The names in this post have been changed to protect the innocent.
One of the fun things about working in a medium size company is that you get thrown all kinds of different problems to solve. This one got escalated to me from a remote user.
My internal mouse has given out on me. I’ve not spilled anything on it and nothing other than run of the mill finger dirt has come in contact with it. Any diagnosis ability on your end?
External plug in mouse works fine.
After checking what laptop he had (HP G60 125NR Notebook PC), I sighed, knowing that I had the exact same issue with an HP laptop a few years back.
Spent a good 30 minutes researching the different causes and solutions and sent 3 to the user:
Solution 1: At the top of the touchpad, or at the top of the keyboard, there’s a button / switch that turns on/off the touchpad. Make sure this is on. Test.
Solution 2: Verify that Synaptics TouchPad software is installed
Follow the steps below to open the Mouse Properties settings window and determine if Synaptics TouchPad software is installed on your notebook:
- Right-click on the desktop and select Personalize > Mouse Pointers . The Mouse Properties settings window will open.
Alternately, click Start and type Mouse in the Search field, and select Mouse when it becomes available in the program list. The Mouse Properties settings window will open.
- Verify that the Device Settings tab is present in the Mouse Properties window.
- If this tab is not present, you will need to obtain the Synaptics TouchPad software.(let me know and I’ll point you to it)
Solution 3: This worked on mine once. Turn off your laptop – take out the battery, wait 30 seconds, put the battery back in. Start it up. Test.
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1 minute later I got the response:
You know the remarkable thing about a computer is that it gives you the ability to simultaneously be embarrassed and pleased with yourself. Step 1 worked.
Lesson learned: Always try the low-tech solutions first and don’t assume the problem is more complicated than it is. I could’ve solved this with a 2 minute phone call but instead wasted 30 minutes thinking it was a complicated problem.
