Mighty Mouse problem

Does anybody else have this - you can scroll up but not down. I understand that the solution is to thoroughly clean it which I have tried but it is still an intermittent problem. Short of scrubbing it in hot soapy water, I can't think what to try next.

Any ideas?

Turn the mouse upside down and rub the scroll ball fairly hard, back and forth and in circles, on a piece of plain paper. Always works for me.

It does seem to be a design problem with the Mighty Mouse. Googling "mighty mouse scroll problem" will give a huge number of solutions (indicative of the size of the problem). Try them one-by one and one will eventually work, though it's probably best to avoid dismantling the beast if possible. I've yet to find a permanent solution (other than using a different mouse).

The price you pay for "style over substance", I'm afraid.

Since the above solution seems to work better than any sort of cleaning the scroll ball, when it stops scrolling down, maybe once in three months or so, maybe it's more to do with the pressure applied by rolling across the paper.

Edited by s_h (Wed 07-Jan-09 15:29:01)

If I remember from the last time I had this problem, your solution does seem to be the most effective one (although it doesn't seem to work for everyone). As you suggest (I think) you do have to be fairly physical when doing the cleaning. Damping the ball slightly before the cleaning can also help.

The other oft-quoted solution - feeding a thin strip of paper under the ball - can also be effective, but it's very fiddly to do.

What I meant to suggest is that it may not be a cleaning issue. Rolling the scroll ball with pressure on it may be solving the problem.

I see what you mean. I was under the impression that doing that was still cleaning something - the ball or the roller.

I honestly think the mighty mouse would be better with a more conventional scrolling device. That little ball does seem to cause a heap of problems.

This is the only problem I've encountered in three years of this mouse, and it's a quick and simple solution.

Thanks Sarah for a possible solution.

I asked for a possible solution, not what your thoughts on design might be.

Buy one, get one free.

When I have this problem I put a very small quantity of surgical spirit on a soft cloth and rub the ball with the cloth whilst holding the mouse upside down. This will remove the grease from one's finger from the ball and has always solved the problem.

Yes, I have thought about that. I need to go and buy some. Thanks.

Thanks again. I just remembered that I had a bottle of Meths that I keep for cocktails - it's worked a treat!

I had this problem a lot so stripped the mouse down, any alcohol technique does not get to the innermost bits, this is not as complex as it sounds so long as your eyes are good 8-0 See here http://web.mac.com/karelgil/MacWebSite/MightyMEng.html

Ended up doing it so often to remove the fluff I ditched it a year ago and now use a Logitech wifi mouse.

If it came to that, I would change it too!

Took me about a week to decide I didn't like the Mighty Mouse... switched it for a Microsoft optical one.

Now if Apple would only bring out a free-standing version of the trackpad on the new MacBook...

The Meths sorted it out. I'll probably get rid of it though.

recommend a logitech... lots of buttons and such for one touch expos�/dashboard/spaces etc.

I use the nano , software to hook into osx getting battery life and is wireless.