HELP!!! Christoph Needs A Pointer on Pointers

1. 75

   spryteposted 15 years ago

   Christoph has a problem with his laptop and I'm hoping that somewhere in hubland we have a puter geek with a solution.
   
   Chris' cat took a catnap on his laptop keyboard while it was running and now the pointer is stuck and he can't move his mouse.  He doesn't have a peripheral mouse and uses the built in mousepad.  He's able to e-mail me...and perhaps SEE the forums on his old mac...but he can't reply.
   
   Any help would be appreciated!

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2. 77

   Shadesbreathposted 15 years ago

   I'm pretty sure he probably restarted it already.. so tell him to plug his old computer mouse into his laptop and see if that works.

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3. 75

   spryteposted 15 years ago

   Unfortunately he doesn't own a mouse and doubts his laptop would handle one...
   
   I'm sure it would...with the right connection.  It has to have a USB or something somewhere on it externally, right?  Did they ever make laptops that couldn't accomodate peripherals?

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      Jerrico Usherposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      there are usb mouses he can go into control panel click the icon with the picture of a mouse next to it then in settings see if something is arrye (spell?) USB mouses don't require installing anything they just work... he should always have a backup usb mouse anyway, their like 10.00. for 20.oo at walmart you can get a wireless usb mouse and keyboard set logitec.
      
      Jerrico

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      1. 75

         spryteposted 15 years agoin reply to this

         Unfortunately I don't think he'll be clicking anything until he has a mouse to use.  I did the same thing...and had to reword it. 

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4. 75

   spryteposted 15 years ago

   Can you uninstall a mouse on a laptop and then reinstall it?  Or is it too much of a pain in the butt?
   
   I'm booting up my laptop to take a look...

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5. 77

   Shadesbreathposted 15 years ago

   It has a port for the mouse... if he plugs the mouse in, it will detect it. Might have to restart, but, yeah, it will pick it up.  (Unless his laptop is like 15 years old or something)

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6. 75

   spryteposted 15 years ago

   Okay...Chris...if you can read this.  I'm going off what I've found in my own laptop, so I can't guarantee it's compatible with your...but...
   
   1.  Open up MY COMPUTER
   2.  Select VIEW SYSTEM INFORMATION
   3.  Select HARDWARE from the tabs
   4.  Select DEVICE MANAGER
   5.  Select MOUSE AND OTHER POINTING DEVICES
   
   This should give you a list of what you have...then select the device that is listed beneath the last option
   
   6.  Clilck TROUBLESHOOT
   
   Now I don't know what you have to use on your keyboard to get to all these places since your mouse is the problem...but that's my only advice atm.

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7. 77

   Lissieposted 15 years ago

   Id guess it might be  a physical problem - is a pad of stick thing - the stick things can get tsuck - shaking upside down can help!

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      Jerrico Usherposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      did his cat recently have kittens? if he did the "utters" will leak milk into the keyboard as he sleeps which makes things stick

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8. 77

   Shadesbreathposted 15 years ago

   Oh, and Christoph, if you have a laptop with Vista on it.. just keep restarting it.. it will fix itself.  My laptop has mouse issues (and blue screen stuff, and hard drive fatal errors) that go away after a restart or three.  (Vista is pretty bad, lol).

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9. 75

   spryteposted 15 years ago

   I have Vista on my desk top puter...and I've never had an issue
   
   My laptop runs on XP though...but it's strictly a gaming computer.  Built for SPEED!!!

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10. 77

    Shadesbreathposted 15 years ago

    98 is the speed system.  Nobody is hacking it and the gamers have optimized the crap out of it.

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11. 75

    spryteposted 15 years ago

    Anyway...I think Christoph has gone to bed and given up for tonight.  Hopefully things will be better for him tomorrow and he'll be able to find something useful in here. 
    
    Either that or it's time to go back to the stone age where it's safer for him.    Electronics and household gadgets don't seem to be agreeing with him lately.
    
    N'nite all!

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    1. 84

       agvulpesposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Wave to Christoph!
       
       night!

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12. 75

    spryteposted 15 years ago

    Just got an email from Christoph.  He'll be checking the forum but might not be able to reply.  Let's all wave to him...
    
