This is a wonderful laptop, and I use it pretty hard.
It's core duo, 2GB, with Vista Home Premium -- all of
which work properly.
HOWEVER, when typing on the built-in keyboard, the
cursor will often jump to some random point. It takes
the mouse and some effort to fix. In five minutes of
typing it may happen twice. Very frustrating!
On Wed, 07 Nov 2007 18:06:52 -0800, Onlooker <nota@chance.yet> wrote:
>This is a wonderful laptop, and I use it pretty hard.
>
>It's core duo, 2GB, with Vista Home Premium -- all of
>which work properly.
>
>HOWEVER, when typing on the built-in keyboard, the
>cursor will often jump to some random point. It takes
>the mouse and some effort to fix. In five minutes of
>typing it may happen twice. Very frustrating!
>
>I am not touching the mouse pad.
>
>???
It's a long-shot but look at what other processes are running -- maybe
one of those is the culprit.
I would do a quick update of the mouse driver using the most current
driver from Dell's web site.
Sometimes things like that mysteriously fix the problem.
You may not actually touching the mouse pad, but many touch pads don't work
on the physical pressure of touching the pad at all.
Instead, they work detecting a tiny electrical charge or capacitance effect
it detects on your skin. Thus, if your fingers are getting close but not
quite touching the pad, the pad may still react as though you had touched
it.
"Onlooker" <nota@chance.yet> wrote in message
news:fgtr0c$jke$1@registered.motzarella.org...
> This is a wonderful laptop, and I use it pretty hard.
>
> It's core duo, 2GB, with Vista Home Premium -- all of which work properly.
>
> HOWEVER, when typing on the built-in keyboard, the cursor will often jump
> to some random point. It takes the mouse and some effort to fix. In five
> minutes of typing it may happen twice. Very frustrating!
>
> I am not touching the mouse pad.
>
> ???
Journey wrote:
> On Wed, 07 Nov 2007 18:06:52 -0800, Onlooker <nota@chance.yet> wrote:
>
>> This is a wonderful laptop, and I use it pretty hard.
>>
>> It's core duo, 2GB, with Vista Home Premium -- all of
>> which work properly.
>>
>> HOWEVER, when typing on the built-in keyboard, the
>> cursor will often jump to some random point. It takes
>> the mouse and some effort to fix. In five minutes of
>> typing it may happen twice. Very frustrating!
>>
>> I am not touching the mouse pad.
>>
>> ???
>
> It's a long-shot but look at what other processes are running -- maybe
> one of those is the culprit.
>
> I would do a quick update of the mouse driver using the most current
> driver from Dell's web site.
>
> Sometimes things like that mysteriously fix the problem.
Nothing odd in the processes. Your mouse driver idea
sounds good. This is a newly installed OS, and the
problem existed before. It's a Dell bluetooth mouse -
I'll look for a driver replacement.
> It's a Dell bluetooth mouse - I'll look for a driver replacement.
What is the mouse sitting on? If it is an optical mouse and is resting on a
surface with a pattern, drawing or no discernible markings at all, this may
be causing its image processor to "flip out". The result is strange
behavior--which could include the sudden movement of the cursor.
You can use a white sheet of copy paper for a quick test. Put it under the
mouse and see what happens.
William R. Walsh wrote:
> Hi!
>
>> It's a Dell bluetooth mouse - I'll look for a driver replacement.
>
> What is the mouse sitting on? If it is an optical mouse and is resting on a
> surface with a pattern, drawing or no discernible markings at all, this may
> be causing its image processor to "flip out". The result is strange
> behavior--which could include the sudden movement of the cursor.
>
> You can use a white sheet of copy paper for a quick test. Put it under the
> mouse and see what happens.
>
> William
>
>
Thanks. I just realized that the problem appears even
with no BT or any other mouse: just the touchpad.
Also, I checked all mouse and KB drivers - they're
evidently ok.
On Wed, 07 Nov 2007 21:10:41 -0800, Onlooker <nota@chance.yet> wrote:
>William R. Walsh wrote:
>> Hi!
>>
>>> It's a Dell bluetooth mouse - I'll look for a driver replacement.
>>
>> What is the mouse sitting on? If it is an optical mouse and is resting on a
>> surface with a pattern, drawing or no discernible markings at all, this may
>> be causing its image processor to "flip out". The result is strange
>> behavior--which could include the sudden movement of the cursor.
>>
>> You can use a white sheet of copy paper for a quick test. Put it under the
>> mouse and see what happens.
>>
>> William
>>
>>
>
>Thanks. I just realized that the problem appears even
>with no BT or any other mouse: just the touchpad.
>
>Also, I checked all mouse and KB drivers - they're
>evidently ok.
>
>??? I hate to call Dell!
Again, it's a long shot, but you say that you checked all mouse and
keyboard drivers. I would reinstall them using the latest drivers
from Dell's site. Even if you're running the current ones, I would do
that. I hack my way to solutions by doing stuff like that, and that's
one of the first things I would try because it's easy to do and if the
problem still exists you didn't waste much time and eliminate that
possibility.
On Wed, 07 Nov 2007 21:10:41 -0800, Onlooker <nota@chance.yet> wrote:
>William R. Walsh wrote:
>> Hi!
>>
>>> It's a Dell bluetooth mouse - I'll look for a driver replacement.
>>
>> What is the mouse sitting on? If it is an optical mouse and is resting on a
>> surface with a pattern, drawing or no discernible markings at all, this may
>> be causing its image processor to "flip out". The result is strange
>> behavior--which could include the sudden movement of the cursor.
>>
>> You can use a white sheet of copy paper for a quick test. Put it under the
>> mouse and see what happens.
>>
>> William
>>
>>
>
>Thanks. I just realized that the problem appears even
>with no BT or any other mouse: just the touchpad.
>
>Also, I checked all mouse and KB drivers - they're
>evidently ok.
>
>??? I hate to call Dell!
P.S. -- for something like this I'd hate to call Dell too, because I
don't know what a tech. could recommend, unless it's a known problem
(and even then I'd hate to talk to a tech. in India).
try turning off the tapping, and lower the sensitivity.
Onlooker wrote:
> This is a wonderful laptop, and I use it pretty hard.
>
> It's core duo, 2GB, with Vista Home Premium -- all of which work properly.
>
> HOWEVER, when typing on the built-in keyboard, the cursor will often
> jump to some random point. It takes the mouse and some effort to fix. In
> five minutes of typing it may happen twice. Very frustrating!
>
> I am not touching the mouse pad.
>
> ???
On Thu, 08 Nov 2007 01:32:48 -0500, Jay B <jayB@audiman.net> wrote:
>the touchpad is too sensitive.
>
>try turning off the tapping, and lower the sensitivity.
>
>
Jay, you beat me to it <g>. I was going to say the same.
I too have the same problem with the touch pad at times and it is very
annoying and it does happen at random. I can feel the OP's pain. I
have lowered the sensitivity and that helps make it occur less often
but it still happens.
I wonder if it has something to do with static electricity between the
hand and the touch pad too... just a wild guess???