Cursor (user interface)

The term cursor now frequently refers to a feature of a computer user interfaces.

Cursor is a term for a symbol used in computer terminals to signify where the mouse is on the screen.

Character-based screens

On CRT screens displaying character-based interfaces, the cursor originally (and sometimes still) manifests itself as a solid (or transparent) rectangle (or underscore) indicating the position of the next insertable character or (when back-spacing or over-typing) the next deletable character.

Graphical-user-interface screens

Modern computers with a graphical user interface usually display two cursors:

the so-called "mouse pointer", usually an arrow, that moves on the screen as the user moves the computer mouse or other pointing device.
an insertion point, displayed when editing text to show the location of any future modifications. This often appears as a blinking vertical line.

In many computer programs, the shape of the mouse-pointer cursor changes when the user's task changes or when the mouse-pointer moves over a different window. For instance:

In text that the user can optionally select, the cursor can change to a vertical bar with little cross-bars (or curved serif-like extensions) at the top and bottom - sometimes called an "I-beam".
In move mode (for moving an image or icon), the cursor can appear as a hand with all fingers extended.
A graphics-editing cursor may display when the user edits an image.
On an edge of a window the cursor changes into a double arrow (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) indicating that the user can drag the edge in an indicated direction in order to adjust the shape of the window.
While a computer process performs tasks and cannot accept user input, a wait cursor (an hourglass or watch) sometimes displays in the corresponding window.
When the cursor hovers over a hyperlink, it changes into a hand with a stretched index finger. Often some informative text about the link may pop up - not in a regular window, but in a special hovering box, which disappears when the user moves the cursor away. The "Tool Tips" revealed in the box depend on the implementation of the web browser; many web browsers will display the "title" of the element, the "alt" attribute, or the non-W3C- standard "tooltips" attribute.