Editing Computer mouse (section)

== Etymology ==
[[File:Мышь 2.jpg|thumb|A computer mouse is named for its resemblance to the [[Mouse|rodent]].]]

The earliest known written use of the term ''mouse'' or mice in reference to a computer pointing device is in [[Bill English (computer engineer)|Bill English]]'s July 1965 publication, "Computer-Aided Display Control".<ref name="English_1965" /> This likely originated from its resemblance to the shape and size of a [[mouse]], with the cord resembling its [[tail]].<ref name="OED" /><ref name="Bardini_2000" /> The popularity of wireless mice without cords makes the resemblance less obvious.

According to Roger Bates, a hardware designer under English, the term also came about because the [[cursor (user interface)|cursor]] on the screen was, for an unknown reason, referred to as "CAT" and was seen by the team as if it would be chasing the new desktop device.<ref name="Markoff_2005" /><ref name="Markoff_2013" />

The plural for the small rodent is always "mice" in modern usage. The plural for a computer mouse is either "mice" or "mouses" according to most dictionaries, with "mice" being more common.<ref name="oxdic">{{cite web |url=https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/mouse |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191207113343/https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/mouse |url-status=dead |archive-date=7 December 2019 |title=Definition for Mouse |date=2011 |access-date=2011-07-06}}</ref> The first recorded plural usage is "mice"; the online ''[[Oxford Dictionaries (website)|Oxford Dictionaries]]'' cites a 1984 use, and earlier uses include [[J. C. R. Licklider]]'s "The Computer as a Communication Device" of 1968.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://memex.org/licklider.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000815211839/http://memex.org/licklider.pdf |archive-date=2000-08-15 |url-status=live |title=The Computer as a Communication Device |author-first=J. C. R. |author-last=Licklider |work=Science and Technology |date=April 1968}}</ref>