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From: edvs@ted.cs.uidaho.edu
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware
Subject: Re: MS-Mouse driver version 7.04
Keywords: mouse driver
Message-ID: <1991Apr02.214112.6722@groucho>
Date: 2 Apr 91 21:41:12 GMT
References: <25180@hydra.gatech.EDU>
Sender: edvs@idui1.csrv.uidaho.edu
Organization: University of Idaho
Lines: 26
Nntp-Posting-Host: ted.cs.uidaho.edu

In article <25180@hydra.gatech.EDU> bb16@prism.gatech.EDU (Scott Bostater) writes:
>A co-worker recently got a new MS-Mouse for his computer.  The driver, version
>7.04, uses a graphics cursor even while in text mode.  I'm talking a true
>graphics cursor, not just redefining the text cursor symbol to be a pointing
...

   Video 7 video adapters (Fastwrite, VRAM, 1024i, and probably others) have
capabilities built into the hardware to generate a smooth mouse cursor, even in
a text mode application (video mode 3, etc.).  This hardware cursor can be
defined thru a 64x64 pixel screen and cursor bit map.  The Microsoft mouse
driver detects the Video 7 hardware and uses the capabilities of the card.
   By default, the mouse cursor will be a white arrow with a black border.  The
driver supports the interrupt X'33' function X'0A' to change the text mode
cursor.  The cursor can be set to any of the ASCII characters X'01' to X'FE',
specified in DL.  If DL is zero, the arrow will become the cursor.  It may have
a function call that would allow specification of the 64x64 bitmap, but I have
not figured it out yet (it may be a derivative of function X'0A').  The bitmap
can be changed by writing directly to the hardware.
   Any text mode application can use the combination of the Video 7 hardware
and the Microsoft mouse driver to produce a smooth mouse cursor; the usual
block text cursor becomes a smooth moving arrow.  Just use the standard mouse
driver text mode function calls.
   Norton's Utilities 5.0 uses graphics mode, not text mode, which is why it
has a smooth cursor.

edvs@idui1.csrv.uidaho.edu