Cursor selects random objects | Familiar Sight | | Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 184
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Hi all
I have a very strange issue here. Very intermittend. All on laptops(Dell). Sometimes on the desktop, the user clicks a hortcut to an application, but instead of just the shortcut being selected, a group of other shortcuts and documents are selected as well. It is almost like a click and drag to select multiple objects. This normally happens in blocks and cannot be deselected. You click elsewhere to deselect and a new area of shortcuts and documents are selected.
At the same time if you open something like Excel and selects a cell at random, a whole block of cells are selected instead of just the one. And again, when trying to deselect it by clicking elsewhere, a new block of cells are selected.
This can happen in any view on your pc ie. My Documents, C:, Control Panel etc.
The only way to rectify this is to restart the pc.
Anyone has any ideas what causes this and a possible solution?
Thanks in advance
|  | Moderator | | Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: USA
Posts: 1,152
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Are you users using the touch pad "mouse" built into the lap top? If they are mostly thats what the problem is. I have had two Dells and they all do that, if i am typing and bump the mouse pad all of a sudden i'm off somewhere else typing.
I also have run into the issue with trying to open a short cut, a lot of the new computer have the feature where you can double tap the mouse pad to open something instead of clicking the actual button. So your users could be double tapping on accident when they move the mouse and thats why its selecting all those icons. And with excel i have experienced that too, both were caused by accidentally touching the mouse pad, or how i was using it.
| | Familiar Sight | | Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 184
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Quote:
Originally Posted by Stang02GT Are you users using the touch pad "mouse" built into the lap top? If they are mostly thats what the problem is. I have had two Dells and they all do that, if i am typing and bump the mouse pad all of a sudden i'm off somewhere else typing.
I also have run into the issue with trying to open a short cut, a lot of the new computer have the feature where you can double tap the mouse pad to open something instead of clicking the actual button. So your users could be double tapping on accident when they move the mouse and thats why its selecting all those icons. And with excel i have experienced that too, both were caused by accidentally touching the mouse pad, or how i was using it.
Thank you very much for the reply. Nope, checked that one out already. The laptops I have these issues on are all docked and the users are using external keyboards and mice. When it did happen I did also try the laptop onboard touchpads and mini joystick in the middle of the onboard keybaords.
| | Moderator | | Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: USA
Posts: 1,152
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
I would try and update the mouse drivers, if that doesn't work i would uninstall them completely and then reinstall them
|  | Expert | | Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: A city in my country ;)
Posts: 855
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Well this is certainly not the problem associated with mouse drivers or something like that.
First of all try making a new administrator account in XP and check whether this problem exist there or not. There is a lot of fuss about a virus in existence that creates such annoyances. My friend had the same problem on his PC (note it's not laptop, it's PC) and it's now solved. So first of all tell me whether the same problem comes in the new account that you create as well.
If you answer no to my above question then I can PROBABLY help.
| | Moderator | | Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: USA
Posts: 1,152
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Quote:
Originally Posted by ambrnewlearner Well this is certainly not the problem associated with mouse drivers or something like that.
First of all try making a new administrator account in XP and check whether this problem exist there or not. There is a lot of fuss about a virus in existence that creates such annoyances. My friend had the same problem on his PC (note it's not laptop, it's PC) and it's now solved. So first of all tell me whether the same problem comes in the new account that you create as well.
If you answer no to my above question then I can PROBABLY help. Uhhh...it certainly could be a driver issue because mine has done that before and the driver issuer fixed it.
| | Familiar Sight | | Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 184
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Hey all
Thanks for tall the feedback.
Right. First Stang02GT. Yip, I have already installed the latest drivers straight from the Dell website, so I think we can rule that one out.
Second, Ambrnewlearner, I am afraid I cannot set up and test under an admin account as this is one of my users with the problem. Laptop is part of a Domain and I dont want to give users admin access. If I did do it, it would have to be for an unknown amount of time as this issue is only occuring randomly and I will not be happy doing that. Thank you for that thought though.
| | Moderator | | Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: USA
Posts: 1,152
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Quote:
Originally Posted by bloukopkoggelmander Hey all
Thanks for tall the feedback.
Right. First Stang02GT. Yip, I have already installed the latest drivers straight from the Dell website, so I think we can rule that one out.
Second, Ambrnewlearner, I am afraid I cannot set up and test under an admin account as this is one of my users with the problem. Laptop is part of a Domain and I dont want to give users admin access. If I did do it, it would have to be for an unknown amount of time as this issue is only occuring randomly and I will not be happy doing that. Thank you for that thought though.
Did you completely remove them and then to a fresh install or did you just update them?
It could possibly be an issue with the docking station. You just use the touch pad you don't run into this problem?
