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msuper69 · Dec 22, 2010, 11:42 AM

Is there any way to change the pointer size/look?

I sometimes find myself searching to find where the mouse pointer is. I have to jiggle the mouse to find it.

I've never understood why Apple hasn't made customization of the cursor types a part of OS X.
Windows has had this as far back as I can remember (and that's longer than I care to admit

).

-Q- · Dec 22, 2010, 03:37 PM

System Prefs>Universal Access>Mouse & Trackpad

That will adjust the cursor size.

There are add-ons that will allow you to change the look of the pointer, but it's not built-in (and never will be, thank goodness).

msuper69 · Dec 22, 2010, 04:26 PM

Originally Posted by -Q-

System Prefs>Universal Access>Mouse & Trackpad

That will adjust the cursor size.

There are add-ons that will allow you to change the look of the pointer, but it's not built-in (and never will be, thank goodness).

Thanks. That will work although it's not very Apple-like as the resolution of the cursor is not increased when made larger.

What's your beef with allowing cursor customization? It's not something you have to use but would be nice for those of us who feel it would enhance the OS X experience.

Spheric Harlot · Dec 22, 2010, 04:35 PM

Same as with any customization options:

Makes for a disparate user experience across machines, and makes tech support a nightmare.

msuper69 · Dec 22, 2010, 04:39 PM

Originally Posted by Spheric Harlot

Same as with any customization options:

Makes for a disparate user experience across machines, and makes tech support a nightmare.

Makes for a different (not disparate) user experience in that each person can set the cursor to something that is easier to use.

In all my many years of supporting Windows in a corporate environment, I never had a single problem caused by cursor customization.

It's not like I'm asking to changed how OS X windows look or operate.

TETENAL · Dec 23, 2010, 01:23 PM

Not providing high-res images for the larger cursor is annoyingly lazy of Apple though.

Curiosity · Dec 24, 2010, 01:11 AM

What add-ons will allow changing the cursors in Mac OS Leopard or Snow Leopard? Is it possible to get sets of cursors with different colours or shapes?

jmiddel · Dec 24, 2010, 05:32 PM

Thank you -Q-, my cursor is now a bit larger, so it doesn't get lost on my iMac's screen. I think the lack of cursor customization is part of of Steve Jobs' fanatical insistence on a unified user experience. IMHO, he takes it to far, though. Most folks, like my wife and her mom, would not know to customize. But there are users, such as many on this Forum, who do know about computers and have the skills to change things around without breaking stuff, and can concieve of better ways, at least for them, to do things. As a result one must use haxies to customize, a dubious situation. If Apple would offer customization, it could easily be part of the OS, under their control.

In my case, I hate all the grey bars, I'd prefer a warm salmony color. I could do that with a legit add on in OS9, now I can't. How hard is it to insert a few (compared to the bazillion of the whole OS) lines of code, whereby the user could call the color wheel and define the bar color? Doesn't this happen in one, or just a few locations?

There are not that many things in all that folks want to customize, from having read many posts on this, but what we do want, would make the user experience even more thrilling.

From here to Jobs' ear, heh heh

Spheric Harlot · Dec 24, 2010, 05:40 PM

Yak yak yak.

Ten years later, still the same.

Apple still has solid reasons for most of their decisions, and they've decided that the Mac has a single face, and that they alone have the power to change it subtly over time, matching the hardware design language.

The only thing, in fact, that *hasn't* changed in over 25 years, is the standard mouse cursor (and the text entry cursor, and just now the utterly obsolete wristwatch cursor came up again in Safari, of all places).

You may not agree, but you're not Apple.

"If you don't like the weather - move!"

End of story.

Doc Juansinn · Dec 24, 2010, 07:14 PM

Yak yak yak.

Ten years later, still the same.

[snip]

You may not agree, but you're not Apple.

"If you don't like the weather - move!"

End of story.

Wow! You get your panties in such a twist because someone would like to change the cursor of an operating system that you had ZILCH to do with the design of, and that runs on hardware that you had ZILCH to to with design of? What do you do when someone criticizes something on which you can claim authorship? Throw a temper tantrum? Break things? Threaten people?

How about you don't read and respond to threads that you disagree with? Was für ein A********!

AKcrab · Dec 24, 2010, 07:33 PM

Spheric wasn't talking about the mouse cursor any more... He was replying to the post asking about even MORE customizations. Apple has made it harder and harder to change these things. There used to be a fairly vibrant "skinning" community but it's all but dead for the most part, because Apple makes it so difficult.

Happy Holiday Dr. Wahnsinn!

turtle777 · Dec 24, 2010, 09:25 PM

Originally Posted by Dr. Wahnsinn

Was für ein A********!

Finally Christmas has arrived at 'NN.

Wahnsinnig geil.

-t

Oisín · Dec 24, 2010, 09:39 PM

Originally Posted by turtle777

Finally Christmas has arrived at 'NN.

Wahnsinnig geil.

-t

Indeed. Though I can’t see why Dr. Wahnsinn felt the need to asterisk out Abenteuer …

Spheric Harlot · Dec 25, 2010, 05:22 AM

Originally Posted by Dr. Wahnsinn

Wow! You get your panties in such a twist because someone would like to change the cursor of an operating system that you had ZILCH to do with the design of, and that runs on hardware that you had ZILCH to to with design of? What do you do when someone criticizes something on which you can claim authorship? Throw a temper tantrum? Break things? Threaten people?

How about you don't read and respond to threads that you disagree with? Was für ein A********!

Who's throwing a tantrum, then, eh?