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Build Your Own PC: The PC Mouse

Last updated on 15 November 2007

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This article consists of six pages. You can access the other five pages by clicking the relevant hyperlink below.

Step 5

The Expansion Cards and

Peripheral Devices

This set of pages is devoted to the following adapter cards and peripheral devices. Click the relevant heading to go to information on that subject.

The PC Mouse/Mice

Everyone, even the most technologically illiterate of people, must know by now that the mouse (plural mice) is the essential device that is used with a PC to move the mouse pointer across the computer's screen to point and click on menu items, links, and icons in order to make them reveal and open or run their contents (menu items and programs). So essential is it to the use of a PC that you wouldn't even be reading this article if you didn't know how to use a mouse to access webpages.

The image above is of a wired Microsoft optical Intellimouse. It draws its power via a cable that is connected to the computer and uses a light sensor on its bottom surface to monitor its movements and translate them on to the computer's screen. A standard mouse uses a ball on its bottom surface to monitor its movements and translate them on to the screen. If you move an optical mouse (light-driven) or a standard mouse (ball-driven) in circles or up and down, the mouse pointer on the screen moves in circles or up and down, etc.

The standard mouse has a left and a right button, and usually has a scroll wheel between them that makes scrolling up or down a page possible when it is rolled one way or the other.

Most point-and-click operations are done by positioning the mouse pointer over a menu item, link, or icon and then clicking or double clicking the left mouse button, thereby activating the menu item, link, or icon to open a window or run a program. For example, clicking on any of the links on this page will take you to pages on this website, or to pages on other websites.

The right mouse button is usually used to gain access to parts of the operating system or program, such the menu window that presents itself when you position the mouse pointer over the Windows Start button (in the bottom left hand corner of the screen), and click the button on the right side of the mouse. Clicking with the right mouse button is referred to as right-clicking. Since left-clicking is used most of the time, it is just referred to as clicking (with the mouse).

You can now buy all kinds of wired and wireless mice that can do all kinds of things. For example, the Genius Navigator 380 is a conventional-looking silver mouse that can be flipped open and used as a VoIP Internet phone. To find vendors or more information on this mouse, you can enter genius navigator 380 in the Google search box at the top of this page (with its Web radio button enabled). If you want to see some other exotic mice, visit http://www.keytools.co.uk/mice.

In a Windows 95/ 98/Me system, the settings for the Keyboard and Mouse are found in the Start => Settings => Control Panel.

In Windows XP, The settings are also in the Control Panel under Keyboard and Mouse.

For Windows Vista, look under the Hardware and Sound category in the Control Panel. Look for Keyboards and Mice and other pointing devices.

To find out how to make the best use of the Control Panel in Windows Vista, read:

The Windows Vista Developer Story: Control Panel User Interface -

http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa905329.aspx#wvdcpui_topic3

The situation with mice is much the same as with keyboards. You can purchase alternatives to the standard PS/2 mouse, such as optical mice. Optical mice use the changes detected in a beam of light from a light sensor at the bottom of the mouse instead of the movements of a roller-ball to create the movements of the cursor on the screen.

You can buy wired PS/2 and USB optical mice, and wireless optical mice. A cordless optical mouse that uses batteries and connects to the computer via a base unit can be purchased for around £24 or less, depending on where you buy it. Rechargeable wireless optical mice are also available. You attach them to a recharger.

The Optical Desktop with Fingerprint Reader is a keyboard and mouse set. The keyboard is wired and the mouse is wireless. The fingerprint reader can be used so that only users that have fingerprint profiles can gain access to the computer.

Note that wireless keyboards and mice are powered by batteries, which can be a nuisance to replace or recharge. However, Microsoft claims that its latest wireless mice provide up to six months of battery life.

A wireless mouse could have a radio transmitter that connects to the PS/2 mouse port itself, or to a USB port, or obtain a signal from an infrared (IR) port connected to the motherboard. A Bluetooth radio transmitter is usually connected to a USB port.

A basic PS/2 mouse with an ATX PS/2 connector costs as little as £5 to £10, and the fancier ones (cordless, etc.) can cost over £100.

To use a mouse with an old-style AT connector on redundant AT motherboards requires using an AT to ATX conversion plug. All motherboards are currently of the ATX or, to a much lesser extent, the BTX form factors. See the first Motherboards page on this site for information on motherboard form factors.

The PS/2 standard for mice and keyboards has been in existence since 1987 and is still supported by Windows Vista, which is the latest incarnation of Windows that comes as several different versions. Apple has got rid of PS/2 ports in all of its desktop and laptop PCs but, at the time of writing this (November, 2007), most desktop PC motherboard manufacturers still provide PS/2 ports for a mouse and keyboard on their motherboards.

