![Text cursor blinking](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/Text_cursor_blinking.gif)
In
human–computer interaction
Human–computer interaction (HCI) is research in the design and the use of computer technology, which focuses on the interfaces between people (users) and computers. HCI researchers observe the ways humans interact with computers and design tec ...
, a cursor is an indicator used to show the current position on a
computer monitor
A computer monitor is an output device that displays information in pictorial or textual form. A discrete monitor comprises a visual display, support electronics, power supply, housing, electrical connectors, and external user controls.
The di ...
or other
display device
A display device is an output device for presentation of information in visual or tactile form (the latter used for example in tactile electronic displays for blind people). When the input information that is supplied has an electrical signal the ...
that will respond to input from a text input or
pointing device
A pointing device is a human interface device that allows a user to input spatial (i.e., continuous and multi-dimensional) data to a computer. CAD systems and graphical user interfaces (GUI) allow the user to control and provide data to t ...
. The mouse cursor is also called a
pointer, owing to its resemblance in usage to a
pointing stick
A pointing stick (or trackpoint, also referred to generically as a nub or nipple) is a small analog stick used as a pointing device typically mounted centrally in a computer keyboard. Like other pointing devices such as mice, touchpads or trac ...
.
Etymology
''Cursor'' is Latin for 'runner'. A cursor is a name given to the transparent slide engraved with a hairline used to mark a point on a
slide rule
The slide rule is a mechanical analog computer which is used primarily for multiplication and division, and for functions such as exponents, roots, logarithms, and trigonometry. It is not typically designed for addition or subtraction, which is ...
. The term was then transferred to computers through analogy.
On 14 November 1963, while attending a conference on computer graphics in
Reno, Nevada
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...
,
Douglas Engelbart
Douglas Carl Engelbart (January 30, 1925 – July 2, 2013) was an American engineer and inventor, and an early computer and Internet pioneer. He is best known for his work on founding the field of human–computer interaction, particularly ...
of
Augmentation Research Center
SRI International's Augmentation Research Center (ARC) was founded in the 1960s by electrical engineer Douglas Engelbart to develop and experiment with new tools and techniques for collaboration and information processing.
The main product to come ...
(ARC) first expressed his thoughts to pursue his objective of developing both hardware and software computer technology to "augment" human intelligence by pondering how to adapt the underlying principles of the
planimeter
A planimeter, also known as a platometer, is a measuring instrument used to determine the area of an arbitrary two-dimensional shape.
Construction
There are several kinds of planimeters, but all operate in a similar way. The precise way in whic ...
to inputting X- and Y-coordinate data, and envisioned something like the cursor of a
mouse
A mouse ( : mice) is a small rodent. Characteristically, mice are known to have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail, and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (''Mus musculus' ...
he initially called a "bug", which, in a "3-point" form, could have a "drop point and 2 orthogonal wheels".
He wrote that the "bug" would be "easier" and "more natural" to use, and unlike a stylus, it would stay still when let go, which meant it would be "much better for coordination with the keyboard."
According to Roger Bates, a young hardware designer at ARC under
Bill English
Sir Simon William English (born 30 December 1961) is a New Zealand former National Party politician who served as the 39th prime minister of New Zealand from 2016 to 2017 and as the 17th deputy prime minister of New Zealand and minister of f ...
, the cursor on the screen was for some unknown reason also referred to as "CAT" at the time, which led to calling the new pointing device a "mouse" as well.
Text cursor
![Windows Command Prompt](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/Windows_Command_Prompt.png)
In most
command-line interface
A command-line interpreter or command-line processor uses a command-line interface (CLI) to receive commands from a user in the form of lines of text. This provides a means of setting parameters for the environment, invoking executables and pro ...
s or
text editor
A text editor is a type of computer program that edits plain text. Such programs are sometimes known as "notepad" software (e.g. Windows Notepad). Text editors are provided with operating systems and software development packages, and can be us ...
s, the text cursor, also known as a
caret
Caret is the name used familiarly for the character , provided on most QWERTY keyboards by typing . The symbol has a variety of uses in programming and mathematics. The name "caret" arose from its visual similarity to the original proofreade ...
, is an
underscore
An underscore, ; also called an underline, low line, or low dash; is a line drawn under a segment of text. In proofreading, underscoring is a convention that says "set this text in italic type", traditionally used on Manuscript (publishing), man ...
