Mouse position with the mouse pointer visible over the screen influencing the bit counts into "look" for you, right? I'd say it's less about the factors you mentioned, and more about whether the visible mouse pointer represents an object in the game.
No, mouse should only act as input device for game and should always have the same look. Only when mouse change look it would influencing the bit counts.
click at specified position = screen flash
hover at specified position = screen flash
Idea: find target (hover) and shoot at target (click)
