What's new and maybe useful in the pipeline

An easy oil change

Some car owners' maintenance experience is limited to crawling under the engine and draining old oil into a pan from the garage. It's also a chance to get a little dirt under the fingernails.

But the convenience of a new line of oil extractors may eliminate the need for a shower after a do-it-yourself oil change.

Drivers can now turn to the PELA 6000 to extract old oil from their car without risking sooty fingers. The extractor works as a pump: Insert its plastic tube into the car's dipstick pipe or filler neck, pump about 15 times to create a vacuum, and watch oil flow into the device's storage tank.

It works for boats, lawn mowers, and motorcycles, too.

Suggested price: $43

Walk and roll

Skateboards, roller blades, scooters - the revolution of personal transportation continues, perhaps, with the advent of the Heely.

The sneaker contains a small wheel in its heel than can propel the wearer from a walk or run into a steady roll.

Rolling on the Heely is entirely different from roller skating or blading, says the shoes' inventor, Roger Adams, because the shoe does not contain a wheel in its toe.

For those craving old fashioned movement, the wheel can be easily removed.

Suggested price: $95

Cordless mice aren't blind

A computer mouse can be cumbersome. Its cord can clutter a desk surface and its underside consistently picks up grime.

But a new wireless mouse from Logitech eliminates the need for a cord within six feet of the computer. The MouseMan Optical uses a sensor to determine the position of the mouse, phasing out the navigator ball, too.

These mice run on two AA batteries.

(c) Copyright 2001. The Christian Science Monitor