[Web4lib] Mouse pads

[Judy McBrian]

Excuse the cross posting please

I know, this is a really elementary question, but I would like to save
myself a trip to the "mouse pad" store ;-)

First of all we're a not too large library and my job description is
cataloger, Systems Admin., and whoever-answers-the-phone is reference desk.

In the spring we bought some mouse pads with mircroban (seemed like a
good idea) that had a surface that was not particularly hard,
(sorta like flannel)
After a summer of teens on myspace , etc. ad nausaum...I've found really
grungy mouse pads and totally crudded up mice wheels.

I mean, I  used to clean these things about once a month with a little
dirt inside them.  Now I find that after only a week the movable parts
inside
are really coated with bits and bots of dirt and whatever, and the mouse
pads are filthy even with daily cleaning. because it seems
the surface of the pad holds onto everything, and then the mouse sucks
it up.

What Id  LIKE to do is march the patrons to the sink, hand them some
soap with the  command "WASH"

Since that's hardly seems practical, I'm asking for your wisdom in
finding an affordable hard surface mouse pad that won't
pick up the dirt so easily and hence pass it into the mouse workings.

Web sites are not too helpful in describing the surface on these pads
unless they are really, really nice...and expensive.  (I've seen some made
of glass...gee, that'd be great for this particular public setting...)

Thanks
Judy McBrian
Boonville Warrick Co Public Library