Customizing Your Mouse Pointers

A pointer scheme is a set of mouse pointers that you use together. The three types of mouse pointers you see the most are the Normal Select pointer, the Text Select pointer, and the Link Select pointer. You can configure the appearance of these and other types of mouse pointers and manage them collectively by using pointer schemes.

The available pointer schemes include:

• (None): This doesn't turn mouse pointers off. Instead, it uses nondescript pointers.
• Windows Black: Inverts the pointer colors so that black backgrounds are used instead of white backgrounds. Also comes in large and extra-large options.
• Windows Standard: The standard pointers used with Windows Standard settings. Also comes in large and extra-large options.
• Magnified: Gives the standard pointers a bold edge so they are easier to see.
• Windows Inverted: Inverts the pointer colors so that black backgrounds are used and gives them bold edges so they are easier to see. Also comes in large and extralarge options.

You can configure your system to use an existing pointer scheme by completing the following steps:

1. Right-click an open area of the desktop, and then click Personalize. Next, on the Personalization page, click Themes in the left column.
2. In the main pane, click the Mouse Pointer Settings link to display the Mouse Properties dialog box with the Pointers tab selected.
   Note:
   Drop shadows for pointers are disabled by default, which is generally a good thing as it makes the pointer look clearer on the screen. If you like the drop shadow effect, however, you can enable them by selecting Enable Pointer Shadow.
3. Use the Scheme list to choose the pointer scheme to use.
4. In the Customize list, pointers are organized according to their type. To change a pointer, select the pointer and then click Browse. This opens the Browse dialog box with the Cursors folder selected. Choose the cursor pointer to use, and then click Open.
5. If you changed the default pointers for a scheme and want to save the changes, click Save As, type a name for the scheme in the field provided, and then click OK.
6. Save your pointer settings by clicking OK.

Tip:
To manage mouse settings as well as pointers, In the Search box, type Main.cpl, and then press Enter. You can now configure mouse buttons, pointers, scrolling, and more.

Saving Your Custom Themes and Creating Theme Packs

So far you have tuned and tweaked window colors, backgrounds, sounds, pointers, and screen savers. Now you'll want to save your settings as a unified theme so you can be sure that you can use it again and again. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Right-click an open area of the desktop, and then click Personalize. Next, on the Personalization page, click Themes.
2. In the main pane under Themes, click the Theme Settings link. This opens Control Panel.
3. On the Personalization page, under the My Themes heading, you'll see Unsaved Theme. Right-click this theme, and then click Save Theme. Or simply click the Save Theme link with this theme selected.
4. In the Save Theme As dialog box, enter a name for your custom theme and then click Save. Theme definition files end with the .theme file extension.
5. Unless deleted in the future, the custom theme will appear as a My Themes option. You'll then be able to load the theme simply by clicking it.

A theme you save in this way will only be available to you. That's because the theme is saved in your user profile (%UserProfile%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Themes). If you want to be able to share a theme with others, you must create a theme pack by following these steps:

1. Right-click an open area of the desktop, and then click Personalize. Next, on the Personalization page, click Themes.
2. In the main pane under Themes, click the Theme Settings link. This opens Control Panel.
3. On the Personalization page, under the My Themes heading, you'll see Unsaved Theme. Right-click this theme, and then click Save Theme For Sharing.
4. In the Save Theme Pack As dialog box, enter a name for your custom theme pack and then click Save. Theme pack definition files end with the .themepack file extension and are saved in your Documents folder by default. Saved theme packs can be several megabytes in size.
5. Copy the theme pack to a folder accessible to the person you are sharing with. Have the person double-click the theme pack file to load it as a theme and save it to his or her own My Themes list.

Tip:
You might be wondering how you delete a custom theme that you no longer want. Well, to do this, select a different theme, right-click the theme you no longer want in the My Themes list, and then click Delete Theme.