That can be useful, because the other main standard used for mice and keyboards - USB - still has some flaws in its design that make it temperamental. Indeed, it is not uncommon to find that a USB keyboard and mouse don't work, and the only solution is to use a PS/2 alternative, provided that the PC's motherboard has a PS/2 mouse or keyboard port.

Many new PCs, particularly from Gateway and Dell, only provide USB ports. However, there are currently (November, 2007) still many new computers, including most new PCs from HP, that also provide PS/2 ports.

Most of the keyboard and mouse manufacturers provide devices that can operate with both PS/2 and USB ports. Adapters are available or come with new mice and keyboards that enable a PS/2 device to plug into a USB port and a USB device to plug into a PS/2 port. Note that these adapters won't work with just any keyboard or mouse. The device has to be designed to work with both types of port.

Remember to purchase a mouse mat if your mouse uses a roller-ball on its underside to move the cursor on the screen. A mouse mat is not required for an optical mouse because the beam of light detects movement over the surface of a desk.

If you purchase a mouse that doesn't come with its drivers on a CD, Windows will automatically load a driver for it. This might not be the correct driver. Check in the Device Manager to see if the name of the mouse matches the mouse you have installed. If not, download the correct driver from the manufacturer's website.

A PS/2 keyboard and mouse are connected to the PS/2 plugs on an ATX motherboard, as shown in the motherboard's manual.

Below is an illustration from an MSI motherboard manual of the location of the PS/2 mouse port on an ATX motherboard that has inbuilt sound and video chips and ports. You can download the manuals for the latest MSI motherboards free of charge from http://www.msi.com.tw/.

A particular PS/2 port has to be used for a keyboard or a mouse, never for both. When connecting the keyboard and mouse make sure that you connect them to the correct ports. Most computers have color coded PS/2 ports. If the computer has coloured ports the mouse usually connects to the green or teal connection, and the keyboard to the blue or purple connection. The inside female plug of the port is coloured green/teal and blue/purple.

Installing a serial, PS/2, and USB mouse:

http://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch000448.htm

Optical mice use a source of light to monitor movement of the mouse instead of a ball inside the mouse. You can buy wired or wirless optical mice. Both kinds are operated from buttons and usually have a scroll wheel on the top of the mouse. In addition to the left and right buttons and the central scroll wheel, standard ball-driven mice and optical mice can have additional buttons that provide extra features, some of which can be programmable.

If you purchase an optical mouse that has no fancy buttons - only the left and right buttons and a scroll wheel, but it doesn't come with a driver disk, if you install the mouse, all the versions of Windows from Windows 95 up will use the standard Windows PS/2 Compatible Mouse driver. The driver will make both left and right buttons and the scroll wheel operate. With a webpage or document open, all you have to do to scroll down the page is roll the scroll wheel one way or the other to go up and down the page. If you click the scroll wheel and then move the mouse up and down, the page should scroll as quickly or as slowly as you want it to.

The functions of the additional buttons on fancy mice will be explained in the instruction manual that comes with the mouse. You can probably also find additional information on the manufacturer's site.

When the mouse driver has been installed, and the mouse is attached to the computer, it will be listed as successfully installed in the Windows Device Manager under the heading Mouse in Windows 95/98/Me systems and under Mice and other pointing devices in Windows XP/Windows Vista.

Only USB and FireWire mice can be hotplugged - connected to the computer while it is running. If your version of Windows supports USB, the USB driver will be loaded automatically. See the USB page on this site for more information. Other (non-USB/FireWire) devices should never be hotplugged, since doing so could damage or destroy the motherboard.

Wireless keyboards and mice

As with every other wireless device on the market, there are several different technologies from which to choose, all of which can sometimes be very troublesome to get to work. They are all certainly more problematic than a wired keyboard and mouse, so if you don't really need wireless devices it's good advice to avoid them altogether. Wired devices are always less problematic and more reliable.

All wireless devices are subject to electrical or radio interference, so the method of transmission is very important. The main transmission technologies are IR (Infra-Red), RF (Radio Frequency), and Bluetooth. IR based systems are generally older and require line-of-sight between the devices and the base station, much like a television remote control. It's good advice to stay clear of these devices if they can still be purchased.

The most common wireless technology you can purchase is an RF-based system. The general range of RF-based systems can go from 3 to 100 feet. Logitech and Microsoft claim a range of up to 6 feet for their products. Gyration is a relative newcomer to this market. Gyration uses several unique technologies in its wireless keyboards and mice. The RF frequency it uses is much higher than that used by both Logitech and Microsoft, so its products can claim ranges of up to 30 feet. Indeed, Gyration's line of professional devices claim to have a range of up to 100 feet.

Steer clear of troublesome, cheap, generic brands.

