Computer problem; Mouse pointer stuck in middle of screen.

Mundane Pointless Stuff I Must Share (MPSIMS)
#1

I’m having trouble with my mouse all of a sudden.

My mouse is at the far left edge of the mouse pad (if I move it any further to the left it will fall off the pad) and I want to scroll further over to the left (on the screen), but the mouse pointer wont go left past the middle of the screen. I can go right all I want to but I end up running out of mouse pad if I try to go to the left of center. Something tells me the mouse settings are messed up and I have to recalibrate the mouse, but how?

Like right now I have to use the tab button and then ‘enter’ to submit new thread.

Help!!

#2

Do you have a laser mouse or one with a ball? If it’s the latter it’s more likely that it’s a mechanical fault.

#3

I don’t think so, since I can go all the way to the right and then left back to the middle of the screen, then I run out of pad again.

#4

So, if you pick up the mouse, move it over on the pad, put it down and continue to move to the left, does the cursor continue on the screen?

This little move is called “Walking the Mouse”.

In other words, are you running out of mouse pad or are you reaching some invisible line on the screen past which your mouse won’t move?

If you’re running out of mouse pad, go to the “Mouse” controls in your control panel and increase the slider for “Acceleration” or “Mouse Speed” or whatever your driver calls it.

#5

Step one: move mouse pointer to center of screen.
Step two: Pick up mouse.
Step three: Fling violently as far to the right as the cord will permit.

Let me know what happens and we’ll work from there.

#6

You’re joking, right? This has been one of the ULs of tech support for years, right up there with the “cupholder” story.

#7

If it’s a ball mouse, take the lid of and clean the rollers. I use a fingernail.

#8

Make sure the ball is in the mouse, too.

#9

Of course.

I heard that bit as a lead-in for a morning radio show and I was wondering if anyone would recognise it, guess not. It sounded like it was the sort of recording that had made it’s rounds…
…guy calls the IT desk and leaves a message on one of the IT folks answering machine with the details very similar to the OP.

I was hoping to get some smart ass remarks, kinda like NinjaChick’s.

Ok, time to either flame me for a poor woosh or respond to the OP appropriately.

#10

I saw that in a Dilbert strip once (Dogbert’s tech support). The solution, of couse, is a mouse pad upgrade. Installation extra.

#11

I suspected a whoosh, however, I also have a rule: Never underestimate the cluelessness of a user.

Dave Barry once commented that we computer administrators use the word “user” to mean “idiot”. He’s not wrong.

#12

Would that use the twist-off or pop-off method?

#13

There have been small viruses(trojans typically, with no means of self-transmission or replication) that jack with your mouse. One just made your mouse pointer move ever so slightly, every so often. Just kind of drifting, here and there. Messed with people’s heads.

A friend of mine in college signed up for one of those “download our software and get paid for surfing the Internet!” programs. He, like me, was a computer major so he figured out that the way they could tell if you were surfing was to monitor mouse activity within a browser window. So at night he would maximize a browser window on the university homepage, turn on this little trojan, and then go to sleep. The trojan would move the mouse around within the window and the ad-software would register that as eight hours he spent browsing the web. He got ~20-30 bucks a month from the company.

Enjoy,
Steven

#14

Oh, I’m very glad. I posted that, and then suddenly thought: Oh sweet Og, what if he’s not joking?, and sort of felt really bad for a few minutes.

Then I ate another burrito, and all was well in the world.