Attaching an External Unit ..........................................................................
Mice and other external pointing devices are easily attached to any of four
available ports on your laptop:PS/2 port.This port is specifically intended for use with keyboards or
mice. This small round connector was first used on a series of IBM desk-
tops; it is still used to connect some mice and keyboard devices.USB port.This works with any USB device. You can also obtain a small
adapter that permits a pointing device with a PS/2 connector to plug in
to a USB port.
Serial port.Using a serial port may require configuring the device to
work with available memory and system resources.Wireless or infrared port.Many types of pointing device are available in
cordless versions that communicate with a laptop using WiFi or Bluetooth
RF communication or infrared. (Infrared devices were introduced with
much fanfare in the late 1990s but have been largely supplanted by RF
technology. More on this, if you’re interested, in Chapter 14.)For any device other than a standard mouse, you are likely to be asked to
install a small piece of software called a device driveron your system; even
with a simple mouse, there may be extended facilities available in a driver
supplied by the manufacturer. In many instances, the most important part of
a pointing device is the software: The best allow you to customize the assign-
ments for buttons and wheels, choose an online cursor design, and adjust the
sensitivity (how rapidly it moves across the screen). Most software also per-
mits an adjustment of the acceleration of the mouse; you might want it to
begin moving slowly and pick up speed only after you make large strokes
across the screen.Any time you install a new pointing device, and once or twice a year there-
after, make a visit to the device manufacturer’s web site to look for an
updated or improved version of the driver. Make sure that any download
matches the operating system in use on your machine.Chapter 11: Putting Your Finger on Pointing Devices 183