Mouse - Two button with scroll wheel

Mouses are devices that allow you to move an arrow across the computer screen to point and buttons to click.  A typical mouse has two buttons, left and right.  In Windows, the right mouse button is used to provide menu options and the left mouse is used to tell the computer to take action or GO!

Today's mice can have additional buttons on them that are programmable  allowing you to launch an application or browse easily by click the extra programmable buttons.  The scroll wheel allows you to scroll up and down on web pages and word processing documents effortlessly.  Once you have gotten used to a scroll wheel, your fingers will never let you switch back!

Analogy - Think of the mouse as an extension of your hand.  With the mouse, you are creating a conversation with the computer, instruction it to do many things!

History - Xerox originally created the idea of a point an click mouse back in the early 70's.  The project never made it to the common marketplace and an opportunity (a major opportunity to say the least) was lost!

Manufacturers - Microsoft, Logitech.

What You Are Looking For - Other features that you will want to investigate are the Optical mouses that uses light to track the exact position of the mouse.  The advantage is that they don't have a ball and rollers that can get dirty and cause erratic mouse behavior like their old fashioned counterparts.  

The other newest feature is the wireless mouse.  The advantage is less clutter on your computer desk.  The disadvantage is the price.  These wireless mice cost a pretty penny and the 3 foot range on them, doesn't give you enough distance to be able to operate your computer from across the room.  Before buying a wireless mouse, make sure that you are extremely tired of the wire connecting your existing mouse.