Mouse Software Overview
Mouse Software Overview
As with the M8000 Xtreme, the software which comes with the mouse has been given a complete and total make-over. The first inkling we had that things had chanced was when we inserted the included CD and was given TWO options. You now have the option to install a full Flash-based version or a simple non-Flash version. In both its forms, the software acts as an easy way to interact with the M8000X's commands and customize parameters as you see fit. It should be noted however once the parameters have been uploaded to your mouse, there is no need to run the software again until you want to remap buttons, change macro settings and so on.
Even though we opted for the "full" install, the software is still fairly light on system resources; taking up a mere 12MB of memory. (the non-flash version consumes a little over 9MB). However, before we go on it should be the new user interface can be a little overwhelming at first but it is extremely user-friendly once you start using it.
One of the primary features the new software boasts is the shear number of preconfigured options that are available for EVERY single button.
Gigabyte has broken your options into two major categories: Basic and Macros. Each resides in its own floating window on the left and right had side of the main window. The “Basics” list has a staggering 45 options that run the gamut of literally every conceivable generic action you can think of. We love the fact that you need not worry about drop down boxes or their ilk since you simply have to look at the various self explanatory (in most cases) icons and their descriptions and drag the icon to the appropriate button box. This makes customizing and tweaking a given profile extremely quick and easy.
If you have a specific task that is not covered off by the “basics” you will need to create a custom macro and save it. The macro list is then where you would find your creation for future use (assuming it was saved on the particular system you are using otherwise you will have to import it from either a file or the mouse itself). Gone is the four simple to navigate tab setup of the previous iteration and in its stead is four main buttons running along the upper central window: Macro Editing, Sensitivity, Scrolling and Windows.
<img src="http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/akg/Mouse/M8000X/colours.jpg" border="0" alt="" />
In the upper right hand side of this main window is the MODE section which has five colour icons representing each of the 5 profiles you can have for the M8000X. To change the default colour of one of the profiles (and thus the LED colour in the mouse) you simply hit the colour button and select one from the small pop-up window that appears. Along the bottom of the window is the a couple of buttons that are fairly self explanatory: the load buttons load profiles you have saved to the computer and backup saves the profiles to the computer. Finally, "Default" loads the default settings and "Clean" brings the mouse back to its factory settings.
Opening the Macro Editor page, we see that since the GHOST 2 engine supports five profiles in total instead of just three, the size (or length) of a macro has been scaled back somewhat. In the previous version you had a very basic 254 actions limit (127 keystrokes to be precise as each mouse click / key command is registered as a depression and then as a separate release) whereas now you have a limitation of 72 actions (really just 36 keystrokes). However, instead of worrying about the number of keystrokes Gigabyte has implemented a hard cap to the about of bytes (memory) each macro takes up.
However, many commands which would take multiple actions and keystrokes are now covered off by the 6 main “super macros” which run along the right side of the macro page. These six macros really cover many of the main tasks you will need for making much more custom and complex macros all while using LESS space to do so. You can also use multiple instances of any of the six super macros and use as many of them as you wish in a given macro, just as long as the total size does not exceed the maximum macro limit of 147 bytes.
Each command (including the six super macros) “cost” you 1 byte of space (except for the first one which costs 4-5 bytes because the minimum macro size is 4 bytes). In total a macro can only be 147 bytes in length. Confused yet?
Making things even more impressive is the fact that you ALSO have three options for how the macro will run:
Loop: As the name suggests the mouse will continuously loop throught the macro until the mapped button is pressed again.
Run Once: The macro will only be run once, regardless of how long the mapped mouse button is held. Great for those quick yet complex moves in fighting games.
Fire Button Mode: Much like the “loop” option, the macro will continuously play but only for as long as the mapped mouse button is held. Once you let up on the “trigger” the macro stops looping.
To record commands not covered by these six main types you simply have to hit record, do the commands you want and then hit stop. You can add more before or after this recording as long as the macro itself consumes less than 147 bytes of memory.
When you are finished creating your macro you simply drag finished macro from the left column to the right to save it to mouse and give it a name. You can also hit the Export button export to save to your computer which is great if you create a lot of macros as your mouse can "only" store 70 in its built in memory.
If you do run out of on-board memory, simply drag a macro from the right column to the garbage can residing in between the two columns, it will turn from green to red and become animated. Release the mouse button and the macro is gone. Another nice tweak the Gigabyte engineers though of was the fact that you can not only give each macro a descriptive name but can actually pick the icon it will use. The software comes with 45 preloaded icons and has room for 45 more of your own custom ones should you choose to design them.
Moving onto the second sensitivity page and as with any good mouse you can not only set the X and Y axis independently but you can also increase the polling speed / report rate above the standard rate. In this instance, you can go all the way to 1000Hz or 1ms. Interestingly enough the default polling rate is 500hz for the software but our mouse came set to 1000Hz.
The third tab consists of tweaking the wheel scroll speeds. You can set the vertical and horizontal speeds in a semi precise fashion. Increasing or decreasing the “speed” or modify the amount each wheel click equals. We still would have preferred a drop down box with some default options like: 3 lines, 6 lines or even “page” but this is a fairly nice way of doing things.
Overall, Gigabyte certainly took the time and effort to make the new and improved software as powerful as they could. While it may not be as user friendly on first glance as the original M8000’s the software, it really is easy to use once you get used to it. We highly doubt that many will complain that it is “too complex” as the drag and drop interface coupled with descriptive terms and icons all backed up by a “show and tell” help section does work well.
