The Mouse: Back to the Future

As we begin 2009, let’s take moment for a technology backwards glance. Did you know that the humble mouse just celebrated its 40th birthday? The mouse is question is not Mickey, but rather the ubiquitous computer mouse. On December 9, 1968, at a computer conference in San Francisco, Douglas Engelbart of the Stanford Research Institute demonstrated a small wooden device with its single button which could control a computer. On that day, Engelbart also showed the audience what would today be considered very primitive but which then was revolutionary: his research team’s NLS (oN-Line System), which featured rudimentary windows, hyperlinks, text editing, and video conferencing. The tool Engelbart used to demonstrate with was… the mouse. In 1970, Engelbart received a patent under the name, "X-Y Position Indicator for a Display System."

Here’s a little more information about Engelbart.

It took more than a dozen years before the mouse (named by Stanford researchers because the cord attached to the rear of the device resembled a tail) was first marketed. In 1981, Xerox included the mouse as part of its Xerox 8010 computer system, and Apple and Microsoft followed in the next few years. When you use your mouse for your computing activities today, remember that you are touching a part of history!