Casey's Wiki

You use a mouse to navigate through a computer. It is an input device. So it sends information to the computer and tells the computer what to do. To tell the computer what to do, we click and move the mouse. But how does the computer know it is a mouse and how does the mouse send this information?These questions will be answerd.Below is a link of pictures of inside a mouse.

Whats inside a mouse

History

This device was first invented by an inventer named Douglas Engelbart in 1964.I was first called a bug but later changed its name after the cord attached to it looked liked a mouses tail. This first mouse used two external gears perpindicular to each other. These rotations translated into movement on the computer. Later in the 70's they inovated the mouse by replacing the external weels with a rubber ball.

A Ball Mouse

These kind of mice uses a ball inside. When someone moves the mouse across the desktop, the ball inside moves and the computer translates this movement to an arrow or cursor on a screen. This happens because inside the mouse there are two rotating weels. One is horizontal, the other vertical. When the ball moves, it rubs against the weels and the cursor will move on the screen. The computer interperates this data because each weel contains alternating slots that look like a gear (but does not act like one)Each weel has a set of light on one side and a reciver device on the other. So when the weel spins, (LED)light goes through the slots on one side of the weel, activates the reciver and sends an electric current to the computer through the cord connected to the computer.

http://users.tkk.fi/~then/mytexts/mouse.html

Optical Mouse

This kind of mouse is very efficient because there are no moving parts which means they are easier to clean. This mouse works by using a small red light which bounces off the surface of the desktop and then bounces back to the mouse where a sensor picks it up. This processor or sensor detects patterns and can determine how far the cursor would move on the screen.

Another cool inovation is the scroll weel. People use this to scroll a page verticaly by the touch of your finger. It works similer to the way the ball mouse works. The scroll weel has those notches and when the LED light goes through them, this tranlates to motion on the screen.

How the mouse driver reconizes the Information given by the Mouse

When the driver recives the data given by the mouse, it decodes the information by CPI's (counts per inch) This is how they measure how much the mouse moves. A normal mouse is 100-400CPI. The voltage a single mouse usually uses is +5v.

If your Mouse does not work properly

If your mouse does not work properly, there are a few ways you can correct this problem. First, you can clean the mouse by unplugging the device and unscrewing a screw at the bottom of the mouse or turning the lock holding the ball in. Using a lint-free rag, clean the rubber ball and the casing of the ball. If you have a optical mouse, use distilled rubbing oil and a paper towel and ocassionaly clean the bottom. If the mouse still does not work check if the mouse is correctly plugged into the PC in the right port.Also check the wire if the mouse and make sure they are not spliced or stripped.

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