Football field on a ship.

Survival

Nowadays, when it is already difficult to imagine life without a computer, any technology related to it has also become an integral part of our existence. It is quite difficult to use a modern computer and even a laptop without a computer mouse. However, this name for the device that controls the cursor on the screen appeared a little later. But everything is in order.

The history of the creation of a computer mouse begins with the idea of ​​Douglas Engelbart to make a similar manipulator. His goal was to invent a device that could coordinate the actions of man and machine. First of all, the manipulator was not created to control personal computers, but for the needs of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). They needed a device that would allow them to interact interactively with objects on the screen. Engelbart managed to create such a device, which was originally called the “X and Y position indicator.”

Bill English worked with Douglas on the manipulator, and he brought his colleague’s idea to life. The device with a wire connected to it turned out to look like a mouse with a tail. This is where the name “computer mouse” came from. However, the invention did not arouse much interest at NASA, since it was impossible for them to work in zero gravity conditions. Engelbart, unable to find any other use for the device, sold the patent and clearly made it cheaper. He was bought for only 10 thousand dollars. But Engelbart’s colleague Bill English decided not to stop there and talked about the Xerox company’s manipulator. It was there that they first decided to try using a mouse to control a personal computer, but the device was considered unpromising. New stage

in the history of the computer mouse is associated with Steve Jobs, the head of Apple; it was he who saw the potential in English’s invention and immediately bought the license from Stanford University.

It is impossible to imagine any modern computer without a computer mouse, although other input devices have become widespread today - touchpads, touch screens, graphics tablets, and so on. However, the history of the computer mouse does not end; every year new models of these devices appear, differing from their counterparts in the absence of a wire, the presence of additional buttons, more convenient form and weight adjustment using weights. By the way, a computer mouse is currently being developed that will hover above the surface of the table; the creators ironically called this device “Bat”.

60s of the XX century. The personal computer will become a mass device only two decades later, but scientists are already using computers to their full potential. A keyboard is enough to control it - you just need to know the commands. However, the appearance of graphic elements makes inventors think about how to use them more conveniently.
Electrical engineering doctor Douglas Carl Engelbart, sitting at a conference on computer graphics, seems to have a good idea. The screen is an array of pixels arranged vertically and horizontally. To move around it, you can use two disks, each of which is responsible for its own axis. For control, we’ll add a mark to the screen, which will also allow you to interact with the object that is located under it. Over time, this complex description will be relegated to the concept of “click,” but in the 60s the idea was groundbreaking. All that remains is to implement it.

Wood, disks and a boring name

When the US Department of Defense invites Dr. Engelbart to work on a project for an information transmission system, he understands that this cannot be done without a new manipulator. Nobody thinks about design; functionality is more important. That's why the first mouse, introduced on December 9, 1968, looks like a box. The name of the invention is no less clumsy - “ X-Y indicator for data display systems."



There are two disks installed inside the device: one is responsible for horizontal movement, the second is responsible for vertical movement. Perhaps the wooden body of the mouse was cut out with the same disks. The cursor looked like a spot of light, there was no arrow to speak of. There is one button at the top, no more is needed. They started calling the device a mouse almost immediately after the public demonstration - all because of the wire that resembles a tail.

Subsequently, wood was abandoned in favor of plastic, and the number of buttons increased to three. For some time, a module with additional keys was supplied with the mouse. It was located to the left of the keyboard and supported a large number of shortcuts to perform various operations. But even the developers couldn’t remember all the commands, so they quickly abandoned the module.



Sharik opens new directions

I didn't have to ride the mouse discs for long. Already in 1972, Bill English, who had worked with Douglas Engelbart on the wooden prototype, developed a design for Xerox with a trackball inside. The cursor was driven by a metal ball and two rollers, so that the number of possible directions finally became more than four.



The main problem with the ball is constant contamination, even when using a special mat. Old-timers remember that once a stuck cursor was treated by disassembling the mouse and then wiping the insides with alcohol. You could also steal the ball after a computer science lesson.

However, in the 70s there was no problem with the theft of balls, as well as personal computers for the mass user. When the first PC with a mouse included (Xerox 8010) went on sale in 1981, the manipulator was a failure. People were great at using the keyboard, operating the system through a text-based interface, and didn't understand why they would spend $400 (half the average monthly salary in the US at the time!) on a weird box that had so few buttons.

Steve Jobs saved the computer mouse from oblivion.

Apple's revolution

January 1983. The Apple Lisa computer goes on sale, along with a mouse for just $25. Having assessed the potential of the device, Jobs insisted on reducing the price as much as possible. The mouse was developed by engineers from Hovey-Kelley, later renamed IDEO. They created hundreds of prototypes and conducted focus group studies to determine the number of buttons needed and even the click volume.


Thanks to a sharp reduction in cost, the device became widespread, and users began to gradually get used to controlling the graphical interface using the new manipulator. All this could have happened much earlier if Xerox had realized the potential of the device. But none of the managers appreciated the importance of the graphical interface and the options for using the manipulator. All Xerox developments in this direction cost Apple $40,000.

Jobs wouldn't be himself if he didn't pay attention to design. Apple's mouse only had one button, but this did not affect functionality. In subsequent years, the device will receive more and more rounded shapes, change colors, Jobs will personally check the click volume, but the rejection of a large number of buttons will remain unchanged.









