A Brief History of the Mouse
The mouse may seem like a relatively new gadget, but get this: It’s about to turn 50.
The first model was invented in the early 1960s by Douglas Engelbart and Bill English at Stanford University. Made of wood and featuring a bright red push button, the contraption was more matchbox than computer device. Still, the “mouse” (so named because the cord looked like a tail) took off, and before long sleeker versions popped up in R&D labs and in stores as the PC—and computing itself—became more mainstream.
Whereas today’s mice are sleek and curved, early models were blocky and bulky, much like other hardware at the time. Many companies, including Microsoft, Apple, Hewlett-Packard, and Logitech, produced innovative models in the 1980s and ‘90s that resembled space-age toys or garage-door openers. Some models succeeded, many didn’t. And the types of mice varied by technology as much as color: mechanical mice, gyroscopic mice, 3D mice, optical mice, tactile mice, and most recently, wireless mice and touch mice.
Here are a few pictures of early Microsoft mice…
- Hardware Team
One of my more favorite older mice was the Dec three button hockey puck, which used two tilted wheels that rolled around the table.. No ball… Miss the original Kensington and Logitech styles of trackball… Not the new stuff
8:15 pm John Palaima
Then there were the original Sun microsystems mice that used an optical pad.. No pad, no mouse movement but no wheel to get dirty either.
8:16 pm John Palaima
There are 3 MS mice that stand out in my mind:
1. The “soap” bar mouse. It had a very nice glossy feel with responsive switches (for the 2 buttons)
2. The “J” mouse. Ergonomics went mainstream for the first time.
3. The MS IntelliMouse Explorer 3.0. The best mouse Microsoft has created for the office worker.
8:53 pm MrDisco
Computers would be nothing with out the mouse. I have always told friends I think the mouse is ahead of its time. Now with the new Microsoft Touch Mouse I am even more amazed.
12:36 am Graham Pazanin
Finally it is arrived.
After one day I can say that it is not living up to my expectations.
- right click is interpreted often as left click
- scrolling is not sensitive enought
- Expose (or instant view?? ) is sometimes slow on my very very fast notebook.
- Mouse is feeling too heavy, my wrist is complaining.
You can say i’m a bit dissapointed, how could you get this one wrong with all the research and resources. If you release something release it when it feels perfect or don’t release it at all. I wonder if those developers use this mouse themself.
I will give it two more days and if the experience is still negative it will go back to the dealer.
6:35 pm Ed