Douglas C. Engelbart, changed the way computers worked, from being a specialized piece of machinery that only a trained scientist could use, to being a user-friendly, tool that almost everyone can use. He invented or contributed to several interactive, user-friendly devices: the computer mouse, windows, computer-video teleconferencing, hypermedia, groupware, email, the internet and more.

In 1964, the first prototype computer mouse was made to use with a graphical interface 'windows'. Engelbart received a patent for the wooden shell with two metal wheels (computer mouse) in 1970, described in the patent as an X-Y position indicator for a display system. "It was nicknamed the mouse because the tail came out the end," Engelbart revealed about his invention. His version of 'windows' was not considered a patentable application (no software patents issued at that time), but Engelbart has over forty-five other patents to his name.