Mouse pads are essential for almost every computer user in the world. It comes in various colors, shapes and dimensions. Many take this indispensable IT support tool for granted.
Here’s a list of fun facts and tidbits about mouse pads that you might not know. Send this to a friend and see what he says.
1. The first pad was invented by Jack Kelley in 1969.
2. Mouse pads are formally known as CURSOR CONTROL MECHANISM PADS.
3. Until around the 1980s, pad surfaces were made of vinyl.
4. After the steel ball mouse was coated with silicone, this cloth became popular as the newly accepted pad surface.
5. Glass or polished wood surfaces are not ideal as pad surfaces because they interfere with the smoothness of the mouse.
6. High-end pads are mainly made of high-tech fibers.
7. A mouse pad is also popularly known as a mouse pad.
8. On August 25, 1983, the Oxford English Dictionary included the term ‘mouse pad’ in its Infoworld section.
9. The pad was invented solely to provide computer users with more precision, speed and comfort.
10. One day, pads will become obsolete with the invention of modern optical mice becoming more and more popular.
11. If you cut pieces of tape and stick them to the bottom of your mouse, this will make it glide effortlessly over any pad.
12. The average size of a mouse pad used in offices and homes is 9.25″ x 7.75″.
13. China is the largest supplier of mouse pads.
14. In England, pads are called mouse pads.
15. When Douglas Engelbart of Stanford Research introduced the first mouse in 1968, pads had not yet been invented.
16. Old pads are now widely reused as cabinet door stoppers, placemats, shelf protectors, fish tank supports, computer keyboard wrist rests, drink coasters, and foot braces, to name a few.
17. Laptop pads are also called touch pads.
18. In the Oxford English Dictionary, a mouse pad is described as “a piece of rigid or slightly elastic material on which a computer mouse moves.”
19. In August 2000, the mysmart.com programmable push-button mouse pad was launched, allowing users to navigate web pages as easily as changing channels with a remote control.
20. Eco-friendly mouse pads are made with 95% recycled tires, do not damage optics for superior tracking, are durable and easy to clean.
21. Firefox made its own pads in 2007, available for $5 to promote Firefox in the office and on the road.
22. There are some factions that insist the mouse pad was first invented by Soviet scientist Gregor Vladivostok and later stolen by American nuclear physicist Robert Oppenheimer.
23. According to Rob Bruening, the sole owner of Kustoom Kartoons, many optical mouse users actually “lost” the use of pads after a few months.
24. A heated pad is used to reduce repetitive motion stress and provide potential therapeutic treatment for the user’s hand and wrist while operating a mouse. The pad has a resistance type heating element that is embedded in the pad.