How to Change a Mac OS X Mouse Cursor

A mouse is used to move the OS X cursor around the screen.

The mouse cursor in the Mac OS X operating system is an essential tool for system navigation and file management. Without the cursor, many of the essential OS X operations, such as dragging and dropping files, opening files and navigating websites, would be extremely difficult. The default Mac cursor is a black arrow pointing up and slightly to the left when indicating the position of the cursor on the screen. This black arrow can be altered slightly to suit different users' needs, such as making it larger for users with limited vision or adding a highlighting feature to find the cursor after a period of inactivity.

Things You'll Need

• PinPoint 3 (free trial)
• Mouse Locator (free)

Instructions

Changing the Size of the Cursor Using System Preferences

1. Open OS X system preferences by clicking the "Apple" symbol in the top left-hand hand toolbar and selecting "System Preferences."

2. Select "Universal Access" from the list of buttons.

3. Click "Mouse and Trackpad" from the buttons.

4. Drag the slider marked "Cursor Size." Dragging to the right will increase cursor size; dragging to the left will decrease size.

Using PinPoint 3 Software to Change Cursor Type, Size and Color

1. Download and install PinPoint 3 software (see Resources).

2. Open System Preferences by clicking the "Apple" logo in the right of your screen and selecting "System Preferences."

3. Open PinPoint by selecting the "PinPoint" button under "Other" options.

4. Click to select your cursor type from the included cursors by selecting a type from the "Pointer" drop-down box.

5. Change the cursor color, transparency, size and speed by using the options under the pointer type.

6. Click "Start" to apply changes you have made.

Using Mouse Locator to Add Visability to the Mouse Cursor

1. Download and install Mouse Locator (see Resources).

2. Navigate to the System Preferences panel by clicking the "Apple" logo in the top right-hand corner of your screen and then selecting "System Preferences."

3. Click the "Mouse Locator" button under "Other."

4. Check "Activate Mouse Locator." This will turn the default Mouse Locator cursor on.

5. Change to time required to activate Mouse Locator by making changes to the "Trigger Delay" slider. Shorter times will result in the Mouse Finder cursor appearing sooner after the mouse is idle; longer times will delay the change in cursor type.

6. Make changes to the Display Time by moving the slider marked "Display Time." Longer display times will mean the Mouse Finder cursor will appear for longer after it is triggered (when the user moves the mouse); shorter times will mean the Mouse Finder cursor stays on-screen for a shorter time.

References

• Apple: Support Discussions - Cursor Locator

Resources

• MacUpdate: Mouse Locator
• Mac Champion: Download PinPoint 3