Soulless technologies are displacing the ball

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, mouse designs changed, but overall the technology remained the same. The metal ball was replaced with a rubberized one, a scroll wheel appeared, which was developed independently by several people and popularized by Microsoft Corporation. Engineers also worked on the shape, making it more ergonomic, but the main problem - contamination of the ball - was solved only in 1999 with the release of the first mass-produced optical mouse, Microsoft IntelliMouse Explorer.



Actually, the first optical mouse was created back in 1982, but it only worked on a special mouse pad. The reason for this was the optical sensors, which required special shading. At the end of the 20th century, mice with a matrix sensor appeared. They are equipped with a fast video camera that continuously films the surface, determining the direction of movement of the device. LEDs make her work easier. However, such devices were also not entirely universal: the sensor was lost on a mirror or transparent surface, and dust and lint led to errors in movement - for example, slight trembling of the cursor on the screen.

Later, developers began to use a semiconductor laser. This made it possible to increase the speed of movement and reduce the number of errors. Optical LED and laser mice are now the main assortment of computer equipment stores.

The tail is lost

Logitech is more to blame for the fact that some mouse models are left without a tail. Chronicle of crimes:
  • 1984 - Logitech develops the first wireless mouse that operates via infrared.
  • 1991 - Logitech MouseMan Cordless, a wireless mouse based on a 150 kHz radio signal, appears.
  • 1994 - Logitech introduces the next generation of 27 MHz RF wireless mice.
  • 2001 - the first serial wireless mouse Logitech Cordless MouseMan Optical.



The future of the computer mouse

It is unlikely that a revolution will occur in the near future that will radically change the appearance and purpose of the mouse. Manufacturers, of course, experiment with design and even try to promote new transportation technologies, but things almost never go beyond prototypes or rare devices for solving narrow problems. Induction mice, gyroscopic mice - thank you for interesting description possibilities, but this is not a mass product.




What’s more interesting is how the developers play with the number of buttons. Some abandon them completely, offering multi-touch, others add new keys with the ability to assign specific commands to them. But, at least in the 21st century, no one voluntarily refuses a computer mouse in any of its manifestations, preferring to use only a keyboard and a text interface.

Cruise ships are often called cities at sea, and this description is most accurate for them. To understand how huge such ships can be, a comparison can be made with the infamous Titanic. If it had been built in our time, it would not even be in the Top 50. In this list, I will tell you about the 10 largest cruise ships in the world, all of which were built relatively recently, after 2000. Many of them also have twin brothers, who are equally large in size.

Royal Carribean. Oasis of the Seas

This vessel weighs 225,282 tons, is 361.7 meters long and has an official capacity of 5,400 passengers in maximum luxury and comfort. Oasis of the Seas is one of the few ships that cannot sail through the Panama Canal. Not only is it too long for the canal, but it is also too tall and wide. On board you can feel like you are in a huge amusement park. Large-scale shows are held here, not inferior to Broadway, and sports fans can do anything, even rock climbing. The crew serving the ship and passengers numbers 2,400 people.



Queen Mary II

This ship weighs 151,400 tons and is 345 meters long. The official capacity is 2640 passengers. To get an idea of ​​how huge this ship is, you can put 80 large bumper to bumper tourist buses- this will be comparable in length to Queen Mary II. At each end of the ship you can place football field, and there will still be room to install a whole Big Ben on the deck. At the time of construction in 2004, it was the most big ship in the world.


Disney Dream

This ship weighs 130,000 tons and is 340 meters long. Disney Dream seats 2,500 people and is a miniature version of Disneyland at sea. There is a huge cinema and many other entertainment options, including a water park.


Freedom of the Seas

The ship weighs 160,000 tons and is 339 meters long. The ship can accommodate 3,634 passengers. It is sometimes compared to a floating water park, there is also waterslides, and many pools, Jacuzzis, and a wave emulator. There is also a water park for children called H2O and even a skating rink for ice skating enthusiasts.




Splendida

This cruise ship weighs 137,936 tons and reaches 338 meters in length. Its capacity is 3274 passengers. The volume of space on board is simply colossal - it is one and a half million square meters, which exceeds the total volume of space, for example, the Eiffel Tower in Paris.


Norwegian Epic

This vessel weighs 155,873 tons and is 329 meters long. Capacity - 4100 passengers. This cruise ship was launched in 2010 and is so huge that 5 lifeboats had to be removed to enter New York Harbor. On board you will also find a lot of entertainment, restaurants, and attractions. There is even 24-hour pizza delivery to your room. We have already mentioned this ship, like many others, in our selection of the largest ship propellers in the world.



Celebrity Eclipse

The weight of this vessel is 122,000 tons, and the length is 315 meters. Even if you lined up four Boeing 747s, they would still not exceed the length of this cruise ship. The ship has 19 decks, including a lawn deck where you can play croquet and bocce.



Voyager of the seas

This vessel weighs 138 tons and is 311 meters long. It can accommodate 3114 passengers. This is one of the first supergiant cruise ships, here is everything you need for comfortable rest- own television studio, ice skating rink, mini golf course with nine holes and much more interesting things.


Carnival Dream

The weight of this liner is 130,000 tons, and the length is 306 meters. Capacity - 3646 people. This ship is a real floating amusement park; there are even several cinemas with screens of different sizes.


Princess Diamond

Rounding out the top ten largest cruise ships is a ship weighing 116,000 tons and 294 meters long, accommodating 2,670 people. Despite being in tenth place, it is several times larger in area than, for example, Buckingham Palace, or five times larger than the Taj Mahal. There are more than seven hundred high-class cabins with balconies.


 

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