# My Ball is not so hard... **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 21, 2010, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ball-is-not-so-hard/547473 "2010-07-21T15:30:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![tr0psn4j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@tr0psn4j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tr0psn4j)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ball-is-not-so-hard/547473/21 "2010-07-21T22:02:10Z")
> [@RandMcnally](#): > > Wow. > > I have over a thousand dollars in high-end video game systems. > > I just spent way to long trying to click a ball on a string. I would die if I didn’t have browser based flash games to play at work. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2010, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ball-is-not-so-hard/547473/22 "2010-07-22T01:20:41Z")
> [@FloatyGimpy](#): > > I finally got the stupid cat. > [@RandMcnally](#): > > I hate that damn cat. > [@pravnik](#): > > I got the cat pretty quick, fourth or fifth try, then again on the next try. [The Final Circle](http://projammer.com/CircleCat.gif) ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2010, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ball-is-not-so-hard/547473/23 "2010-07-22T01:25:37Z")
Is the cat’s movement at all influenced by where you click, or given two or three options for “away from you”, does it pick one at random? ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2010, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ball-is-not-so-hard/547473/24 "2010-07-22T05:47:08Z")
About the seventh game I was able to get that damn cat. Can’t do it anymore though. ETA: Thirty seconds after I posted this I got the damn cat. Go me. … What do I do now? ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2010, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ball-is-not-so-hard/547473/25 "2010-07-22T06:26:53Z")
mmm, I changed the color of the ball after about 20 tries. I circled the cat at the first try! ---
**Author:** ![Find\_Friends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@Find\_Friends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Find_Friends)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2010, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ball-is-not-so-hard/547473/26 "2010-07-22T14:00:34Z")
> [@Trans Fat Og](#): > > (Contrary to the teasing “skepticism” that the Weird Earl’s title may raise in you, _ **YES** _, “the Ball” really does change color if you manage to click on it anywhere.) > [@CalMeacham](#): > > … > and I find that I have to click on the _exact center_ of the ball to change its color… It really seemed to me that hitting the ball anywhere would change the color. I may have been mistaken. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2010, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ball-is-not-so-hard/547473/27 "2010-07-22T17:46:58Z")
I can corral the cat (there’s a name for you) somewhere between one in three times and half the time, depending on what spots are already blocked at the start. Is it always possible? ETA: general strategy: the cat will always move away from your first move. I do better when I set out “picket stakes” which I try to fill in, rather than trying to build a solid wall from the start. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Plastic\_Ninja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f07891/32.png) [@Little\_Plastic\_Ninja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Plastic_Ninja)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2010, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ball-is-not-so-hard/547473/28 "2010-07-22T19:52:34Z")
I’ve had some luck herding it and closing off all possible ways out while it races toward them. Got it 3-4 times now. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2010, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ball-is-not-so-hard/547473/29 "2010-07-23T03:53:16Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > No, but I’ve noticed that when I right-click it, the ball and string stop following my cursor, allowing me to position the arrow underneath it to where a double-click gets it for me (first click releases the ball; second click catches it). You can just click on the ball with your first click. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ball-is-not-so-hard/547473.md?page=1)