If all of these computers and docking stations are the same we can try and look up issues with the laptops and docking stations. What kind of laptops are they?
| | Moderator | | Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: USA
Posts: 1,152
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Another idea is to disable the touch pad on the laptop and if it has the touch mouse on the keyboard, try disabling that as well.
| | Familiar Sight | | Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 184
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Hi Stang02GT
Yip, I have disabled the touchpad and the little joystick in the middle of the keyboard. I have tried different combinations of this as well. When the issue did occur, I tried using the onboard touchpad and joystick, but the problem kept occuring.
The laptops with the problem are both Dell Lattitude D620.
I have removed the mouse driver again this morning and downloaded the latest release again and reinstalled. So far the laptop has been behaving itself again, but it is very early days.
I will keep you updated on this one.
| | Moderator | | Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: USA
Posts: 1,152
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Ok, please do keep me updated on what happens. In the mean time I'll do a little research and see if i can find anything.
| | Familiar Sight | | Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 184
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Sorry, bad news man, the user just informed me that it happened again.
I will keep on searching for a fix.
| | Moderator | | Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: USA
Posts: 1,152
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Thats very strange, maybe it is something to do with that model of PC. I would search Google with the computer name and model with something like mouse issues and see what it finds.
I'd also check out Dells site maybe they have some information on it.
| | Familiar Sight | | Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 184
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Right , I have done a lot of mind numbing searching and found a few things to try. Here they are :
Ensure Clicklock is disabled in the mouse properties in the Control Panel.
When the issue occurs, press Scroll LK .
If you have a mouse with a scrollwheel , press the scrollwheel when the problem occurs.
Click both mouse buttons at the same time.
Press F8.
Some of the above options sounds a bit daft , but apparently it has worked for a lot of people. So when the problem next occurs, I will try them all and see which one, if any works and come back with the result.
| | Familiar Sight | | Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 184
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Right
The only option of the above that worked was F8 , but it only worked for a second or two. Pressing it when I got the problem resolved the issue, but then I can select another cell, work in it and then going to another cell form there selects everyting to the left and upward again. Press F8 again and I can then again repeat the entire process.
What I did find was that when the problem occured, if selecting CapsLock, you can only type in lower case and visa versa. Also, when using for instance the left arrow key on the keyboard, the cursor moves to the right. Also when using a button like '@ , you are unable to use the @ and only the ' . After typing some of the keys on the keyboard at random several times, the whole problem went away and the user can work fine again.VERY strange behaviour indeed.
I have now also replaced the user's keyboard with a new one and will see how things get on.
| | Familiar Sight | | Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 184
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Right, now this gets stranger by the day!!!!!
The new keyboard did not make a difference. I have found a workaround to the problem though...... hold on to your seats and your knowledge and common sense though......here goes.....
I open a blank spreadsheet(just because I dont want to mess up the existing one) then select a cell, but of course a block of cells are selected. I then just type the apostrophy sign, which of course as explained earlier does not work and a @ types instead. Then in the same cell I hold Shift and type @, but again as explained, an apostrophy ( ' ) is typed instead. I then click on another cell, and hey presto, all is fine again. Welcome to Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy....
| | Moderator | | Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: USA
Posts: 1,152
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
wow that is pretty weird
| | Newbie | | Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 1
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Quote:
Originally Posted by bloukopkoggelmander Right, now this gets stranger by the day!!!!!
The new keyboard did not make a difference. I have found a workaround to the problem though...... hold on to your seats and your knowledge and common sense though......here goes.....
I open a blank spreadsheet(just because I dont want to mess up the existing one) then select a cell, but of course a block of cells are selected. I then just type the apostrophy sign, which of course as explained earlier does not work and a @ types instead. Then in the same cell I hold Shift and type @, but again as explained, an apostrophy ( ' ) is typed instead. I then click on another cell, and hey presto, all is fine again. Welcome to Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy.... Hi. I randomly came across your forum today when my cursor began going crazy in the same manor. After restarting my PC three times I'm ready to throw it out the window ;).
I'm running Windows Vista on a Fujitsu Lifebook A Series w/docking station, which I thought was the cause. I'm interested to see that this is happening on a Dell. I'm guessing its a docking station glitch?
Have you made any more headway with the problem?? Clicking the mouse scroller when it selects multiple cells in excel did work for me, but only for a short time, and then it happens again. Very strange.
| | Familiar Sight | | Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 184
| | | re: Cursor selects random objects
Well
I am a bit glad to see I am not the only one with this problem. Nope dont think it is docking station problem because the users tested this without docking stations and got the same problems.
For one of them the SCROLL LK option does the trick every time. For the othere there is only the last fix that I have posted that works.
All in all very ET!!!!
But also I have not come accross any more fixes. If I do then I will post them as well.
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