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Content in this edit is translated from the existing Japanese Wikipedia article at [[:ja:Neko (ソフトウェア)]]; see its history for attribution.
{{Translated|ja|Neko (ソフトウェア)}}
Neko is a cross-platform open-source[citation needed] animated cursor-chasing cat screenmate application.
Neko (猫, ねこ) is the Japanese word for cat.
Neko was originally written for the NEC PC-9801. It was later ported as a desk accessory to the Macintosh in 1989 by Kenji Gotoh. He also designed the sleeping graphics for Neko. An X version was later made by Masayuki Koba.
In the application, a sprite follows the mouse pointer around. In the System 7 version, the pointer could be modified to various cat toys such as a mouse, fish, or bird. When Neko caught up with the pointer, it would stare at the screen for a few seconds, scratch an itch on its body, yawn, and fall asleep until the pointer was disturbed. In windowed mode, Neko would stop at window boundaries and scratch at the edge of the window.
The Neko cat has been used as a sprite in many other programs.