, a solid rectangle, or a vertical line, which may be flashing or steady, indicating where text will be placed when entered (the insertion point). In
text mode
Text mode is a computer display mode in which content is internally represented on a computer screen in terms of characters rather than individual pixels. Typically, the screen consists of a uniform rectangular grid of ''character cells'', each ...
displays, it was not possible to show a vertical bar between characters to show where the new text would be inserted, so an underscore or block cursor was used instead. In situations where a block was used, the block was usually created by inverting the pixels of the character using the boolean math
exclusive or
Exclusive or or exclusive disjunction is a logical operation that is true if and only if its arguments differ (one is true, the other is false).
It is symbolized by the prefix operator J and by the infix operators XOR ( or ), EOR, EXOR, , ...
function. On
text editor
A text editor is a type of computer program that edits plain text. Such programs are sometimes known as "notepad" software (e.g. Windows Notepad). Text editors are provided with operating systems and software development packages, and can be us ...
s and
word processor
A word processor (WP) is a device or computer program that provides for input, editing, formatting, and output of text, often with some additional features.
Word processor (electronic device), Early word processors were stand-alone devices ded ...
s of modern design on
bitmap
In computing, a bitmap is a mapping from some domain (for example, a range of integers) to bits. It is also called a bit array
A bit array (also known as bitmask, bit map, bit set, bit string, or bit vector) is an array data structure that c ...
ped displays, the vertical bar is typically used instead.
In a typical
text editing application, the cursor can be moved by pressing various keys. These include the four
arrow keys
Arrow keys or cursor movement keys are buttons on a computer keyboard that are either programmed or designated to move the cursor (computers), cursor in a specified direction.
The term "cursor movement key" is distinct from "arrow key" in that ...
, the
Page Up and Page Down keys, the
Home key
A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. H ...
, the
End key
The key is a key commonly found on desktop and laptop keyboards. The key has the opposite effect of the Home key. In some limited-size keyboards where the key is missing the same functionality can be reached via the key combination of or Con ...
, and various key combinations involving a
modifier key
In computing, a modifier key is a special key (or combination) on a computer keyboard that temporarily modifies the normal action of another key when pressed together. By themselves, modifier keys usually do nothing; that is, pressing any of the , ...
such as the
Control key
In computing, a Control key is a modifier key which, when pressed in conjunction with another key, performs a special operation (for example, ); similar to the Shift key, the Control key rarely performs any function when pressed by itself. ...
. The position of the cursor also may be changed by moving the mouse pointer to a different location in the document and clicking.
The blinking of the text cursor is usually temporarily suspended when it is being moved; otherwise, the cursor may change position when it is not visible, making its location difficult to follow.
The concept of a blinking cursor can be attributed to Charles Kiesling Sr. via US Patent 3531796, filed in August 1967.
Some interfaces use an underscore or thin vertical bar to indicate that the user is in
insert mode Insert may refer to:
*Insert (advertising)
*Insert (composites)
*Insert (effects processing)
*Insert (filmmaking)
*Insert key on a computer keyboard, used to switch between insert mode and overtype mode
*Insert (molecular biology)
*Insert (SQL)
*Fi ...
, a
mode
Mode ( la, modus meaning "manner, tune, measure, due measure, rhythm, melody") may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* '' MO''D''E (magazine)'', a defunct U.S. women's fashion magazine
* ''Mode'' magazine, a fictional fashion magazine which is ...
where text will be
inserted in the middle of the existing text, and a larger block to indicate that the user is in
overtype
The Insert key (often abbreviated Ins) is a key commonly found on computer keyboards.
It is primarily used to switch between the two text-entering modes on a personal computer (PC) or word processor:
* overtype mode, in which the cursor, when ...
mode, where inserted text will overwrite existing text. In this way, a block cursor may be seen as a piece of selected text one character wide, since typing will replace the text "in" the cursor with the new text.
Bi-directional text
A vertical line text cursor with a small left-pointing or right-pointing appendage is for indicating the direction of text flow on systems that support
bi-directional text
A bidirectional text contains two text directionalities, right-to-left (RTL) and left-to-right (LTR). It generally involves text containing different types of alphabets, but may also refer to boustrophedon, which is changing text direction in eac ...
, and is thus usually known among programmers as a 'bidi cursor'. In some cases, the cursor may split into two parts, each indicating where left-to-right and right-to-left text would be inserted.
