Once upon a time, if you had seen a mouse in your crib, you might have jumped on the small table. Today, the mouse has dropped on your desk instead. The handy pointer on the screen is the one that makes your computer easy to use. The first mouse was made of wood in 1961. So what is a computer mouse? A computer mouse is an external computer hardware input device that allows the user to interact with the computer. The mouse sends data to your computer that tells your computer to display the pointer of the operating system’s graphical interface. The user can drag, click, select, and copy items in the machines. The mouse is placed on a flat surface such as the mouse pad or desk to enable the user to interact with the computers. Computers mice became dominant in the 1980s as people could use the computer input to communicate with their personal computers.

The primary function of the mouse is to move the cursor on the screen by dragging the mouse against the mouse pad or the desk. It helps open or executes a program through clicking, double-clicking or single clicking depending on computer settings of the user(“What is a Computer Mouse?”, 2019). Besides their diverse shapes and sizes, simple parts and tasks of the mice are the same.Each mouse has at least one key for operator input, a connection to the computer and a way to track motion.

Computer Mouse parts and functions

The above photo describes the external parts of a computer mouse and their functions and how the elements are used to execute a task. The top casing of a computer mouse is a plastic rigid curved sheet that is designed to fit in the palm perfectly. The ahousing is purposely made to protect the inner parts of the mouse.  A cord is used to connect the mouse to the computer. The left click cover is the commonly used button and works in collaboration with the right mouse to click and manipulate objects and texts in the computer user interface. The right-click cover is a little curved plastic on the top right side of the mouse that is used to perform particular operations and transports a signal to a receiver on a circuit board inside the mouse. The right cover receives and translates the mechanical action of clicking into computer instructions. The scroll wheel at the center is used to navigate back and forth while the mouse body about the size of bar soap is used to rest the palm.

Let us take a look inside the mouse,

Photo: source explain that stuff

1. Switch that detects clicks of the left button.2. Switch for the middle button.3. Switch for the right key.4. Old connection to PSC/2 on computer5.piece turns back, and forth mouse movements into alphanumeric signals that computer can understand 6.X-axis wheel 7.Y-axis wheel turn when you change mouse up and down 8, Heavy rubber wheel 9.Spring presses ball firmly against X and Y-axis wheels to register movements 10.Electrolytic capacitor11.resistors

Ball, Laser, or LED

A mechanical mouse contains a ball and rollers while an optical mouse includes a laser or LED. Each of these components is used to move and track the movement of the mouse cursor on the screen.

Figure

The scroll wheel

The scroll wheel of a mouse is a small wheel overlaid with rubber located in between the right and the lift click buttons. The scroll wheel allows the user to scroll up and down on the user interface on the computer screen.

Bottom Casing

The bottom casing of a computer is a hard plastic shell on the underside of the computer mouse that protects the inner parts of the mouse.

Trackball

The trackball is a small rubber sphere located in the middle bottom of the mouse. The shot is captured through a system of gears and translated to an electronic signal to control the motion of the pointer on the computer window.

Circuit board

To take all the signal information, clicks, and any other information initiated by the user through the mouse inputs to the computer interface, the mouse must have circuit borad with integrated circuits.

Cable or wireless receiver

For a corded mouse, there is a plug that connects the mouse to the computer and aids in the transfer of instructions and commands between the mouse and the processor. Most mice connect to the computer via the USB port. In cases where the machine has a wireless mouse, the computer needs a wireless USB receiver to receive the wireless signal containing instructions and commands from the mouse into the computer (“What is Mouse? Webopedia Definition”, 2019).

The laptop also has an inbuilt mouse but still can use wireless or a mouse with a code .the mouse is supposed to connect to the computer through a USB port

Holding the mouse right means the user can work for a long time without getting tired faster than when holding the mouse wrongly   How do you know you are own the mouse the right way? Let us take a look

photo: source WikiHow

Conclusion

A mouse is pivotal input hardware to a computer; it helps the user to interact with the computer interface effectively. In cases where the user is using a laptop with a non-functional cursor pad, he or she can use an external mouse to interact with the computer window. A mouse is simple and easy to learn computer device for communicating with the computer window and directly translates the actions of the user into movements and activities into the computer screen.

What is Computer Mouse? (2019). Retrieved from https://www.computerhope.com/jargon/m/mouse.htm

What is Mouse? Webopedia Definition. (2019).

What is the function of a computer mouse? (2018) retrieved from http;//itstillworks.com