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Microsoft Mouse

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Microsoft Mouse (serial variant)
      Design firmMicrosoft
      ManufacturerAlps Electric
      IntroducedMay 2, 1983; 43 years ago (1983-05-02)
      Cost$195 (= $630 in 2025)
      TypeComputer mouse
      PortsDE-9, DB-25

      The Microsoft Mouse, nicknamed the green-eyed mouse,[1] is a computer mouse developed by Microsoft and released in 1983. It was the company's first ever mouse,[2] designed for use on the IBM Personal Computer. It was bundled with the first version of its Microsoft Word word processing software and a number of other software, intended to get users familiar with the then-abstract concept of the cursor pointing mouse device. The Microsoft Mouse has a pair of green buttons, and as with other mice at the time, it uses a steel ball for tracking.[3]

      Development

      [edit]

      While Microsoft was primarily a software company, the success of their 1980 product SoftCard for the Apple II indicated to its CEO Bill Gates that temporary hardware investments can prove beneficial for Microsoft software (in this case Microsoft BASIC).[4] The company was developing major software projects Microsoft Word for MS-DOS as well as Windows, but realized that the lack of mice popularity and familiarity would prevent take-up of their software making use of a graphical cursor. The Microsoft hardware group was formed in 1982 to build a pointing mouse compatible with the IBM Personal Computer and force the industry to adapt.[3] The mouse followed the release onto market of another by Mouse Systems in 1982.

      [..] even on a character-mode display, being able to move the cursor around in a natural way, we thought was a big advantage. We tied it to Word so that we had a bundle with Word and the Mouse. But then people who didn't like the Mouse thought they shouldn't buy Word. So, it was a little bit of a problem.

      — Bill Gates, Smithsonian Institution interview
      The Microsoft Mouse

      Microsoft thought that the two-button concept, as seen on the Xerox Star (and unlike the three-button Xerox Alto or one-button Apple Lisa mice) was "the right approach", according to Gates.[5] Microsoft paid patent fees to Xerox and SRI International, where the mouse was invented.[5] The mouse was released on May 2, 1983 for an initial price of US$195 (equivalent to $630 in 2025) including its bundled software.[6][7][8] The Japanese company Alps Electric produced the mouse. The initial version was a bus mouse with a 9-pin DE-9 connector connecting to a Intel 8255 based Microsoft ISA bus expansion card. In February 1984,[9] a serial version was released with a DB-25 connector.[3]

      Software

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      The first generation Microsoft Mouse was bundled with the first versions of Microsoft Word as well as the mouse-oriented text editor Notepad, an on-screen teaching tutorial, a musical piano program, and a graphic game called “Life”.[9] A few months later, version 2.0 of the mouse software came out which introduced one of the first home computer color bitmap creation programs, called “Doodle”.[9] In 1985, Mouse 3.0 update introduced support for the IBM AT PC and new high-resolution graphics devices. Then in version 4.0, Doodle was replaced by a rebadged copy of ZSoft PC Paintbrush called “PC Paintbrush”.[9] This would later be re-tooled and included with Windows 1.0, and formed the basis for Microsoft Paint.

      All versions of the Microsoft Mouse could be used with MS-DOS compatible systems[10][11][3] as well as Xenix.[citation needed]

      Reception

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      According to Bill Gates, in a 1993 interview with the Smithsonian Institution, 50,000 units of the Mouse were ordered and "it took over a year to sell the first 50,000".[12][3] There has been an unverified claim, likely a myth, on some websites that Microsoft built 100,000 units with only 5,000 mice sold to end users.[5]

      Successors

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      Second generation Microsoft Mouse

      [edit]

      In October 1985, Microsoft introduced the "gray-eyed" Microsoft Mouse. It doubled the resolution and sensitivity to 200 ppi (points per inch), requiring less surface area for movement. The mouse also had a redesigned body and a rubber-covered steel ball replaced the solid steel ball of the first mouse.[9] The gray-eyed Mouse shipped with Microsoft Mouse 5.0 software. In 1986, a variant was released using the InPort interface, and in 1987 a variant was released using the PS/2 port for the then newly released IBM PS/2 computers.[9]

      Third generation Microsoft Mouse

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      Microsoft's third generation mouse (proprietary InPort version)

      In September 1987, the third generation "dove bar" Microsoft Mouse (so called for the curved palm rest's resemblance to a Dove soap bar) was introduced, in variants for Microsoft's InPort, serial port and PS/2 port. It was designed by Matrix Product Design and its shape made to have softer angles. The trackball was moved to the front.[9]

      While mice sales started gaining traction by 1987, the amount of users of PC clones using mice was still as low as one in ten at this time.[13]

