The first computer mouse was developed in 1964 by Douglas Englebart and consisted of a wooden shell with two metal wheels. The design was updated in 1972 with plastic and a ball, which served as the basis for popular mouse designs in the 1990s. Optical and laser mice were later developed, and various button configurations were introduced.
The first computer mouse was developed by Douglas Englebart in 1964. It consisted of a wooden shell and contained a circuit board. Two metal wheels protruded from the underside of the mouse and produced the movement that activated the activity on the board. By 1972, the design had been updated, with plastic replacing the wooden shell and using a plastic ball in place of the two metal wheels. The latter design was known as a ball mouse and served as the basis for the mouse designs that were popularized in the 1990s.
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The first optical computer mouse was produced in 1980, but at the time it was considered too expensive for mass production. In 1998, innovations in microcontroller processing eliminated many of the cost barriers and made it possible to produce a fully functional optical mouse that could be sold at a competitive price.
The first laser mouse was manufactured by Agilent Technologies in 2004. This particular optical mouse design uses a small laser instead of the light emitting diode (LED) technology used in other models.
The first computer mouse was configured with a single button. Between 1964 and 2000, various mouse designs included two to five buttons. The three-button design is among the most popular in use, with the left button generally considered the primary control button for right-handers.
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