    *waves to Chris*

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13. 77

    Shadesbreathposted 15 years ago

    /Hoists a beer in Christoph's general direction.

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14. 69

    Christoph Reillyposted 15 years ago

    Ok. I can reply here. Yea. I don't have a pc mouse, just 3 mac ones. I do have two usb ports and a 15 pin connecton (like a parallellagram - wider at the bottom than the top. Ok. I'll look for a mouse tomorrow for a usb mouse. I've rebooted many, many times, and tried all kinds of shaking and key tapping) I have been into the mouse controller area but couldn't really do anything and everything looked ok anyway. But maybe I can try some more as described above. Thanks for all your help. I am very frustrated. BTW, it's op is windows xp home edition).

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       agvulpesposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       I think you will find that 15 pin connector is for an external monitor if you don't like the screen on your laptop?

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          Christoph Reillyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

          Hi Ag: What's up? Yea, I know, just pointing out that that's what I have for ports on my computer. No, monitor is good.

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          1. 69

             Christoph Reillyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

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                agvulpesposted 15 years agoin reply to this

                didnt realize you were still around

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15. 77

    Shadesbreathposted 15 years ago

    I saw that

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16. 69

    Lazurposted 15 years ago

    yes....
    
      Your system Chris.. Is it an Asus R1 serie?

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    1. 69

       Christoph Reillyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       No. It's an Acer with windows XP.

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17. 69

    Christoph Reillyposted 15 years ago

    Lazur: Thanks so much for the drops. I love 'em and can't stop eating them. They're addictive!

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    1. 69

       Lazurposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Glad you enjoy them

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          Christoph Reillyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

          Very nice of you! Now, can you send me a computer?

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             Lazurposted 15 years agoin reply to this

               Just gave the last one away to Ananta's daughter, sorry

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18. 77

    Shadesbreathposted 15 years ago

    That's what you get for being a hippy rebel and trying to buck the corporate juggernaut.  Suffer you commie pinko.  Next time buy a PC and stop all that "proletariat" mumbo jumbo so we don't have to send a brute squad to your house.

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    1. 69

       Christoph Reillyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       What the heck are you talking about? Isn't anything that ain't a mac a pc?

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19. 77

    Shadesbreathposted 15 years ago

    anything that can't be fixed is not a PC.  PCs break, yep, they do.  The differnce between Mac and PC is subtle but huge.
    
    PC breaks all the time, but can be fixed.
    
    
    Macs "never" break, but when the do, wow, c'ya man.

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    1. 69

       Christoph Reillyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       yea. The computer in question is a PC. The computer I am using now to write this is an old Mac.
       And I've had my PC's in the shop several times, so I know it can be fixed but don't want to be without if for several days if I can help it.

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20. 69

    Christoph Reillyposted 15 years ago

    Thanks everybody:
    
    Spryte for all your help.
    
    Shades - I'll keep rebooting - thanks..
    
    Lizzie - I'll keep shaking. i appreciate the suggestion.
    
    Jerrico - I've been to the mouse area in my control panel  (not easy getting there) but nothing seemed wrong. I'll try it again. Also, I'll go get a mouse tomorrow. And, my cat is a male so unless he was doing something else that would make it sticky....
    
    Lazur - For the delicious drops.
    
    Did I get everybody? Thank you all.

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21. 69

    Lazurposted 15 years ago

    If you can get there again, maybe you could try to change pointer speed to "slow"  to make it easier?
    
    i'm going to tease some elderly now.. Good luck!

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22. 77

    Shadesbreathposted 15 years ago

    Dude, if you learned anything from your waterheater, you know not to wait for a fix.  If it doesn't reboot right tomorrow, go buy a new computer.  (Yes, I do that.  Seriously, when my computers act retarded, I replace them.  I never fix them.  I don't have patience for technology with an attitude.)

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    1. 69

       Christoph Reillyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       I regret to inform you that I cannot afford that at this time. This one is a very expensive one, and I could only replace it with a crappy one. I think I will make this one work.

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23. 61

    Marian Swiftposted 15 years ago

    From here, it looks like the cat's got the attitude.  What is it with cats and computers, anyway?
    