Pointer
![mouse-cursor-hand-pointer](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/Mouse-cursor-hand-pointer.svg)
In
computing
Computing is any goal-oriented activity requiring, benefiting from, or creating computing machinery. It includes the study and experimentation of algorithmic processes, and development of both hardware and software. Computing has scientific, e ...
, a pointer or mouse cursor (as part of a
personal computer
A personal computer (PC) is a multi-purpose microcomputer whose size, capabilities, and price make it feasible for individual use. Personal computers are intended to be operated directly by an end user, rather than by a computer expert or tec ...
WIMP
Wimp, WIMP, or Wimps may refer to:
Science and technology
* Weakly interacting massive particle, a hypothetical particle of dark matter
* WIMP (computing), the "window, icon, menu, pointer" paradigm
* WIMP (software bundle), the web stack of Wind ...
style of interaction)
is a symbol or graphical image on the
computer monitor
A computer monitor is an output device that displays information in pictorial or textual form. A discrete monitor comprises a visual display, support electronics, power supply, housing, electrical connectors, and external user controls.
The di ...
or other
display device
A display device is an output device for presentation of information in visual or tactile form (the latter used for example in tactile electronic displays for blind people). When the input information that is supplied has an electrical signal the ...
that echoes movements of the
pointing device
A pointing device is a human interface device that allows a user to input spatial (i.e., continuous and multi-dimensional) data to a computer. CAD systems and graphical user interfaces (GUI) allow the user to control and provide data to t ...
, commonly a
mouse
A mouse ( : mice) is a small rodent. Characteristically, mice are known to have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail, and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (''Mus musculus' ...
,
touchpad
A touchpad or trackpad is a pointing device featuring a tactile sensor, a specialized surface that can translate the motion and position of a user's fingers to a relative position on the operating system that is made output to the screen. Touchp ...
, or
stylus
A stylus (plural styli or styluses) is a writing utensil or a small tool for some other form of marking or shaping, for example, in pottery. It can also be a computer accessory that is used to assist in navigating or providing more precision w ...
pen. It signals the point where actions of the user take place. It can be used in
text-based
In computing, text-based user interfaces (TUI) (alternately terminal user interfaces, to reflect a dependence upon the properties of computer terminals and not just text), is a retronym describing a type of user interface (UI) common as an ear ...
or
graphical user interface
The GUI ( "UI" by itself is still usually pronounced . or ), graphical user interface, is a form of user interface that allows users to interact with electronic devices through graphical icons and audio indicator such as primary notation, inste ...
s to select and move other elements. It is distinct from the cursor, which responds to
keyboard
Keyboard may refer to:
Text input
* Keyboard, part of a typewriter
* Computer keyboard
** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping
** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware
Music
* Musi ...
input. The cursor may also be repositioned using the pointer.
The pointer commonly appears as an angled arrow (angled because historically that improved appearance on low-resolution screens), but it can vary within different programs or
operating system
An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware, software resources, and provides common services for computer programs.
Time-sharing operating systems schedule tasks for efficient use of the system and may also in ...
s. The use of a pointer is employed when the input method, or pointing device, is a device that can move fluidly across a screen and select or highlight objects on the screen. In GUIs where the input method relies on hard keys, such as the five-way key on many
mobile phone
A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link whil ...
s, there is no pointer employed, and instead, the GUI relies on a clear
focus
Focus, or its plural form foci may refer to:
Arts
* Focus or Focus Festival, former name of the Adelaide Fringe arts festival in South Australia Film
*''Focus'', a 1962 TV film starring James Whitmore
* ''Focus'' (2001 film), a 2001 film based ...
state.
The pointer or mouse cursor echoes movements of the
pointing device
A pointing device is a human interface device that allows a user to input spatial (i.e., continuous and multi-dimensional) data to a computer. CAD systems and graphical user interfaces (GUI) allow the user to control and provide data to t ...
, commonly a
mouse
A mouse ( : mice) is a small rodent. Characteristically, mice are known to have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail, and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (''Mus musculus' ...
,
touchpad
A touchpad or trackpad is a pointing device featuring a tactile sensor, a specialized surface that can translate the motion and position of a user's fingers to a relative position on the operating system that is made output to the screen. Touchp ...
or
trackball
A trackball is a pointing device consisting of a ball held by a socket containing sensors to detect a rotation of the ball about two axes—like an upside-down ball mouse with an exposed protruding ball. Users roll the ball to position the on-s ...