      Microsoft Mouse 2.0

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      Microsoft Mouse 2.0 (serial version)

      The next evolution in Microsoft's flagship mouse product was the Microsoft Mouse 2.0, introduced on April 27, 1993.[14][15] Nicknamed the "kidney bean" mouse, it was an ergonomic shape with a curving sloped ridge for right-handed users, radically different from the symmetrical and blocky mice typically in use at the time by computer users. Designed by Steve Kaneko and Edie Adams at Microsoft, it was the result of a $10 million ergonomic research study.[14][16]

      The Microsoft Mouse 2.0 came in both DE-9 serial and in PS/2 port variants. Initially it was released in a glossy shade but a matte version was later made as well with the name 2.0a. This mouse became very popular.[17] It increased public awareness for "ergonomic" hardware and Microsoft also released its Natural Keyboard soon after. The Microsoft Mouse 2.0 design served as the basis for the IntelliMouse, which debuted in 1996.[16]

      Legacy

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      Microsoft credits the original Microsoft Mouse as the company's entry into hardware peripherals.[18] The original trio released during the 1980s are all predecessors for a wide variety of mice developed by Microsoft's hardware division since then, its diversification beginning with the trackball "Microsoft BallPoint Mouse" in 1991 and since then products including the Microsoft Home line (from 1995), IntelliMouse line (from 1996), Natural Wireless Laser Mouse (2006), SideWinder line, the Arc Mouse (from 2008), Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Mouse (from 2013) and others. In January 2024, Microsoft announced that it would license the design and manufacturing of its current mice (as well as keyboards) products to Incase, as part of an effort to focus more on its premium Surface-branded accessories.[19]

      See also

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      References

      [edit]
      1. ↑ Source, Microsoft (2003-05-02). "Microsoft Hardware Celebrates 20 Years of Product Innovation". Source. Retrieved 2026-10-02.
      2. ↑ Markoff, John (1983-05-30). "Mouse and new WP program join Microsoft product lineup". InfoWorld. p. 10. Retrieved 2024-12-29.
      3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Microsoft Green Eyed Mouse ~ o l d m o u s e .c o m ~". www.oldmouse.com. Archived from the original on 2017-05-08. Retrieved 2017-05-05.
      4. ↑ Edwards, Benj (2012-07-15). "The Secret History of Microsoft Hardware". PCMAG. Retrieved 2026-10-02.
      5. 1 2 3 "May 2: Microsoft Introduces 2-Button Mouse | This Day in History | Computer History Museum". www.computerhistory.org. Retrieved 2026-10-02.
      6. ↑ "The good, bad and ugly history of Microsoft hardware". PCWorld. Retrieved 2017-05-04.
      7. ↑ Weber, Harrison (2012-05-28). "30 Years of Microsoft Hardware: From Mice to Men". The Next Web. Retrieved 2017-05-04.
      8. ↑ "Winworld: Microsoft Mouse 1.0". Winworld. 2024-03-03. Retrieved 2024-03-03.
      9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Microsoft Mouse Programmer's Reference (Microsoft Press, 1989)
      10. ↑ "What did Microsoft's first computer mouse look like? It was created exactly 40 years ago (photos)". NEWS.am TECH - Innovations and science. 2023-05-12. Retrieved 2024-03-04.
      11. ↑ "The History of Microsoft - 1983". Channel 9. Archived from the original on 2019-07-02. Retrieved 2017-05-05.
      12. ↑ "Interview with Bill Gates". americanhistory.si.edu. Retrieved 2026-10-02.
      13. ↑ Atkinson, Paul (2007-07-01). "The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men: The Computer Mouse in the History of Computing". Design Issues. 23: 46–61. doi:10.1162/desi.2007.23.3.46.
      14. 1 2 "Why Microsoft Resurrected A 15-Year-Old Mouse". Fast Company.
      15. ↑ jwmunn (2009-06-11). "Sejarah Microsoft - 1993". learn.microsoft.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2026-10-02.
      16. 1 2 Ledbetter, Carl (2025). "Achievement unlocked: 30 years at Microsoft. Product 1 of 30". LinkedIn. Retrieved 2026-10-02.
      17. ↑ McCracken, Harry (2008-12-09). "The Mouse That Soared". Technologizer by Harry McCracken. Retrieved 2026-10-02.
      18. ↑ Source, Microsoft (2003-05-02). "Microsoft Hardware Celebrates 20 Years of Product Innovation". Source. Retrieved 2026-10-02.
      19. ↑ Warren, Tom (2024-01-05). "Microsoft's keyboards and mice will live on under a unique new partnership". The Verge. Retrieved 2024-01-05.

      Further reading

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