslyAdrift wrote 1 hour 53 min ago:
Just keep hiting 'surprise me'
URI [1]: https://wiby.org/
b3lvedere wrote 1 hour 8 min ago:
Thanks!
TYPE_FASTER wrote 1 hour 22 min ago:
THANK YOU
I find this really cool for some reason.
edent wrote 2 hours 52 min ago:
It is still like this. You just have to drag yourself away from the
big sites and you will find all manner of weirdness.
junaru wrote 4 hours 55 min ago:
The site is so simple yet has so much soul - a part of internet lost.
Levitating wrote 3 hours 20 min ago:
not lost is it? this site is still up
I think things like these have just become harder to find. There are
some search engines which try to bring the "old" internet back to
life like Marginalia Search.
garbuhj wrote 1 hour 52 min ago:
OMG thanks for that! The Random site button at the top is glorious!
URI [1]: https://old-search.marginalia.nu/
tempodox wrote 5 hours 14 min ago:
I love that CERN has such a strong bond with their animals. They are
even monitoring the quantum entanglements of their sheep:
URI [1]: https://home.cern/news/news/cern/cern-scientists-find-evidence...
lokimedes wrote 4 hours 28 min ago:
And yet, not everything is so pretty at CERN.
Just consider their Large Hamster Collider!
Itâs a travesty, and last I head, they were colliding billions of
hamster per second. You also got to ask what they do with the
resulting elephants and whatnot coming out of those relativistic
collisions.
jacquesm wrote 1 hour 23 min ago:
Oh that's an easy one, they go to the Geneva Zoo and from there
they get trafficked all over the world. It's essentially
whitewashing of hamsters on an elephantine scale. We got one of
those here as well, it looks like the real deal from a distance but
up close the illusion falls apart. The thing that will get you is
all the little eyes staring at you and the incessant mewing sounds.
perihelions wrote 4 hours 59 min ago:
[1] ("CERN scientists find evidence of quantum entanglement in sheep
(home.cern)"; April 1, 2025)
URI [1]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43545349
EbNar wrote 8 hours 6 min ago:
The CERN Animal Shelter for Computer Mice is a non-profit organization
maintained by CERN staff during their leisure time...
MultifokalHirn wrote 7 hours 41 min ago:
Reminds me of the fact that what to past or future civilisations
perhaps looks dystopian or primitive, might just be jokes and a good
time
Mistletoe wrote 5 hours 22 min ago:
âThe scientists at the facility are believed to have worshipped
or made sacrifices of their computer mice, due to their primitive
mindsâ beliefs that it would affect the outcome of their
experiments.â
jacquesm wrote 1 hour 18 min ago:
Some SF author in Ancient Egypt seeing a hieroglyphic engraving
in the works: "hmmm... I wonder if I...".
URI [1]: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/helicopter-hieroglyp...
DIR <- back to front page