    I'd invest in a USB mouse (you can usually find 'em for under/around $20, and they make cute little ones for laptop users) before replacing the whole shebang ... and transferring All That Data.

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    1. 69

       Christoph Reillyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Thanks, Marian. That's what I'm going to do first thing in the morning. I agree...there is another way out of this stupid mess than just scrapping  the whole computer.

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          ajcorposted 15 years agoin reply to this

          Hi Christoph - maybe you should think about buying an external drive as well as the mouse so that if the thing completely decides to go to God you have everything on an unassailable disc.
          sleep well  Peace.

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          1. 69

             Christoph Reillyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

             Hi ajcor: A friend of mine who I work with a lot has some at his office and said i could store my stuff on there. So, thanks, i have thought of that, because losing everything on it would be murderous.

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             1. 61

                ajcorposted 15 years agoin reply to this

                That is great Christoph because when I lost my computer tower/hard drive about 6 weeks ago now - i was really grateful that I had done this and did not lose anything at all - apart from the fact it works well as a daily back up. hope it all works out well tomorrow. cheers.

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24. 77

    Shadesbreathposted 15 years ago

    Yeah, backing up info is huge.  Especially given how hard good porn is to find.  I mean, assuming you do that, which, obviously I wouldnt', but, being thoughtful, I think of stuff like that in situations like this because I can only assume it's hard to sift through all the garbage to find those few gems worth keeping if you were into porn. Or like, other stuff people might keep on their hardrives too, business crap or whatever, which I'm sure is also important... like the stuff I keep too, obviously, that is not porn.

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    1. 69

       Christoph Reillyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       You know, I don't have any porn on my computer. I'm more of a DVD guy.

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25. 84

    agvulpesposted 15 years ago

    have you given up on your puter?

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26. 70

    sixtyorsoposted 15 years ago

    Hi guys, you wont believe this but my mouse (USB one) also stopped working. nothing worked rebooting, switching on and off. plugging into a different USB port, etc. So I plugged in my backup travelling little (very little) mouse and viola. I then replugged my dormant mouse (dormouse?) and he started working again too. I dont' know why but I thought I would share that with you.

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    1. 84

       agvulpesposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Computers eh like women can't live without em?

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          ajcorposted 15 years agoin reply to this

          have to say I have such a love/hate relationship with my computer!!!

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             agvulpesposted 15 years agoin reply to this

             annie how was the roast chicken?
             has your tower arrived yet?

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                ajcorposted 15 years agoin reply to this

                roast chook 100 computer zero - meant to arrive every day this week - still not here! probably still in China - hopefully maybe tomorrow. thanks for asking.

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27. 75

    spryteposted 15 years ago

    Chris - Any luck?
    
    I talked to the hubby about your problem and he said that the only other thing he could think of was to check for two things...
    
    The first, is an obvious on off button near the pad (one of his laptops had this) and do the whole on/off thing.
    
    The second...sometimes within the keypad area there is a small red switch (might not be red in all cases) and it's also an off switch for the mousepad.  Sometimes it gets depressed and stuck too.  Not all laptops have them...but some do.

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    1. 69

       Christoph Reillyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Hi Spryte,
       
       No Luck. There aren't any on/off switches for my mouse pad. I went and bought an external mouse this morning and it doesn't work either. I can't get to the program that controls the pointing device so I don't know if it's on or off. I guess I'll keep trying. (Plus I have a 3rd computer that is really in bad shape, but maybe I can get it working.) Otherwise, the razor blades are nearby. Thanks for all your help. Please remember me when I am gone. Goodby, cruel computer world....

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          spryteposted 15 years agoin reply to this

          
          
          You better just be a damn good actor...

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             ajcorposted 15 years agoin reply to this

             Spryte did you say ham? - no, no, no!  you said damn good actor - sorry

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             agvulpesposted 15 years agoin reply to this

             Just checking in, how goes it now?

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28. 91

    Rochelle Frankposted 15 years ago

    Is there anything you can do to cheer up a depressed mousepad switch?
    
    Does giving it some good news or telling it a joke help?

