Know Your Hardware - The Mouse

The mouse is one of two primary interfaces for the computer, the other being the keyboard. While a keyboard has more buttons, they are pretty standard in layout and design.

The mouse is a bit more complicated, though not much. They generally look like the one pictured to the right. The design is made to fit in the grip of a person's hand and dragged across a flat surface. When gripped properly, the fingers landing on the head of the mouse (where the cord is on the one pictured) will fall on top of one or two or more buttons. Generally only Macintosh mice have one button though as Windows and Linux both heavily use two buttons. Your mouse might also have a scroll wheel like the one pictured here in between the buttons. The scroll wheel can usually be programmed to do various tasks but in most cases it's used to move the contents of a window or document up and down. The scroll wheel will also often double as a third button.

Some more elaborate mice will have additional buttons on them, usually situated along the left surface of the mouse and meant to be pressed with the thumb. These buttons are generally programmable as well to do special functions. The two main buttons almost always serve the same functions. The left button is the main "action button" and will generally activate whatever the courser is set to activate on the screen. The right button will generally open some sort of menu. This menu will vary depending on which program is currently in focus on the computer.

For example, if you're using a word processor such as Microsoft Word, the right click will open a menu for things such as cut and past and formatting. You would then select one of these items by pressing the left "action" button.

The mouse is by default configured to work right a person's right hand and sits on the right side of the keyboard. You can reconfigure this in the system menu for use with the left hand on the left side of the menu. The commands discussed in this article will end up being reversed if you use this set up. You can access this setting in Windows by pressing Start -> Control Panel -> Printers and Other Hardware -> Mouse. The first option is to "switch Primary and Secondary buttons". This is also where you can adjust other properties of the moue such as sensitivity and the pointer though I'll not be covering that type of detail today.

If you're choosing a moue to use, there are several things to consider. The first would be the type of interface with the computer. Unless you're using a very old machine, the mouse will interact with the computer through one of two methods, there is the older style PS/2 Ports or the newer USB ports. If you're buying a mouse you should check to see if you PC has a PS/2 port since many newer PCs to not have these anymore (though many do have them). It's not an obsolete interface but it is being phased out. The PS/2 port is a round port about a half inch in diameter that looks similar to an S-Video port. Often it is color coded, Purple for Keyboard and Green for the mouse.

You might also want to get a Wireless mouse, though the wireless mouse will still require a dongle of some sort to recieve the signal. This dongle will generally be USB based. The benefit of wireless si that you're not restricted by an ugly cable that runs across your desk. The downside is, you'll need to replace the batteries in the mouse fairly frequently.

There are also three basic types of mice. Ball Mice, Optical Mice, and the Trackball. Technically the trackball is a while differnt beast but it serves the same purpose as the mouse.

Ball mice are quicly becomming obsolete. A Ball Mouse uses a ball with several rollers internally to detect motion. If you turn your mouse over and it looks like th eone pictured, it's a ball mouse. These are prone to collecting dist whichinterferes with the sensors on the rollers. They are still reasonably common because they are cheaper to produce and buy.

Optical Mice use light to track movements. They also give off a "cool" glow effect. If you turn your mouse over and it looks like the one pictured here, it's an optical mouse. These are not prone to the same dust problem but they tend to be more expensive. Also in my experience they tend to last a shorter period of time than a Ball Mouse, though mice are cheap enough that replacing them isn't really an issue. An optical mouse is more costly than a ball mouse but you can still find one for $20 bucks or less.

Finally there is the Trackball. The Trackball is a special kind of mouse that provides a bit more precision in movement. They differ from normal mice in that the ball that interfaces movement is on top of the unit. Instead of sliding the mouse around, you roll the ball. These are often used by people who do editing for precision and are good for people who don't have the dexterity or mobility to slide the mouse around. The main drawback is that they tend to be pricey and take some getting used to, especially for people used to a normal mouse.

That pretty much concludes the basics behind the mouse interface. The best all around option is a USB Optical mouse with a scroll wheel. It's simple to use and provides the most versatility.