In computing, a mouse is a pointing device that functions by detecting two-dimensional motion relative to its supporting surface. Physically, a mouse consists of an object held under one of the user's hands, with one or more buttons. The mouse sometimes features other elements, such as "wheels", which allow the user to perform various system-dependent operations, or extra buttons or features that can add more control or dimensional input. The mouse's motion typically translates into the motion of a pointer on a display, which allows for fine control of a graphical user interface. Naming The earliest known publication of the term mouse as a computer pointing device is in Bill English's 1965 publication "Computer-Aided Display Control". Early mice The trackball, a related pointing device, was invented by Tom Cranston, Fred Longstaff and Kenyon Taylor working on the Royal Canadian Navy's DATAR project in 1952. It used a standard Canadian five- pin bowling ball. It was not patented, as it was a secret military project. Variants Mechanical mice German company Telefunken published on their early ball mouse, called "Rollkugel" (German for "rolling ball"), on October 2, 1968. The ball mouse replaced the external wheels with a single ball that could rotate in any direction. It came as part of the hardware package of the Xerox Alto computer. Perpendicular chopper wheels housed inside the mouse's body chopped beams of light on the way to light sensors, thus detecting in their turn the motion of the ball. This variant of the mouse resembled an inverted trackball and became the predominant form used with personal computers throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Optical and laser mice An optical computer mouse or "optic mouse" uses a light-emitting diode and photodiodes to detect movement relative to a surface, unlike a mechanical mouse which has a ball which rotates orthogonal shafts which drive chopper wheels for distance measurement. Inertial and gyroscopic mice Often called "air mice" since they do not require a surface to operate, inertial mice use a tuning fork or other accelerometer to detect rotary movement for every axis supported. 3D mice Also known as bats,[26] flying mice, or wands,[27] these devices generally function through ultrasound and provide at least three degrees of freedom. Probably the best known example would be3Dconnexion/Logitech's SpaceMouse from the early 1990s. In the late 1990s Kantek introduced the 3D RingMouse. This wireless mouse was worn on a ring around a finger, which enabled the thumb to access three buttons. The mouse was tracked in three dimensions by a base station.[28] Despite a certain appeal, it was finally discontinued because it did not provide sufficient resolution. A recent consumer 3D pointing device is the Wii Remote. Tactile mice In 2000, Logitech introduced the "tactile mouse", which contained a small actuator that made the mouse vibrate. Such a mouse can augment user-interfaces with haptic feedback, such as giving feedback when crossing a window boundary. To surf by touch requires the user to be able to feel depth or hardness; this ability was realized with the first electrorheological tactile mice[31] but never marketed. The 1st Apple mouse .