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29. 69

    Lazurposted 15 years ago

    *snif *

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30. 69

    Christoph Reillyposted 15 years ago

    Spryte: Don't be silly! I WOULD NEVER...use razorblades. XXOO
    
    Lazur: I WOULD NEVER...before I finished my drops. (wink)
    
    Ag: Oh, pretty much the same. No luck on the stuck mouse pad on my main computer (PC). A friend is going to help me troubleshoot it over the weekend. After that, if it doesn't work,  it has to go into the shop. Still trying to get the Mac working on hubpages. I've just about got everything to work, except can't view videos and no avatars next to comments, and I can't leave comments. I am searching for plugins that will help. Just upgraded Quick Time, which helped some small things but not the big ones mentioned above. I'll keep trying. Thanks for asking.

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       ajcorposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       hopefully you are nearly there Christoph, nothing worse than when your computer goes belly up and won't co-operate......................cheers

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31. 61

    Marian Swiftposted 15 years ago

    I'm surprised that a USB mouse isn't working (a P/S2 mouse, yeah, that'd almost be expected).
    
    If you haven't already done something rash -- and who would blame you? -- you may be able to access the Start Menu by hitting the "Windows" key, then you can use your keyboard pointers to navigate to -- and through -- your Control Panel.
    
    Haven't been exactly where you are now, but I've ended up right next door, more than once.  Hope this helps.

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32. 87

    mistyhorizon2003posted 15 years ago

    Poor Christoph, I do feel for you as I would go mad without my computer. Unfortunately I have nothing I can add to the suggestions already made by everyone else. Hope you get it fixed soon, this place just isn't the same without you here

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33. 69

    Christoph Reillyposted 15 years ago

    Marian: Thanks. Yea, I have done that, and can even open up the mouse application, but I can't do anything once I am in there, nor does it look like there is anything there that could be done. Same in the other programs, (systems, etc.) Thank you for thinking of me.
    
    ajcor: I keep making little baby steps, but I still need the big giant step. Thanks!

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34. 69

    Christoph Reillyposted 15 years ago

    Misty: Thanks. I'm not having any fun.

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35. 77

    Shadesbreathposted 15 years ago

    Poor bastard.  I would hate it if my computer took a crap.  (I always hated it in the past.)  I feel your pain, man.  Have a beer. 

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36. 69

    Pam Robersonposted 15 years ago

    Chris, I'm so sorry you're having problems w/your laptop. And this cat that slept on your keyboard is the same cat who is trying to kill you??? Sounds like an evil plot to cut off outside communications to me buddy.
    
    Seriously though, I just asked my son, who happens to be in the process of getting all of his computer certifications, and he says that static electricity from cat hair could have created a short circuit. According to him, if the cat was sleeping on your open laptop, then it's very likely a hair or hairs from the cat got down in the little cracks and the static electricity from the hair could have short circuited something in the motherboard (which is directly underneath) and affected the usb ports. If your laptop is running, then obviously the motherboard isn't seriously affected, but he says that usb ports are very sensitive to static electricity.
    
    Do you have a warranty? A good computer person or shop certified to work on laptops that's reasonable? I'm so sorry you're having this trouble. I too have had computer problems for over a week and had to have my hard drive completely wiped out yesterday.
    
    Good luck.

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       ajcorposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Do you have a warranty? A good computer person or shop certified to work on laptops that's reasonable? I'm so sorry you're having this trouble. I too have had computer problems for over a week and had to have my hard drive completely wiped out yesterday. Good luck.

       poor Pam - your hard drive completely wiped out yesterday! that is awful. Did you have back-up? cheers.

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       Pam Robersonposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Thanks for asking Ajcor. No, I didn't have anything backed up.   My computer is pretty much an empty shell right now, but all of my software is on cd. I'm doing some minor things on a very, very old laptop until I can reload my programs. As far as my files go, once I realized a wipeout was looming, I started zipping and emailing folders to myself, and I'm really hoping they will be clean after a virus scan (if I can even scan them, haven't tried yet) so that I won't lose all that information. Oh well. Lesson learned and it could be worse.

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          ajcorposted 15 years agoin reply to this

          Pam TG you had time to do a spot of heavy duty emailing to yourself of your stuff - truly technical I know - I have just come through an interesting time with losing everything on the hard drive -  however I had an external hard drive I saved to when I remembered so all is ok. Hope you can get everything off your email system. cheers

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