.
This kind of cursor is used to
manipulate
Manipulation may refer to:
*Manipulation (psychology) - the action of manipulating someone in a clever or unscrupulous way
*Crowd manipulation - use of crowd psychology to direct the behavior of a crowd toward a specific action
::*Internet manipu ...
elements of
graphical user interface
The GUI ( "UI" by itself is still usually pronounced . or ), graphical user interface, is a form of user interface that allows users to interact with electronic devices through graphical icons and audio indicator such as primary notation, inste ...
s such as menus,
button
A button is a fastener that joins two pieces of fabric together by slipping through a loop or by sliding through a buttonhole.
In modern clothing and fashion design, buttons are commonly made of plastic but also may be made of metal, wood, ...
s,
scrollbar
A scrollbar is an interaction technique or widget in which continuous text, pictures, or any other content can be scrolled in a predetermined direction (up, down, left, or right) on a computer display, window, or viewport so that all of the con ...
s or any other
widget. It may be called a "mouse pointer" because the mouse is the dominant type of pointing device used with
desktop computer
A desktop computer (often abbreviated desktop) is a personal computer designed for regular use at a single location on or near a desk due to its size and power requirements. The most common configuration has a case that houses the power supply ...
s.
Appearance
![Cursor-design1-hourglass](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/Cursor-design1-hourglass.svg)
The pointer ''hotspot'' is the active pixel of the pointer, used to target a
click
Click, Klick and Klik may refer to:
Airlines
* Click Airways, a UAE airline
* Clickair, a Spanish airline
* MexicanaClick, a Mexican airline
Art, entertainment, and media Fictional characters
* Klick (fictional species), an alien race in the g ...
or
drag. The hotspot is normally along the pointer edges or in its center, though it may reside at any location in the pointer.
In many GUIs, moving the pointer around the screen may reveal other
screen hotspot
A screen hotspot, in computing, provides a special area on the display screen of a computer for hyperlinking or for other GUI-based activity (such as re-direction, pop-up display, macro execution, etc.).
Hotspots may not look visually distinct; ...
s as the pointer changes shape depending on the circumstances. For example:
* In-the text that the user can
select or edit, the pointer changes to a vertical bar with little cross-bars (or curved
serif
In typography, a serif () is a small line or stroke regularly attached to the end of a larger stroke in a letter or symbol within a particular font or family of fonts. A typeface or "font family" making use of serifs is called a serif typeface ...
-like extensions) at the top and bottom — sometimes called an "
I-beam
An I-beam, also known as H-beam (for universal column, UC), w-beam (for "wide flange"), universal beam (UB), rolled steel joist (RSJ), or double-T (especially in Polish language, Polish, Bulgarian language, Bulgarian, Spanish language, Spanish ...
" since it resembles the cross-section of the construction detail of the same name.
* When displaying a document, the pointer can appear as a hand with all fingers extended allowing scrolling by "pushing" the displayed page around.
* Graphics-editing pointers such as brushes, pencils, or paint buckets may display when the user edits an image.
* On an edge or corner of a
window
A window is an opening in a wall, door, roof, or vehicle that allows the exchange of light and may also allow the passage of sound and sometimes air. Modern windows are usually glazed or covered in some other transparent or translucent materia ...
the pointer usually changes into a double arrow (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) indicating that the user can drag the edge/corner in an indicated direction to adjust the size and shape of the window.
* The corners and edges of the whole screen may also act as hotspots. According to
Fitts's law
Fitts's law (often cited as Fitts' law) is a predictive model of human movement primarily used in human–computer interaction and ergonomics. The law predicts that the time required to rapidly move to a target area is a function of the ratio betw ...
, which predicts the time it takes to reach a target area, moving mouse and stylus pointers to those spots is easy and fast. As the pointer usually stops when reaching a screen edge, the size of those spots can be considered of virtual infinite size, so the hot corners and edges can be reached quickly by throwing the pointer toward the edges.
* While a computer process is performing tasks and cannot accept user input, a wait pointer (an
hourglass
An hourglass (or sandglass, sand timer, sand clock or egg timer) is a device used to measure the passage of time. It comprises two glass bulbs connected vertically by a narrow neck that allows a regulated flow of a substance (historically sand) ...
in
Windows
Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...
before
Vista
Vista usually refers to a distant view.
