At the last meeting I reported my problems with jumpy optical mice. I had similar problems with five mice made by Logitech, Microsoft, and a generic manufacturer. Every few minutes, the mice would cause the cursor to jump unpredictably to the top or bottom of the screen. The cursor would then have to be dragged back to the working area. An old fashioned ball mouse had no such problems although ball mice have their own annoying deficiencies.
On the advice of one of the members, I tried a laser mouse. I bought a Logitech MX400 Performance Laser Mouse for about $50. It solved my problems. It gives smooth and reliable response. I had previously thought that the word "laser" in mouse descriptions was just advertising hype and provided no actual advantage over an optical mouse.
Thank you to whoever it was that made that suggestion.
Daniel Salomon