Who Invented The Computer Mouse?

So who invented the computer mouse.  The answer to that question is simple, a man by the name of Douglas Engelbart in 1964.  The mouse was designed to work with a graphical user interface, or GUI.

Today, many of us have used the mouse for so long, we can't imagine how to use a computer without one.  Keyboard commands alone work, but really don't give us the control we need.  The mouse really puts the whole package together.

The first mouse used 2 internal rollers, 1 which controlled up and down, the other which controlled left and right.  They were moved by an internal ball which also slightly came out of the bottom of the mouse, contacting the desktop.  This allowed the mouse to measure movement in relation to its last position, moving a cursor in the appropriate direction on the screen.

Since its invention, the mouse has changed in many ways.  Going from a ball that measured location, to light measuring location.  This makes them more versatile, and easier to pickup when the surface is less than perfect.  Many of them have also have lost their tails and gone wireless to eliminate clutter.

So know that we know who invented the computer mouse, you can also note, even though technology has made it's impression on the mouse, what it was designed to do has not changed at all.  It still moves the cursor, and picks up on clicks for you to relate to the user interface in some way.

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