NCSA Mosaic for the X Window System User's Guide

## The Cursor and Displaying Hyperlink URLs

The cursor in NCSA Mosaic is generally the standard short arrow pointing slightly to the left of twelve o'clock. The cursor changes its configuration depending on where you are in the Document View window. It is the arrow configuration unless it is pointing to a hyperlink.

###### The Pointer Cursor

When the cursor rests on a hyperlink, it changes to a small hand icon pointing to the left, as shown in Figure 2.7. At the same time that the cursor changes its configuration, the hyperlink's URL is displayed in the information line (figure 2.3). Remember that a document's URL is essentially its server location and path. When you see the hyperlink's URL in the information line, you know the source of the document that will be retrieved if you select the hyperlink. The URL may also may tell you the format of the document.

###### The Cursor on a Hyperlink

For example, suppose the URL http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/Pubs/access/accessDir.html`` is displayed in the information line. This tells you that the document will be retrieved from the NCSA WWW server (www.ncsa.uiuc.edu).

If you see the CERN WWW server (info.cern.ch) and an image file extension (.gif), you can surmise that the hyperlink is an image being retrieved from Switzerland and might take longer to download than a local text file. (Of course, your access to the Internet plays a part in the retrieval speed but, in general, you should expect links from overseas as well as image files to take slightly longer to display.)