For the mouse that has everything

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Mar 6, 2001

AUSTIN (Cox) -- For those so endeared to their conventional mouse yet leery of catching a dose of the dreaded carpel-tunnel syndrome, 3M offers yet another ergonomic solution: The Precise Mousing Surface with Gel-Filled Wrist Rest ($12; www.3m.com; for Windows and Mac). What one might call "the Pamela Anderson of mouse pads," this computer companion component features 3M's micro-groove technology for better trackball traction augmented by a supple and supportive gel-implant cushion for the wrist. It's very comfortable.

Security down to the wire

NEW YORK (NYT) -- Have you seen this: "Unauthorized Change in the Wiring Closet."

What is that, you ask? The title of an experimental techno-punk rock album? An alarm that Lex Luthor might sound as Clark Kent morphs into Superman?

No. Simply one manifestation of a new weapon in the war that corporate technology managers wage against would-be saboteurs and the just plain clueless.

ITT Industries has introduced LANSense, a product that monitors computer networks within corporations or other big organizations. LANSense is intended to detect any occurrence of a cord or wire's being inserted or removed from a networking system. The system then sends an "unauthorized change in the wiring closet" e-mail message to a manager and can also play a recorded message warning the culprit and taking a picture of the person doing the tinkering.

"In the same way that a camera can be set up to get a picture of someone removing a patch cord, a speaker can be set up in the closet that can be played when someone removes a cord from the patch panel," said Jonathan Chauvin-Blitt, president for the Americas unit of ITT's network systems and services organization.

"It could be anything you want it to be," he said, "from as nasty as you want to be to something as mundane as, `Please put that cable back.'"

Look who's 50!

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. (AP) -- He's forever frozen as "five-ana- half" in the minds of generations of readers, but the towheaded, freckle-faced Dennis the Menace is preparing to turn 50. The comic's creator, Henry "Hank" Ketcham, has come up with a series of classic panels to commemorate Dennis' journey through American culture. They will run in 1,000 newspapers worldwide from March 5-12, each illustrating the different generations -- from the 1950s to the 1990s -- Dennis and the cast of neighborhood characters have entertained.

"I want Dennis to be looked at: boom! Right like that," Ketcham said from his Pebble Beach home studio along scenic 17 Mile Drive. "I want him to stand out on the page as being different and concise and funny. And so, I guess we're doing it right because we keep adding papers."

Ketcham, who turns 81 on March 14, first sketched the comic in October 1950. The impish boy and his crabby neighbor, Mr. Wilson, were born after Ketcham's wife burst into his home studio in Carmel in a tizzy over their real 5-year-old son, Dennis. "Your son is a menace!" she announced after finding the boy had destroyed his room instead of taking a nap. Just five months later, on March 12, 1951, Dennis Mitchell made his debut in 16 newspapers.

By the time Ketcham stopped drawing the weekday panels in 1994, the comic ran in 1,800 newspapers. Today it's published in 68 countries and 19 languages. The panels also inspired several books of cartoons, a musical, a television series running from 1959 to 1963 and a playground in Monterey where Ketcham had his first studio.

Today in history

NEW YORK (AP) -- Today is the 65th day of 2001. There are 300 days left in the year. Here are some business and legal highlights from this date in history:

In 1834, the city of York in Upper Canada was incorporated as Toronto.

In 1836, the Alamo in San Antonio fell to Mexican forces after a 13-day siege.

In 1857, in its "Dred Scott" decision, the U.S. Supreme Court held that Scott, a slave, could not sue for his freedom in federal court.

In 1933, a nationwide bank holiday declared by President Roosevelt went into effect.

In 1944, U.S. heavy bombers staged the first American raid on Berlin during World War II.

In 1981, Walter Cronkite signed off for the last time as principal anchorman of The CBS Evening News.

Clocked in accuracy

AUSTIN (Cox) -- A common conundrum in most homes and workplaces: No one clock reads the same nor necessarily keeps correct time. But with Atomix Clocks ($20 and up; www.atomixtime.com) you'll never have to set a clock again nor ever wonder about its accuracy. An Atomix Clock sets itself and maintains accurate time to within milliseconds by receiving a 60-kilohertz, low frequency radio signal (called WWVB) from the great big Atomic Clock in Boulder, Colo. This signal broadcasts across the continental United States (and parts of Canada and Mexico) and acts as a definitive timepiece, the one that launches space shuttles and rings the lunch buzzer at NASA. Better still, Atomix Clocks come in a variety of stylish designs, cleverly adapting to nearly any room. It's high-tech gadgetry that doesn't necessarily look high-tech gaudy.