They have always pushed new innovations which is good and bad news. The good news is the quality, useful products get better and are stellar with buyers and the mediocre items go away (does anyone remember "plug and play"??). The bad news is that they are reaping lots of dollars, with lots of commas and zeros and that is what is driving the market. Years ago, a new invention was created out of need by someone with a little "want" and a lot of imagination. Now it is the other way around, the industry convinces you that you REALLY NEED THIS. Frankly, I wish I could never buy another phone or computer, that is a goal but not necessarily a reality.

Today's case in point is the lowly mouse pad. The industry feels the mouse has outlived its usefulness and it is time to bury the mouse in a pad like shroud.  Newer machines are driven mostly by a Touch Pad that takes some getting used to. I like my mouse and for now, I am not giving it up. If you feel the same way, here is my solution to the dirty, cruddy mouse - that does not clean up with soap. . . 

I experimented with a number of things including different fabrics and was surprised that almost every fabric I have laying around responded to the actions of my mouse.  My mouse is cordless and optical which is just about the standard right now. But even an old mouse works on fabric. The exception would be things like a glass coffee table or some see-through fabric, the mouse would likely be unable to read that you are moving it.

After reviewing the fabric, I thought about embroidering something on the fabric (which is going to be a cover for the original pad). I had several options:

 Here is a mock up of one of the ideas I have.  It is not necessary to cover the entire surface of the pad with stitches, just a little something in any corner is great. Another idea is to use a very simple design such as an outline of an apple or a frame for around the pad.