Vista may also refer to:
Software
*Windows Vista, the line of Microsoft Windows client operating systems released in 2006 and 2007
*VistA, (Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture) ...
and many other systems, spinning ring in
Windows Vista
Windows Vista is a major release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was the direct successor to Windows XP, which was released five years before, at the time being the longest time span between successive releases of ...
and later, watch in
classic Mac OS
Mac OS (originally System Software; retronym: Classic Mac OS) is the series of operating systems developed for the Macintosh family of personal computers by Apple Computer from 1984 to 2001, starting with System 1 and ending with Mac OS 9. The ...
, or
spinning pinwheel
The spinning pinwheel is a type of throbber or variation of the mouse pointer used in Apple's macOS to indicate that an application is busy.
Officially, the ''macOS Human Interface Guidelines'' refers to it as the spinning wait cursor, but it ...
in macOS) is displayed when the mouse pointer is in the corresponding window.
* When the pointer hovers over a
hyperlink
In computing, a hyperlink, or simply a link, is a digital reference to data that the user can follow or be guided by clicking or tapping. A hyperlink points to a whole document or to a specific element within a document. Hypertext is text wit ...
, a
mouseover
In computing, a mouseover, or hover box is a graphical control element that is activated when the user moves or hovers the pointer over a trigger area, usually with a mouse, but also possible with a digital pen. Mouseover control elements are co ...
event changes the pointer into a hand with an outstretched index finger. Often some informative text about the link may pop up in a
tooltip
The tooltip, also known as infotip or hint, is a common graphical user interface (GUI) element in which, when hovering over a screen element or component, a text box displays information about that element, such as a description of a button's f ...
, which disappears when the user moves the pointer away. The tooltips revealed in the box depending on the implementation of the
web browser
A web browser is application software for accessing websites. When a user requests a web page from a particular website, the browser retrieves its files from a web server and then displays the page on the user's screen. Browsers are used on ...
; many web browsers will display the "title" of the element, the "alt" attribute, or the non-
standard Standard may refer to:
Symbols
* Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs
* Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification
Norms, conventions or requirements
* Standard (metrology), an object th ...
"tooltips" attribute. This pointer shape was first used for hyperlinks in Apple Computer's
HyperCard
HyperCard is a software application and development kit for Apple Macintosh and Apple IIGS computers. It is among the first successful hypermedia systems predating the World Wide Web.
HyperCard combines a flat-file database with a graphical, fl ...
.
* In
Windows 7
Windows 7 is a major release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was released to manufacturing on July 22, 2009, and became generally available on October 22, 2009. It is the successor to Windows Vista, released nearly ...
, when Windows Touch was introduced in the mainstream to make Windows more touch-friendly, a touch pointer is displayed instead of the mouse pointer. The touch pointer can be switched off in Control Panel and resembles a small diamond shape. When the screen is touched a blue ripple appears around the touch pointer to provide visual touch feedback. When swiping to scroll etc., the touch pointer would follow the finger as it moves. If touch and hold to right-click is enabled, touching and holding will show a thick white ring around the touch pointer. When this ring appears, releasing one's finger would perform a right-click.
** If a pen is used the left-click ripple is colorless instead of blue and the right-click ring is a thinner ring that appears closer to the pen tip making contact with the screen. A click (either left or right) will not show the touch pointer, but swiping would still show the pointer which would follow the pen tip.
** Also, the touch pointer would only appear on the desktop once a user has signed in to Windows 7. On the sign-in screen, the mouse cursor would simply jump to the point touched and a left click would be sent on a tap, similar to when a touch input is used on operating systems before Windows 7.
* In
Windows 8
Windows 8 is a major release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was Software release life cycle#Release to manufacturing (RTM), released to manufacturing on August 1, 2012; it was subsequently made available for downl ...
and above, visual touch feedback displays a translucent circle where the finger makes contact with the screen, and a square when attempting to touch and hold to right-click. A swipe is shown by a translucent line of varying thickness. Feedback can be switched on and off in Pen and Touch settings of the
Control Panel in
Windows 8
Windows 8 is a major release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was Software release life cycle#Release to manufacturing (RTM), released to manufacturing on August 1, 2012; it was subsequently made available for downl ...
and
Windows 8.1
Windows 8.1 is a release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was released to manufacturing on August 27, 2013, and broadly released for retail sale on October 17, 2013, about a year after the retail release of its pre ...
or in the
Settings app on
Windows 10
Windows 10 is a major release of Microsoft's Windows NT operating system. It is the direct successor to Windows 8.1, which was released nearly two years earlier. It was released to manufacturing on July 15, 2015, and later to retail on J ...
