HydraMouse

If you have decided to step-up from the classic mouse to modern-day multi-button ones, you might find yourself in the situation where you don't really get to use the extra buttons, or worse, you could accidentally click on them due to positioning. One solution to the problem would be button remapping from within the system, but it could take some time as a good deal of research is required. However, another option could be HydraMouse, a piece of software that focuses only on reassigning buttons and adding combinations to them.

Complex but intuitive layout

At first sight, the UI could look overwhelming, as there are tons of items to work with, but after a closer look, you can notice that assigning the keys is mostly done by checking the right boxes.
Also, a model of a mouse is permanently displayed so you always know what button you are modifying. The average mouse is equipped with five buttons, but some models break that limit and can have up to twelve keys, and maybe not so coincidentally, HydraMouse can assign the same number of keys.

Predetermined mapping for certain applications

A cool feature lets you create different configurations that can be changed depending on the running application. The tool comes with several configurations for four browsers, (IE, Firefox, Chrome and Opera), MS Word, Acrobat Reader and even World of Warcraft. Besides these instances, you can create your own, without any limitation. Just click on Add New Application, fill in the details and assign the buttons. Each time you go from an app to another, simply check/uncheck the related boxes and the remapping is done.

Predefined actions

Near the right side of the interface, you can find the predefined actions menu, where you can take whatever action you like and link it to one of the buttons. The actions are so numerous that seven selectable categories were added. The categories cover media keys, mouse clicks, MS Office-related actions, special folder control panel and miscellaneous.

All in all

HydraMouse, as the name implies, is a multi-headed tool that provides a great number of configurations for your mouse, no matter how many buttons it has. The interface might scare you at first, but if you look carefully, the functions are neatly organized and there is not really tot much room for remapping mistakes.