Windows Tools, Help & Guides

You’re probably pretty happy with how your mouse works, but you can always make some changes, which may help you out. I always turn the sensitivity of my mouse pad up the maximum, which makes me move my fingers less to get around the screen. If I want precision, I am unlikely to get it with a laptop mouse pad anyway, so I plug in an external one, or use the desktop. Learn how to customize your mouse in this guide.

This guide is included as part of the Windows Guides Customize Vista Desktop and Start Menu Series. Please visit the main page if you would like to learn why this guide may be useful.

Setting the Mouse Buttons

To change the behavior of your mouse buttons, do the following:

1. Press the Start button
2. Type mouse in the Search box
3. Click Mouse to display the Mouse Properties dialog box

• On the Buttons tab, you can switch the mouse for left or right-handed use
• Move the slider to set the speed at which you need to double-click for Windows to recognize your double click

When you finish customizing, press the OK button.

Setting Mouse Pointer Options

To change your mouse pointer options, do the following:

1. Press the Start button
2. Type mouse in the Search box
3. Click Mouse to display the Mouse Properties dialog box
4. Click the Pointer Options tab

Here you may set or change the following options:

• The speed at which your mouse pointer moves. (As you move the slider, you can test the effect of the change by moving your mouse.)
• Increase the precision of the pointer when you move short distances
• Configure the mouse to automatically move to the default button in a dialog box to facilitate quick selection of the button
• Set the length of the trails if you want to increase the mouse pointer’s visibility by temporarily showing its path
• Remove the mouse pointer’s visibility when you’re typing and not using the mouse
• Locate the mouse pointer on your screen by pressing the CTRL key

This guide comes from the ‘Windows Vista – Customization Manual’ [Download a copy now]. The customization manual runs over the basics of customizing your Windows Vista machine to make it more personal. This guide is free of charge to all www.mintywhite.com readers.