, and feedback can also be made darker and larger where it needs to be emphasized, such as when presenting. However, the touch pointer is normally less commonly visible in touchscreen environments of Windows operating systems later than Windows 7.
* The mouse-over or hover gesture can also show a
tooltip
The tooltip, also known as infotip or hint, is a common graphical user interface (GUI) element in which, when hovering over a screen element or component, a text box displays information about that element, such as a description of a button's f ...
, which presents information about what the pointer is hovering over; the information is a description of what selecting an active element is for or what it will do. The tooltip appears only when stationary over the content. A common use of viewing the information is when browsing the internet to know the destination of a
link before selecting it, if the
URL
A Uniform Resource Locator (URL), colloquially termed as a web address, is a reference to a web resource that specifies its location on a computer network and a mechanism for retrieving it. A URL is a specific type of Uniform Resource Identifie ...
of the text is not recognizable.
** When using touch or a pen with Windows, hovering when supported or performing a set gesture or flick may show the tooltip
I-beam pointer
![I-beam pointer](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/45/I-beam_pointer.png)
The I-beam pointer (also called the I-cursor) is a cursor shaped like a
serif
In typography, a serif () is a small line or stroke regularly attached to the end of a larger stroke in a letter or symbol within a particular font or family of fonts. A typeface or "font family" making use of serifs is called a serif typeface ...
ed capital letter "I". The purpose of this cursor is to indicate that the text beneath the cursor can be highlighted and sometimes inserted or changed.
Pointer trails and animation
can be used to enhance its visibility during movement. Pointer trails are a feature of GUI
operating system
An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware, software resources, and provides common services for computer programs.
Time-sharing operating systems schedule tasks for efficient use of the system and may also in ...
s to enhance the visibility of the pointer. Although disabled by default, pointer trails have been an option in every version of Microsoft Windows since
Windows 3.1x
Windows 3.1 is a major release of Microsoft Windows. It was released to manufacturing on April 6, 1992, as a successor to Windows 3.0.
Like its predecessors, the Windows 3.1 series ran as a shell on top of MS-DOS. Codenamed Janus, Windows 3. ...
.
When pointer trails are active and the mouse or stylus is moved, the system waits a moment before removing the pointer image from the old location on the screen. A copy of the pointer persists at every point that the pointer has visited at that moment, resulting in a snake-like trail of pointer icons that follow the actual pointer. When the user stops moving the mouse or removes the stylus from the screen, the trails disappear and the pointer returns to normal.
Pointer trails have been provided as a feature mainly for users with
poor vision and for screens where low visibility may become an issue, such as
LCD screens
A liquid-crystal display (LCD) is a flat-panel display or other electronically modulated optical device that uses the light-modulating properties of liquid crystals combined with polarizers. Liquid crystals do not emit light directly but in ...
in bright sunlight.
In Windows, pointer trails may be enabled in the
Control Panel, usually under the
Mouse
A mouse ( : mice) is a small rodent. Characteristically, mice are known to have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail, and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (''Mus musculus' ...
applet.
Introduced with
Windows NT
Windows NT is a proprietary graphical operating system
An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware, software resources, and provides common services for computer programs.
Time-sharing operating systems sc ...
, an ''
animated pointer'' was a small looping animation that was played at the location of the pointer.
This is used, for example, to provide a visual cue that the computer is busy with a task.
After their introduction, many animated pointers became available for download from third party suppliers. Unfortunately, animated pointers are not without their problems. In addition to imposing a small additional load on the CPU, the animated pointer routines did introduce a
security vulnerability
Vulnerabilities are flaws in a computer system that weaken the overall security of the device/system. Vulnerabilities can be weaknesses in either the hardware itself, or the software that runs on the hardware. Vulnerabilities can be exploited by ...
. A
client-side
Client-side refers to operations that are performed by the client in a client–server relationship in a computer network.
General concepts
Typically, a client is a computer application, such as a web browser, that runs on a user's local compute ...
exploit known as the ''Windows Animated Cursor Remote Code Execution Vulnerability'' used a
buffer overflow
In information security and programming, a buffer overflow, or buffer overrun, is an anomaly whereby a program, while writing data to a buffer, overruns the buffer's boundary and overwrites adjacent memory locations.
