Majority of the people who use computers today are quite familiar with (and probably cannot live without) the mouse, especially for those who are still using a desktop computer. In 1963, a Stanford Research Institute researcher named Douglas Engelbart created the prototype of a pointing device. It was christened “mouse” because of its shape and form and due to the cord that was attached to the back end of the device. When it became a part of the computer desktop, it became so indispensable that many functions and features in a computer required its use in order to be accessed.

Clicking on a link, for example, or making sweeping gestures to copy and paste or even doodling on a drawing program was impossible to do without the mouse. However, as gadgets evolved to allow for more independence for the user, retirement seems inevitable for the mouse. With better and faster technologies being created every few months or so, is the computer mouse heading towards obsolescence?

From humble beginnings to greatness to nothingness?

The first models of the device we now know as the mouse were big, chunky and shaped like a rectangular box. The device patented by Engelbart was originally known by a longer name – XY Position Indicator for a Display System. This device initially made an appearance next to a computer system in 1973, via Xerox’s Alto computer. Those who know their computer history know that this system was not successful, so the mouse went largely unnoticed, that is, until it was used on Apple’s Lisa, a personal computer that came out in the early 80s. From then on, it became a mandatory accessory, especially for desktops. These days, there are mechanical mice, wireless laser and optical mice, tactile mice and gyroscopic mice, among others.

However, even with the variety of choices and the much improved responsiveness of the device, these do not seem enough to allow the mighty mouse to continue to reign in the next decade. What seems to be the latest obsession among gadget designers and manufacturers is to create a software or application that will give users complete freedom and render the mouse redundant and therefore useless. Microsoft, Apple and even Google, along with manufacturers of hardware and televisions are looking into producing a personal computer that responds to hand gestures and movements of certain body parts in order to perform specific actions.

What seems to be the stuff of science fiction films will probably be within reach of the general masses in just a few years. Microsoft’s Kinect for Windows PCs, for example, is a mouse-free and motion sensing input device that tracks movements that correspond to certain actions in the computer. Users do have to make large, sweeping gestures with this technology but it is a step up from the rather limited functions of the mouse. Already, a company known as Leap Motion has made available a device that lets users control a computer simply by using their fingers and hands to make gestures, including incremental ones. Of course, let us not forget the touch screen, the motion detecting device that has made the tablet possible. With so much going on and so many gadgets and tools coming up, the mouse is definitely not going to make the list of some of the must have accessories available.

So is the mouse headed for obsolescence? Probably not in a few years but with the advancement of technology and the demand for better and leaner computers, it may soon become a quaint, useful device that will be left behind in the 21st century.

Peter Lee spends most of his time reading on computers and technology related articles. For more information, check out his blog at Computer How-to Guide or you may follow him on Twitter @com_howtoguide.

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