Get to know the computer mouse

Miuku-Mauku! Don't chase mice, you scumbag!

Speaking of mice, I was reminded of my wonderful collection of computer mice.

There are many kinds of mice!

Let's study different types of mice

What mouse?

Nowadays, a mouse is an almost mandatory accessory for all computers that work with a graphical user interface such as Microsoft's Windows or Apple's iOS.

By moving the mouse, an arrow-shaped pointer is usually moved on the computer screen, which allows the user to give different instructions to the computer by moving the mouse and by pressing different icons with the mouse buttons.

Especially in desktop or PC machines, mice can be considered mandatory accessories, but many people nowadays also connect a mouse to a laptop computer. Usually, the mouse is connected to the computer via a USB port.

The history of the mouse

The first mice were already developed in the 1960s and the official name of the first mouse was "XY position indicator for display system". The name was understandably not very catchy, so soon the XY position pointer started to be called a mouse due to the pigtail cord attached to the box-shaped mouse.

In home computers, mice became common in the 1980s in Apple, Atari and Amiga computers, and whether it was also available for the legendary home computer.

The mouse was quickly noticed to facilitate and speed up the use of various programs and soon it also became an essential part of playing games.

Ball mice

Throughout history, there have been many types of mice.

Back in the 1990s, ball mice were the most common. A ball rotated inside them, which transmitted the mouse's movements to the computer with the help of light sensors, which, based on various calculations, knew how to deduce the mouse's movements and transmit the data as signals to the computer.

In addition, mice typically have at least two push buttons and a roller, with which you can, for example, scroll a website up or down and at the same time it works as a third push button on the mouse.

The problem with the ball mouse was that the ball collected a lot of dust and garbage, which is why it required regular cleaning.

In addition, the ball mouse required a smooth and sufficiently friction-producing surface to function.

Trackpad

A member of its species that is significantly flatter than its traditional mouse cousin is the trackpad.

A trackpad is common these days, especially in laptop computers, where it is usually integrated, i.e. already connected as a fixed part of the computer.

In a trackpad, the pointer on the screen is moved with the level mouse pointer plate, which in turn transmits the movements of the user's finger to the computer.

In addition, the trackpad has two different buttons for it, which are used like the buttons of traditional mice. Some of the pointer pads also have the possibility to tap, for example, the left side of the pointer pad, which achieves the same function as pressing the left button of traditional mice.

Optical mice

The successors of the ball mouse are various optical mice, which, like a ball mouse, do not have moving parts, with the help of which the mouse calculates the movements given to the mouse by the user.

Instead of a ball, in optical mice, the movement is calculated with the help of a light source located at the bottom of the mouse, which reflects light from the reflective base back to the mouse's sensors, which can interpret the mouse's movements and thus transmit the user's commands to the computer.

Nowadays, laser mice have become common, which, like traditional optical mice, are not as accurate regarding the light-reflecting properties of the platform.

Similarly, more and more mice have lost their tails, i.e. the wire through which the signals transmitted by the mouse are transmitted to the computer. Wireless or tailless mice send their signals to the computer via radio waves instead of wires.

Gaming mice

Current gaming mice have further diversified the features, appearance and modifiability of the mouse to suit the particular user.

There can be many more buttons in a gaming mouse than usual, and the user can program each button with the functions he likes, depending on the game.

In gaming mice, their accuracy, good fit in the hand and appearance are also emphasized. Many gaming mice have a variety of light effects to bring additional atmosphere to intense gaming sessions.

Pen mouse

Sometimes it may be necessary to use a computer to draw like traditional pen and paper.

A pen mouse is ideally suited for this use, which is light and often has a pen-like design, allowing for a precise and sensitive grip on the mouse.

In order to work, a pen mouse usually requires a digital drawing table or tablet computer as its counterpart.

The freak of the mouse family – Trackpoint

A trackpoint is a mouse specially developed for laptops, which is usually a red pin placed in the middle of the G, H, B keys on the keyboard.

The trackpoint actually has no moving parts and you can only control the pointer on the screen, and it has no button at all to confirm the functions you want on the computer.

For most users, the deepest purpose of this red pin has remained an eternal mystery.