Buffers are areas of memory ...
vulnerability to load
malicious code
Malware (a portmanteau for ''malicious software'') is any software intentionally designed to cause disruption to a computer, server, client, or computer network, leak private information, gain unauthorized access to information or systems, depr ...
via the animated cursor load routine of Windows.
Editor
A pointer editor is
software
Software is a set of computer programs and associated documentation and data. This is in contrast to hardware, from which the system is built and which actually performs the work.
At the lowest programming level, executable code consists ...
for creating and editing static or animated mouse pointers. Pointer editors usually support both static and animated mouse cursors, but there are exceptions. An animated cursor is a sequence of static cursors representing individual frames of an animation. A pointer editor should be able to:
* Modify pixels of a static cursor or each frame in an animated cursor.
* Set the ''hot spot'' of a static cursor or a frame of an animated cursor. The hot spot is a designated pixel that defines the clicking point.
* Add or remove frames in an animated cursor and set their animation speed.
Pointer editors are occasionally combined with
icon editor
In computing, an icon is a pictogram or ideogram displayed on a computer screen in order to help the user navigate a computer system. The icon itself is a quickly comprehensible symbol of a software tool, function, or a data file, accessible on th ...
s because computer icons and cursors share similar properties. Both contain small raster images and the file format used to store icons and static cursors in Microsoft Windows is similar.
Despite the similarities, pointer editors differ from icon editors in several ways. While icons contain multiple images with different sizes and color depths, static cursors (for Windows) only contain a single image. Pointer editors must provide the means to set the hot spot. Animated pointer editors additionally must be able to handle animations.
3D cursor
![Blender3DCursor](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/Blender3DCursor.png)
The idea of a cursor being used as a marker or insertion point for new data or transformations, such as rotation, can be extended to a
3D modeling
In 3D computer graphics, 3D modeling is the process of developing a mathematical coordinate-based representation of any surface of an object (inanimate or living) in three dimensions via specialized software by manipulating edges, vertices, an ...
environment.
Blender
A blender (sometimes called a mixer or liquidiser in British English) is a kitchen appliance, kitchen and laboratory appliance used to mix, crush, purée or emulsion, emulsify food and other substances. A stationary blender consists of a blender ...
, for instance, uses a 3D cursor to determine where operations such as placing
meshes
A mesh is a barrier made of connected strands of metal, fiber, or other flexible or ductile materials. A mesh is similar to a web or a net in that it has many attached or woven strands.
Types
* A plastic mesh may be extruded, oriented, ex ...
are to take place in the 3D viewport.
See also
*
Susan Kare
Susan Kare ( "care"; born February 5, 1954) is an American artist and graphic designer best known for her interface elements and typeface contributions to the first Apple Macintosh from 1983 to 1986. She was employee #10 and Creative Director at ...
, designer of several of the common cursor shapes
*
Microangelo Toolset
Microangelo Toolset is a collection of software utilities (Studio, Explorer, Librarian, Animator, On Display) for editing Microsoft Windows computer icons and pointers.
Microangelo Toolset is one of the best known icon editing and creation softw ...
*
Mouse Sonar
*
Screen hotspot
A screen hotspot, in computing, provides a special area on the display screen of a computer for hyperlinking or for other GUI-based activity (such as re-direction, pop-up display, macro execution, etc.).
Hotspots may not look visually distinct; ...
*
Throbber
A throbber, also known as a loading icon, is an animated graphical control element used to show that a computer program is performing an action in the background (such as downloading content, conducting intensive calculations or communicating w ...
*
Tooltip
The tooltip, also known as infotip or hint, is a common graphical user interface (GUI) element in which, when hovering over a screen element or component, a text box displays information about that element, such as a description of a button's f ...
*
Cursorial
A cursorial organism is one that is adapted specifically to run. An animal can be considered cursorial if it has the ability to run fast (e.g. cheetah) or if it can keep a constant speed for a long distance (high endurance). "Cursorial" is often u ...
References
External links
Creating and controlling browser cursorsCross-browser CSS custom cursorsWindows Desktop Application Design Guidelines: Common Pointer ShapesApple Human Interface Guidelines: Pointers
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cursor (Computers)
Graphical user interface elements
User interfaces
User interface techniques
Virtual reality
Human communication
Human–machine interaction