Using a Mouse

PC Topics - Mouse | Windows | Desktop | Built-In | Formatting a Disk | Saving | Keyboard
Mac Topics - Mouse | Windows | Desktop | Built-In | Formatting a Disk | Saving | Keyboard

Using the Mouse

How to hold the Mouse "Let's shake hands." You know how to do that. Reach out and grab the mouse as if you were shaking hands. The rounded top fits into the palm of your hand and the cord extends away from you. Your thumb rests on the left side of the mouse, your index finger rests on the left button, your middle finger rests on the right button, and your remaining two fingers grip the right side of the mouse.

See a picture illustrating how to hold a mouse .

Macintosh users: Skip the part about the left handed mouse and go to the section about clicking a mouse .

"Wait a minute, what about ...?" Suppose you are like Napoleon, Albert Einstein, Susan Brooks or any number of famous left-handed people . All of those people would find the description above backwards. Windows Mouse control panel allows you to compensate for that by reversing the function of the mouse buttons.

Reversing the function of the mouse buttons -

1. Click on the Start button
2. Slide the mouse cursor to Settings and click once with the left mouse button
3. Slide the mouse cursor over to Control Panel and click once with the left mouse button
4. Gently and quickly click twice with the left mouse button on the Mouse icon.


5. Select left-handed from the Mouse Properties pop-up window.
   
   


6. Reverse everything in that first paragraph.

See a picture illustrating how to hold a mouse with your left hand.

Clicking the Mouse

Definitions :

• Clicking - Pressing down gently on the mouse button while holding the mouse perfectly still. The perfectly still part is important, but is not a problem if you press the button gently . New users sometime jerk the mouse as they click because they are trying to click too hard. Instructions which simply say "click," usually mean click with the left mouse button.
• Left-Clicking - Clicking with the index finger. Even if you are left-handed, if you have followed the instructions above and reversed the left and right buttons, you are using the index finger. So, left-click means index finger-click .
• Right-Clicking - Clicking with the middle finger. Even if you are left-handed, if you have followed the instructions above and reversed the left and right buttons, you are using the middle finger. So, right-click means middle finger-click .
• Click and Drag - Gently depress the mouse button and leave it depressed while you move the mouse. If you do this when the tip of your mouse pointer is over an object (title bar, icon, folder, etc.) your mouse pointer drags the object to a new location. When you let go of the mouse button, the object is dropped into a new location. This is almost always done while holding down the left mouse button (index finger button), but there are some times when you may be instruct to click and drag using the right mouse button (middle finger button).

How to use the Mouse  

An excellent, almost playful, exercise is available on the internet to help someone practice their mouse skills. Move your mouse until the pointer moves on top of the colored underlined words in this paragraph. When the pointer turns into a finger stop moving the mouse, and gently click one time on the left side mouse button. After you are finished with the page of exercises , close it and you will come back to this page.

Another mouse skill needed is dragging and dropping . To accomplish that you place the mouse pointer over an object (like a folder or a shortcut), depress the mouse button and slide the mouse. Do not let go of the mouse button until you have moved the object where you want it to be. To practice that skill visit a practice page , scroll to the bottom of the page and look for a red block in a yellow box. Follow the instructions you find there. After practicing that skill, close the window to come back to this page.

Here is another collection of drag and drop activities to help develop early mouse skills - Early Mouse Skills

If you want to do some more click and drag practice, visit Snaith Primary School's Magnetic Poetry section . Click and drag the words to arrange them into a sentence. When you have completed playing ... uh, practicing in the magnetic poetry section, close that browser window to come back to this page.

PC Topics - Mouse | Windows |  Desktop | Built-In | Formatting a Disk | Saving | Keyboard
Mac Topics - Mouse | Windows |  Desktop | Built-In | Formatting a Disk | Saving | Keyboard