# Please help me fix this computer problem - URGENT!!!! **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 24, 2009, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557 "2009-08-24T22:01:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![congodwarf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@congodwarf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/congodwarf)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2009, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557/1 "2009-08-24T22:01:33Z")
Well, not urgent for you. Urgent for me. See, I am a medical transcription student. My life right now revolves around my computer and typing. I am having a problem with the typing part. That flashing thingy - cursor? Yeah, I think that’s what it’s called. Anyway, I’m typing merrily away and all of a sudden, it goes away! Or, it jumps to another spot in whatever it is I’m typing. For instance, as I was typing this, three times my cursor jumped to the middle of the thread title. Twice it disappeared. Three times I jumped to another part in the body of the text. This would just be a minor annoyance except that time is so important to an MT and if I have to keep finding my cursor (and then fixing any extra typing) and putting it back where it goes, I lose time. Not to mention the fact that it’s really god damn irritating. Please tell me this is something easily fixable!!! Oh, and please tell me how to fix it too. Knowing it’s easy is nice an all but I still need to fix it. By the way, this happens no matter where I am typing. I’ve made posts here and on my school’s website. I’ve used the school program to do my work, and I’ve used MS Word. I don’t recall it happening in Word but it happens everywhere else. Oh, it happens in emails too. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2009, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557/2 "2009-08-24T22:08:54Z")
This sounds very much like prankware/malware to me. Have you tried running [Malwarebytes](http://www.malwarebytes.org/)? ---
**Author:** ![PatriotGrrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9dc877/32.png) [@PatriotGrrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatriotGrrrl)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2009, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557/3 "2009-08-24T22:18:00Z")
Is this on a laptop? If so, it could be the built-in pointing device misbehaving. Disable it and use an external mouse. ---
**Author:** ![Iggins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Iggins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggins)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2009, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557/4 "2009-08-24T22:18:57Z")
Are you on a laptop? Are you brushing against the touch pad? ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2009, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557/5 "2009-08-24T22:19:22Z")
Desktop PC or laptop? I’ve seen defective or overly sensitive touchpads on laptops cause the problem you describe. An easy test is to plug in a USB mouse and keyboard and don’t touch the laptop as you use it. If the problem does not go away, then it probably is malware of some sort. If you need to keep the pad active, you may be lucky and only need a driver update, or you may find the trackpad is going bad, and it needs to be replaced. If the laptop is more than a couple years old, it may make more sense to get a new laptop. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2009, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557/6 "2009-08-24T22:21:47Z")
it sounds like a mouse problem, not a keyboard problem. Is your mouse on a mousepad? Is this a laptop? Are you accidentally touching the touchpad? You can disable the touchpad on most laptops. Is your mouse pointer acting wonky too? ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2009, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557/7 "2009-08-24T22:26:27Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > An easy test is to plug in a USB mouse and keyboard and don’t touch the laptop as you use it. If the problem does not go away, then it probably is malware of some sort. I have an old Toshiba laptop that has some sort of bad connection in it. Occasionally the mouse pointer will start moving all on its own across the screen. Whapping the laptop just below the keyboard sometimes fixes it, sometimes not. The mouse pointer will still move even if I use an external USB keyboard and mouse (and still requires a whap on the laptop to fix it). It’s a known hardware issue with certain model Toshiba laptops. I could pay to get it repaired, but at this point it’s an old laptop and isn’t worth the money to fix it. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2009, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557/8 "2009-08-24T22:41:56Z")
I see this every so often with my KVM. ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2009, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557/9 "2009-08-24T23:00:38Z")
If it is indeed a touchpad problem but you don’t want to disable it completely, the [touchfreeze](http://code.google.com/p/touchfreeze/) utility will automatically disable the touchpad while you’re typing and then re-enable it a few moments later. ---
**Author:** ![congodwarf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@congodwarf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/congodwarf)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2009, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557/10 "2009-08-24T23:17:42Z")
I ran Malwarebytes and it found no problems. I always use a usb mouse - a thumb ball so no mousepad. I’m pretty sure I’m not touching the touchpad. My hands are usually angled off to either side of the touchpad. But, I’ll try the touchfreeze utility thingie. Oddly enough, even since I ran the Malwarebytes, even though it found no problems, it hasn’t happened again. ---
**Author:** ![congodwarf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@congodwarf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/congodwarf)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2009, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557/11 "2009-08-25T01:14:56Z")
Well, unless the problem is just taking a break, turning the touchpad off worked. Thanks for the help everyone!!! ---
**Author:** ![Noelq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/noelq/32/16438_2.png) [@Noelq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Noelq)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2009, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557/12 "2009-08-25T01:54:40Z")
Well, if it turns out you are still having the problem, two more possible solutions: 1. Check your batteries. When they start to fail, odd things happen. 2. Check the other mice in your house. One, in another room, could be on the same frequency, and occasionally making the random long-distance connection and affecting your mouse. 3. Any other mice near you? They could be on the same frequency, and trying to turn themselves on. Pull out their batteries. ---
**Author:** ![Henrichek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/5daacb/32.png) [@Henrichek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Henrichek)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2009, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-fix-this-computer-problem-urgent/507557/13 "2009-08-25T03:01:06Z")
I’ve seen stuff like receiving SMS on a cellphone induce some current that moves the mouse cursor away. It never caused a mouseclick to actually move the keyboard focus away from where you are typing though, so it’s not your problem. Just a fun mouse phenomenon.