The mouse is a device that translates
movements on a horizontal surface into movements of a pointer on the computer
screen. While the keyboard is, by far, the most important input device attached
to your computer, the mouse runs a close second, and may be the most used.
The mouse's popularity is due, of course,
to the popularity of the graphical user interface (GUI). The first mouse was
developed in the mid '60s. Looking back at the early computer interfaces, and
even the physical number of computers in the '60s and '70s (or lack of
numbers), it's obvious that the mouse was an animal before its time. When IBM's
Personal Computers hit the market in the early '80s, with the DOS command line
interface, more and more people found it possible to have a computer in their
home. With the introduction of menu-driven programs, the mouse began to see
limited use. When the Mac GUI OS was introduced, the mouse was recognized as a
valuable tool by Macintosh users, but when Microsoft mass-marketed its Windows
Operating system, the mouse truly became a household word.
I've got to admit, when I first saw a GUI
(Graphical User Interface), I wasn't all that impressed. I thought it seemed a
little mickey-mouse-like and made the computer look more like a toy than the
high-tech, effective tool that I knew it to be. When I look back at it now, I
think it was more the fact that I might have felt a little cheated. It took so
much time and energy to master the computer, and now it appeared as though
everyone was going to be able to use a device that, up to that point, had been
the semi-private realm of the techie, DOS savvy minority. And actually, that's
exactly what happened. The GUI and the mouse are probably the two most
important factors leading to the household personal computer being second in
popularity only to the television set. (Not to mention constantly improving,
lightning fast technological advancements and intelligent, aggressive
push-marketing.)
Types of Mice
There are basically three different types of mice: mechanical, optomechanical and optical.
The mechanical
mouse has a small hard rubber ball underneath that moves against two
rollers as it's passed across a flat surface. Mechanical sensors detect the
movement of the rollers as an 'x' and 'y' axis and the cursor on screen is
moved accordingly.
An optomechanical
mouse works on the same principal. The rollers have wheels on the end of
them with evenly spaced holes. As the wheels spin, a light-sensitive optical
device counts the number of holes that pass by and convert those numbers to an
'x' and 'y' axis.
An optical
mouse is more accurate or precise and has no moving parts. It uses a
laser to detect movement and has to be paired with a special pad or mat that
has an embedded optical reference grid.
Mouse Connections
The serial mouse is, by far, the most popular and the easiest to install. They connect to an RS-232C serial port; one of the COM ports on the back of the computer (a DB-9 or a DB-25 male connector). A serial port is an interface that transmits one bit at a time, and RS-232C is a standard that most serial ports conform to. The fact that they do take up a COM port (and it's respective IRQ) is the biggest problem with the serial mouse. Personal Computers are very limited to the number of COM ports available.
The bus
mouse was originally developed to help alleviate the problem of the COM
port shortage. It connects to the computer through a small round connector
(female mini-DIN-9) on the back of an expansion card installed on the
motherboard. Because an expansion card had to be configured and installed on
the motherboard, these mice were considered much more difficult to install. Now
they are pretty well obsolete. They did free up a COM port, but they still took
up an IRQ as well as an expansion slot.
The PS/2
mouse seems to be the answer to both problems. It's a type of serial
mouse but it connects to a PS/2 connector (female mini-DIN-6) that is
hard-wired directly to IRQ 12. It installs as simply as any serial mouse,
doesn't use up a COM port, and needs no expansion card installed. Not only
that, but it uses a fairly obscure IRQ that was mostly unavailable to other
devices.
A cordless
mouse uses infrared technology to do away with the cord. It seems like
it would be a good idea because the cord on a mouse can be a real pain. It
drags across the top of the desk, gets caught and hangs up in the other cords,
or anything that might be lying on your desktop. They also have a receptor that
must be visible to the mouse (line of sight), if anything is in the way, the
mouse won't respond. This can sometimes cause a little aggrivation unless you
keep a very tidy desk. Cordless mice are more expensive than other types.
The USB
mouse is, by far, my favorite. With Windows98, USB has become one of the
most advanced (and one of the best) connections around for mice, printers and
other peripherals. Installation is simple. It's hot-swappable, so you can plug
it in even when your computer is running. The mouse is immediately recognized
and you can use it right away.
Care
& Maintenance
The most used and abused cord on your computer is the mouse cord. It's dragged, pulled, yanked and twisted everyday with normal use. Try to provide the cord free movement as much as possible and allow a little slack at all times.
The mousepad itself
can make a difference in the amount of gunk that builds up on the inside
rollers. The pad with the porous cloth surface will hold all kinds of dust,
grime, dead skin and moisture that tends to transfer to the rollers via the
rubber ball. Get a pad that has a harder, plastic type surface. It won't get loaded
up with as much crap and it's a lot easier to clean, just wipe it with a damp
cloth.
If your mouse cursor
seems to jump or jerk across the screen, or actually stops as though its hit a
wall and doesn't seem to want to move properly, it's probably dirty. This is
caused by the buildup of gunk on the rollers that was mentioned earlier. The
word gunk is a highly technical computer term that refers to the grime, dust,
dead skin and debris that transfers onto the mouse rollers and can build up to
the point where it touches the plastic edge of the mouse and actually stops the
roller from turning. This is what makes the cursor on your screen stop dead in
its tracks. While this can be very frustrating, it's an easy problem to solve.
To clean these rollers:
- Close out of Windows and shut the
computer off.
- Disconnect the mouse and turn it
upside down. You'll notice a faceplate around the ball. Remove the
faceplate. It may twist a quarter turn or it may click forward (usually,
there's arrows to indicate).
- Carefully turn it over and remove
the ball. Don't try to see if the ball bounces! When it hits the floor, it
will put it out of round and ruin it. And in case you're still wondering,
they don't bounce too well at all.
- You can clean the ball with luke
warm water and a lint free cloth. Don't use alcohol or cleaners on it.
- If you look inside the cavity left
by the ball, you'll see the rollers. You'll also be able to see any
buildup (gunk) on the rollers. Dab the buildup with a little isopropol
alcohol and then gently remove the buildup with a toothpick or a small
flathead screwdriver. Be careful not to scratch the rollers.
- When everything is completely dry,
you can reassemble the mouse, plug it in and turn on your computer.
There'll be a noticeable improvement.
As for the outside of
the mouse itself, you can clean it with a damp cloth.