Re: MOUSE WITH A MIND OF ITS OWN

[James Devenish]

Hi Julie,

On 03/01/2010, Julie Bedford  wrote:
> It may not occur for an hour, but then the mouse takes off on its own
> accord and it can take me a minute or two to gain control of it again
> and that is with the use of two mice.  It's ridiculous.  It's like the mouse
> is possessed !!

I agree with you that it is ridiculous! If you mean you are using two
mice at the same time, as well as Mouse Keys, without success, then
there are two likely situations.

Firstly, it's possibly a software problem (e.g., an unknown virus) and
would be solved by an "Archive and Install" of your Mac OS X.
Secondly, it's possible that your computer is receiving erroneous
hardware signals, either from an intended device or a unintentional
device. For instance, if your computer is somehow shared over
Bluetooth, WiFi or Internet, there is the possibility of remote
interference. This can be checked by going into the relevant
preferences and isolating your computer from the outside world.

Out of curiosity, when the problem occurs, can you see the mouse at
the bottom of the screen, and does it slide side-to-side horizontally
but never go up-or-down? Or does it bounce around a bit along the
bottom of the screen? Or is it not visible at all? (If it's not
visible at all: open your Displays system preferences and check that
your computer does not think it has two screens. If it does, the mouse
can get stuck on the other screen...sometimes happens to me when I use
an external projector.)

James


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Re: MOUSE WITH A MIND OF ITS OWN

[Julie Bedford]

Thanks Yvonne and James.  I have done everything you suggested, but
still have the problem.

It may not occur for an hour, but then the mouse takes off on its own  
accord and
it can take me a minute or two to gain control of it again and that is  
with the use

of two mice.  It's ridiculous.  It's like the mouse is possessed !!

I did wonder if I had picked up a virus of some sort, but seems the  
computer is
clean.  My husband is the only person in the house and he has not a  
clue about

computers.  Also the white paper trick does not work.

I really think my only solution is to upgrade the Mac, as crazy as  
that sounds.


Anyone else with any ideas please ?

Jewels

On 03/01/2010, at 6:35 AM, James Devenish wrote:



Hi Julie,

On 02/01/2010, at 10:11 PM, Julie Bedford wrote:

I have a problem with my mouse for the past year or so.
The problem is that my wired mouse sometimes takes off to the
bottom of the screen...I then bought a Microsoft one (has a plug
in USB so one can use without wires)...It is getting to the point
where it occurs every minute or so.


Sorry to hear of your long-term problem. You've obviously tried a
number of things to fix it.  But in every case I've heard of, mouse
problems are due to a physical issues such as using an unsuitable
mouse pad (or lack of mouse pad), dirt on the bottom or inside the
mouse, or low batteries (for wireless mice).

As Yvonne suggested, I recommend you try the blank piece of paper
temporarily, to see if it makes a difference. Wood is not a good
surface for mice. For some people, the back of the mouse pad (i.e.,
the black rubbery side) works better. (But for some people, it makes
the problem worse. I'm just suggesting it as another last resort.)

The other thing is...and this is very unlikely...someone could have
played a prank on you. There are some prank programs that can be put
onto your computer that cause this to happen. I temporarily had one
installed on my own laptop just for fun (really) but I can't remember
the name of it.

You might also wish to resort to trying SteerMouse
, which is a programme that lets
you adjust the motion sensitivity of your mice.

Alternatively, Mac OS X has a feature that allows you to control your
cursor with your keyboard (it's intended to help people who have
physical disabilities). You might like to enable this feature, so that
you can use the keyboard to move your mouse back to the middle of the
screen. To do this, open your "System Preferences", go into "Universal
Access", then click on the "Mouse & Keyboard" tab, and turn on "Mouse
Keys". To use Mouse Keys, you will need a full-size keyboard with a
numerical keyboard on the right, or enable "Num Lock" on a smaller
keyboard. Depends on your keyboard.

