History Of The Computer Mouse

   Hey!, did you know the fact the first computer mouse we use wasn't made from plastic?

           We all use a computer mouse every day. But we rarely ask about the history of the computer mouse is and how they have developed to be what they are today.

 In 1964, the world's first mouse was developed and invented by Douglas Engelbart with the help of Bill English which is consisted of a wooden shell, circuit board and when two metal wheels came into contact with the surface it was being used on. In starting, it was not called a mouse. X-Y Position Indicator for Display systems was it's the first name.

First mouse

 Later Douglas Engelbart thought his invention looks a little like a rodent, and so the mouse name come.

    Firstly in 1973 it was used with a Xerox Alto computer system but was not very successful. This may have been possible because it was made of wood. But it was very pretty. Just Imagine using that mouse.....do you think it would be easy to use? or do you think it would be completely uncomfortable.

Nowadays, the mouse is an important input device for all computers but it was not so long ago that computers had no mouse and also don't have a graphical user interface. At that time data was entered by typing commands on a keyboard. Later in around 1980, an optical mouse was developed, replacing the ball which always became dirty from rolling around the desktop.

Optical mouse

Today the ball mouse has completely replaced by the optical mouse, being supplied as standard with all new computers.
       

 Types of the mouse: 

Nowadays, for a desktop computer, the most common type of mouse is an optical mouse that can be connected to the USB ports called a USB mouse. The touchpad is the most common type of mouse which is mostly used for laptop computers.

Following is a list of all the types of computer mouse and pointing devices that are used by computers.

• Cordless(Wireless)

• Footmouse

• IntelliMouse (Wheel mouse)

• J-Mouse

•      Touchpad (Glidepoint)

• Joystick

• Trackball

• Mechanical

• Optical

• TrackPoint

 Computer mouse ports: 

Nowadays, most computer mouse connects to a computer using a USB port. Here is a list of ports and wireless connections a mouse is proficient in using.

• Bluetooth

• Infrared

• PS/2 port

• Serial Port

• USB

Physical Description of a computer mouse

 A computer mouse can be in different shapes and sizes but all are designed to fit either in the left or right hand and to be used on a flat surface. There are two buttons in standard mouse towards the front for left-click and right-click, it has also a scroll wheel in the center to quickly move the screen up and down. If you noticed that the older mice use a small ball on the bottom to control the cursor whereas the new one mouse uses laser technology. We can see the different variety of computer mice that are made for special uses, such as travel mice if we see it is smaller in size than a typical mouse and often have a retractable cord and easy to use. Another amazing type of mouse is the ergonomic mouse, it has very special features and a different shape than a standard mouse to help prevent hand strain.

No matter what kind of mouse you are using, they all communicate with the computer either wirelessly or via a physical, wired connection.

Just like other hardware units, a computer mouse works only with a computer if the proper device driver is installed. Because the operating system has already driver ready for installation, a basic mouse will work right out of the box.

 

Working of a ball computer mouse

 

When you move your mouse across your desk, the ball rolls under its own weight and pushes against two plastic rollers linked to thin wheels. If you see one of the wheels detect movement in up-and-down direction whereas the other detects side-to-side movements.

If you move the mouse, then the ball moves the rollers that turn one or both of the wheels. In mouse, there is a microscopic inside the mouse that used to do counting and measuring, which sends details down the cable to your computer. By a corresponding amount, software in your computer moves the cursor on your screen. Usually, they do not work on all surfaces.

 

Working of an optical mouse

 

You can see that the working of an optical mouse is completely different. A LED is present below the optical mouse that shins a bright light down onto your desk. While pushing the mouse around your desk, the pattern of reflected light changes and the chip inside the mouse uses this to figure out how you are moving your hand.

You can see that some of the optical mice have two LEDs. The work of first Led light is to shines light down onto the desk. Photocell picked up the light from that. The working of the second one is to lights up a red plastic strip along the back of the mouse so you can see it’s working. In some of the optical mouse, a wheel is present at the front so you can scroll pages on-screen much faster.

Wheel of the optical mouse functions as the third button on a conventional ball mouse so that you can click the wheel of the optical mouse too. As compared to the ball mouse, an optical mouse is much more hi-tech. An optical mouse has no moving parts whereas a ball mouse has quite a few moving parts. An optical mouse is almost entirely electronic.

 

The Working of a wireless mouse

 

There is nothing special about a wireless mouse, they are also like a normal mouse. They do the same work just like a ball and optical mouse to figure out the movement of your hand but send the data to your computer using a wireless connection instead of a USB cable. USB is a thing that not only carry data but also provides power for small plug-in devices like mice. The wireless mice need one or more batteries while using without a power supply. Compare to a wireless mouse, wired mice are more reliable, cheap, and environment friendly.