Mouses: You've Come a Long Way Mickey

My first mouse, officially referred to as a "pointing device" if I recall, was a decidedly non-ergonomic one-button brick that plugged into a TRS-80 Color Computer.

The reason I had the thing in hand was that I had to write an owner's manual for it. Forgive me, but I'm trying to remember what I said. Maybe something like. "Plug it into the serial connector and move it around."? The service manual was easier: "If the device doesn't work, throw it away and give the customer a new one that does work." The software development manual for it was a little more interesting, but almost as short.

By now, of course, most of us know the history Douglas Engelbart, the Stanford Research Institute (SRI), and the mouse. If you need to catch up, check out the MouseSite. (That's Mouse "SITE", not Mouse "CLUB".)

Over the years, mouses ("mice"? No one has ever cleared that one up.) have progressed, thanks in part to the likes of Logitech and Microsoft. There were even mouses that looked like mice, down to a cute little nose and whiskers. The mouses I use today are wireless, wheeled, and optical--a Microsoft mouse for my desk and Kensington mini Pocketmouse for traveling. Certainly a long way from the one-button brick that required adverbs and adjectives on my part.

For instance, Microsoft Research India has come up with a "multimouse" for collaborative experiences. Granted, the multiple-input technique, coined "Single Display Groupware," has been around for a while and is mostly a software solution.The software, developed by research assistant Udai Singh Pawar, assistant managing director Kentaro Toyama, and research intern Sushma Uppala, enables multi-colored cursors to co-exist on a single computer monitor.They also wrote mouse drivers that would let Windows use multiple mice and cursors on one monitor simultaneously. The team also is building a SDK (available this summer) that includes games and applications to that schools, teachers, and students can build their own Multimouse content.

The team presented its findings, particularly as applied to education, in a paper entitled "Multiple Mice for Computers in Education in Developing Countries" at the recent International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies and Development.

In the meantime, companies like Logitech are moving forward with mouse innovations of their own. With names that sound more like sports cars than computer mouses, Logitech's latest offering include the "Logitech MX 610 Laser Cordless Mouse" and the "Logitech LX7 Cordless Optical Mouse." The MX610 for instance, can receive and process wireless communication from the PC, sensing when the computer shuts off and powers down accordingly. And with integrated its LEDs, the mouse notifies people when they receive an important e-mail or instant message, or when the mouse battery is low. According to Logitech:

Sculpted for the right hand, the Logitech MX610 Laser Cordless Mouse delivers a comfortable fit to go along with its stylish silver and black design.

Come on, it's a mouse--not a bottle of champagne.

Not to be outdone:

Sculpted to fit comfortably in the right or left hand, the sleek Logitech LX7 Cordless Optical Mouse is sculpted on both sides of the mouse, giving it an hourglass shape. The mouse features a soft-touch, rubberized grip, helping maximize comfort. Also, the product comes in two different stylish color combinations: glossy metallic blue/piano black and quartz gray/piano black. Designed to make using a cordless mouse easier than ever, the mouse has a battery life of up to eight months and features a clutter-reducing wireless USB mini-receiver that is plug and play.

Jeez, and to think all I could come up back with my TRS-80 mouse was "plug it in and move it around."

Posted by Jon Erickson at 09:22 AM  Permalink