Details of a mousepad investigated by Armando M. Fernandez Mouse Pads were published in the Xerox Disclosure Journal in 1979 with the description:
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After the rubberized silicon surface was incorporated onto the surface of the encourage roller ball mouse, the fashionable fabric-surface mousepad was found to be the most appropriate
- It helped keep the rubberized roller-ball surface cleaner and with more valuable tracking, speed and accuracy than just a desk surface, which collected dirt and slowed the mouse's motion.