07-18-2008, 01:57 PM
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Desi Club Badshah
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Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 1,272
Thanks: 51
Thanked 247 Times in 65 Posts
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Re: ~ A Tip A Day ~
18 July 2008:
Fix Cranky Mice
When I move the mouse around, the pointer seems to skip around the screen instead of floating smoothly. Can I whip this rodent into shape?
Both mice and keyboards suffer from the same types of problems, and for the same reasons: despite the fact that they are the primary interface devices for your PC, they're usually the most cheaply built and poorly designed components of your system. Don't hesitate to replace a cranky mouse or a sticky keyboard, rather than spending hours trying to get it to work.
If you're still using a mouse with a little ball on the bottom, you could improve its reliability somewhat by cracking it open and cleaning the rollers and the ball, but you'll be much better off simply replacing it with an "optical" mouse. Optical mice have no moving parts, but rather use a small sensor to more reliably detect the movements of your hand. (If you're in the market for a new one, go down to your local computer store and try out a few models to see which one feels the most comfortable and well made.)
Troubleshooting Tips
The most important step and usually the most difficult in troubleshooting a computer system is isolating the problem. Some questions to ask yourself:
IS THIS AN ISOLATED INCIDENT, OR DOES THIS PROBLEM OCCUR EVERY TIME I PERFORM SOME ACTION? Crashing is a fact of life on a Windows system. An isolated incident is often just that. On the other hand, if a given error message or crash repeatedly occurs at the same time, in the same place, or as a result of the same mouse click, remember this fact if you hope to solve the problem.
DID I INSTALL OR REMOVE ANY SOFTWARE OR HARDWARE JUST BEFORE THIS PROBLEM OCCURRED? Sudden changes in your computer's behavior are almost never spontaneous; if something suddenly stops working, you can bet that there was a discernible trigger.
IS A SPECIFIC APPLICATION, A HARDWARE DEVICE, OR WINDOWS AT FAULT? You can rule out specific applications if the problem doesn't just occur in one program. You can rule out most hardware by removing or disabling unnecessary devices attached to your system. If applications and hardware aren't to blame, shine the spotlight on Windows.
DID I READ THE DIRECTIONS? I know, I knowa well-designed interface should mean never having to crack open the manual. But the reality is that you've got to read the directions (and release notes) that accompany any product you've bought and installed. While you're at it, go to the vendor's site and make sure you've got the latest updates, drivers, fixes, patches, and so on.
HAS SOMEONE ELSE ENCOUNTERED THE SAME PROBLEM? This is often the most useful question to ask, because odds are someone else has not only suffered the same fate, but discovered a solution and written about it in some online forum… such as the Windows XP discussion forum at Annoyances.org !
AM I ASKING THE RIGHT PEOPLE? If you just installed a new version of America Online and now your Internet connection doesn't work, don't call Microsoft. On the other hand, nothing compares to trying to convince a technical support representative that the problem you're experiencing is actually their company's fault and not someone else's.
My last tidbit of hard-earned wisdom? In some cases, it makes more sense to replace a product that's giving you endless hours of grief instead of trying to fix it. Keep that in mind when it's four o'clock in the morning and Windows refuses to recognize your ninety-dollar scanner.
Of course, even top-of-the-line mice aren't entirely trouble-free. Does your pointer jitter when you move the mouse around? If you're using a cordless mouse, this is almost always a reception problem: either the mouse is too far from the receiver or, more likely, the battery needs to be replaced or recharged.
If you have a corded mouse that plugs into a USB port, plug it into a different port and see if its performance improves. If you're using a USB hub, try bypassing it by plugging the mouse directly into one of your PC's USB ports. Other USB devices can sometimes suck up too much USB power or use too much bandwidth, which can interfere with the mouse as well, so try disconnecting them one by one to see if you notice a difference.
If It Ain't Broke…
Remember the Golden Rule: if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Many problems are actually caused by people looking for problems to solve. For example, installing a new driver just for the sake of having the "latest and greatest" version on your system may introduce new bugs or uncover some bizarre incompatibility. This doesn't mean that updating your drivers isn't a good idea, but only do this if something isn't working or performing at its best.
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