- James


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Re: MOUSE WITH A MIND OF ITS OWN

[James Devenish]

Hi Julie,

On 02/01/2010, at 10:11 PM, Julie Bedford wrote:
> I have a problem with my mouse for the past year or so.
> The problem is that my wired mouse sometimes takes off to the
> bottom of the screen...I then bought a Microsoft one (has a plug
> in USB so one can use without wires)...It is getting to the point
> where it occurs every minute or so.

Sorry to hear of your long-term problem. You've obviously tried a
number of things to fix it.  But in every case I've heard of, mouse
problems are due to a physical issues such as using an unsuitable
mouse pad (or lack of mouse pad), dirt on the bottom or inside the
mouse, or low batteries (for wireless mice).

As Yvonne suggested, I recommend you try the blank piece of paper
temporarily, to see if it makes a difference. Wood is not a good
surface for mice. For some people, the back of the mouse pad (i.e.,
the black rubbery side) works better. (But for some people, it makes
the problem worse. I'm just suggesting it as another last resort.)

The other thing is...and this is very unlikely...someone could have
played a prank on you. There are some prank programs that can be put
onto your computer that cause this to happen. I temporarily had one
installed on my own laptop just for fun (really) but I can't remember
the name of it.

You might also wish to resort to trying SteerMouse
, which is a programme that lets
you adjust the motion sensitivity of your mice.

Alternatively, Mac OS X has a feature that allows you to control your
cursor with your keyboard (it's intended to help people who have
physical disabilities). You might like to enable this feature, so that
you can use the keyboard to move your mouse back to the middle of the
screen. To do this, open your "System Preferences", go into "Universal
Access", then click on the "Mouse & Keyboard" tab, and turn on "Mouse
Keys". To use Mouse Keys, you will need a full-size keyboard with a
numerical keyboard on the right, or enable "Num Lock" on a smaller
keyboard. Depends on your keyboard.

- James


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Re: MOUSE WITH A MIND OF ITS OWN

[wyvern]

hi Jewels,

this might sound way off centre but if it is an optical mouse try  
putting a sheet of plain white paper under the mouse and see if that  
makes a diference. I had a similar problem where the mouse did not  
work well on a patterned surface - mouse mats - and that included the  
grain in the desk wood.


Yvonne


On 02/01/2010, at 10:11 PM, Julie Bedford wrote:



Happy New Year to you all.

I have a problem with my mouse for the past year or so.  It is so  
annoying, I'm considering trading in my Mac for a later  model.

I have a 2 x 2.66 GHz Dual Core Intel Xeon.

The problem is that my wired mouse sometimes takes off to the  
bottom of the screen.  I then have to coax it back to behaving.
I replaced the mouse, but still the same problem.  I then bought a  
Microsoft one (has a plug in USB so one can use without wires).  Am  
also having a similar problem.  It gets to the stage that I have to  
use two mice in order to get the curser where I want it to be.  Its  
okay if one is just typing a letter, but when doing graphics etc,  
its impossible.  It is getting to the point where it occurs every  
minute or so.


My desk is a sturdy Jarrah one and is not uneven.  I have tried  
using various mouse pads, but all to no avail.  Can anyone please  
help me out before I go insane.


Thanks
Jewels



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MOUSE WITH A MIND OF ITS OWN

[Julie Bedford]

Happy New Year to you all.

I have a problem with my mouse for the past year or so.  It is so  
annoying, I'm considering trading in my Mac for a later  model.

I have a 2 x 2.66 GHz Dual Core Intel Xeon.

The problem is that my wired mouse sometimes takes off to the bottom  
of the screen.  I then have to coax it back to behaving.
I replaced the mouse, but still the same problem.  I then bought a  
Microsoft one (has a plug in USB so one can use without wires).  Am  
also having a similar problem.  It gets to the stage that I have to  
use two mice in order to get the curser where I want it to be.  Its  
okay if one is just typing a letter, but when doing graphics etc, its  
impossible.  It is getting to the point where it occurs every minute  
or so.


My desk is a sturdy Jarrah one and is not uneven.  I have tried using  
various mouse pads, but all to no avail.  Can anyone please help me  
out before I go insane.


Thanks
Jewels



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