The third and newest technology, Bluetooth, has a lower chance of interference from other devices, but it requires the installation of special device drivers. Windows XP and Windows Vista are the only versions of Windows that fully support it. Moreover, users have reported various driver-related issues that caused a Bluetooth keyboard or mouse to stop working completely.

It's therefore good advice to stick to an RF-based system, since it doesn't require any special software to be recognised by the system, and the technology has been in existence for much longer than Bluetooth technology.

Note that the slight response lag with wireless mice can be a problem for gamers. The batteries in them need to be well charged for the best performance.

Gaming computer keyboards and mice

The kind of keyboard and mouse used in gaming can make a difference. For instance, the slight response lag with wireless mice can be a problem for gamers. Moreover, the batteries they use need to be well charged for the best performance.

For the dedicated gamer, optical mice are the best choice, because they don't require cleaning. Some gamers prefer the wireless models because they don't like the cable getting in the way of any movement. But the gamers who don't like having a wireless mouse run out of battery power in mid-game prefer a wired optical mouse. However, it's possible to get the best of both situations by using a wireless optical mouse that uses rechargeable batteries that can be charged via a cable (instead of a cradle) while being used.

Keyboards and mice specifically designed for PC gaming are available. Examples are the Gaming Keyboard and the Gaming Mouse made by Saitek and sold by Dabs.com in the UK. The keyboard is specially designed for the kind of movements that PC gamers make during strategy games, comes with a separate nine-key number pad, which is recognised as a gaming controller in Windows, and has two mode buttons, which make it possible to perform up to 27 different functions. The mouse has a 1,600dpi (dots per inch) optical sensor that makes it around twice as sensitive as a standard desktop mouse. That makes it ideal for first-person shooter games, because the sensitivity of the sensor makes it possible to turn more quickly and to be more accurate when aiming at opponents.

Mice have a resolution that is measured in dots per inch (dpi). The higher the resolution is, the more sensitive the mouse is and the less it has to be moved in order to cover a given distance on the screen. A mouse with a relatively high resolution (e.g., 1,600dpi) allows quick and accurate responses of the kind that are required in many action and shooter games. If the response is too fast, you can use the Mouse feature in the Control Panel to adjust the settings. It can also be used to increase the response time of a mouse with a relatively low dpi specification.

See this Build a PC page on this site for information on keyboards and mice.

KVM switches

How to use two or more computers with one keyboard, monitor, and mouse

If you want to access more than one computer but don't need to network them, there is a little-known device called a KVM switch that allows the operation of two or more computers from one set of keyboard - monitor - and mouse. The letters KVM stand for keyboard video and mouse, I suppose because KVM sounds better than KMM. Some of these switches can allow thousands of computers to be accessed in this way, and some of them even allow the use of one sound card and one set of speakers. The computers and the one set of keyboard, monitor and mouse are linked to the KVM switch, and key toggles are used to switch from one computer to another. All of the computers are tricked into thinking that they have sole use of the keyboard, monitor, and mouse. This is an invaluable aid if you need to use more than one computer but you don't need to have them networked.

You can purchase KVM switches from all of the larger online electronics and computer businesses. A four-computer model is typically priced from £36/$60 to £75/$125, and a two-computer unit is about half that price. Note that the more expensive units usually have superior cables and shielding from electronic interference than the less expensive units.

KVM Switches that do DVI from Aten -

"Using a KVM switch to work on two or more computers with a single keyboard, mouse and monitor can certainly make life easier. However, we had to wait a long time for KVM switchboxes to catch up with modern technology, such as the all-digital visual interface (DVI) connectors for flat panel displays. Until recently, users had no choice but to use only D-15 analog VGA connectors with KVMs - a relic of the bygone CRT era. But such devices now not only enable switching among multiple sound and USB sources, they can even switch between systems with two monitors attached." -

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/...review-1370.html

Clutter Rescue: 2 Port KVM Switches -

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/clutter-rescue,review-935.html

Belkin - http://www.belkin.co.uk/ - make a good line of KVM Switches that make use of the PS/2 or USB computer ports.

Informative articles on the PC mouse

If you want to find out how different kinds of mice work, read this article:

How PC Mice Work - http://computer.howstuffworks.com/mouse.htm

Microsoft mouse boasts 1GB of flash -

"Microsoft has launched a new wireless mouse that doubles as a 1GB memory stick. The Mobile Memory Mouse 8000 is aimed at laptop owners who don't want to waste their limited USB ports by plugging in memory sticks..." -

http://www.pcpro.co.uk/shopper/news/124807/...

Google searches

If my descriptions are not clear enough for you, you'll be able to find many sites offering illustrated information on how to install computer components by entering a phrase such as "install a xxxx" (where xxxx stands for the device, such as RAM, hard disk drive, etc.) in the Google search box at the top of this page (with its Web radio button enabled).

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