Microsoft Corp. said Tuesday that its next operating system will be made for touch-screen applications, an alternative to the computer mouse.

Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer unveiled the iPhone-like touch-screen feature at The Wall Street Journal’s “D: All Things Digital” conference, calling it “just the smallest snippet” of the Windows 7 operating system slated for release in late 2009.

A Microsoft employee showed possible applications like enlarging and shrinking photos and navigating a map of San Diego by stroking the screen.

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates framed the new feature as an evolution away from the mouse.

“Today almost all the interaction is keyboard-mouse,” Gates said. “Over years to come, the role of speech, vision, ink - all of those - will be huge.”