My computer mouse is possessed

Suz

(the future) MRS. GERE
Out of nowhere last night I couldn't control my mouse. It was the strangest thing.......like what happens at work when you have a problem and someone from the IT department logs into your computer and they rule your mouse. Last night it was only going to move on the left side of my screen, then it would work fine, then it would hang up again.

I shut down and rebooted at least 3 times. I opened the back of the mouse and cleaned it out several times, too.

It seems to be working intermittently this morning.

Any ideas? Is it as simple as I just need to go buy a new one?

Suz
 

Stella Johnson

Active Member
Could be a virus. Download anything funny? Or your mouse may be going out completely and may be time for a new one.
There's a long list of other things it could be too but those are the main two.

Steph
 

Suz

(the future) MRS. GERE
Thanks, Steph. I worried about it maybe being a virus but I rarely download anything. The last thing I did was on Friday and it was a series of short movies my brother had sent me of my great niece so that was more than a day before this happened.

I have AOL and it seems like it does a virus scan a couple of times a day- drives me nuts. Is there a way I can check this out beyond this?

Suz
 

goldenguru

Active Member
Do you have a wireless mouse? Need a new battery?

How about the cord - could it be bad? Make sure your connections are all good.

Could be you just need a new mouse too.

Hate when the computer doesn't cooperate. :smashcomputer:
 

Suz

(the future) MRS. GERE
Hi GG-

I have a 6 year old computer and an old mouse...the kind with the ball inside. I figure it's just old- I was fussing with the wires so it wouldn't surprise me if that's the problem and maybe why it started working again (?). I figure a trip to Circuit City or Best Buy is now in my plans for today.

Any suggestions/recommendations on a new mouse?

Suz
 

donna723

Well-Known Member
I probably won't be much help. When mine does that it's usually because there is 'stuff' built up inside of it and taking it apart and cleaning it out fixes it, but I see you've already done that.

Is it just being stubborn and not doing what you want it to, or is it actually doing things on it's own, clicking on things? I once had a virus that caused the cursor to go to the right places and click on all the right buttons to lower my security settings ... while I watched!

They do eventually wear out though. You may just need a new one.
 

Suz

(the future) MRS. GERE
I once had a virus that caused the cursor to go to the right places and click on all the right buttons to lower my security settings ... while I watched!

:faint:

No, thank goodness, that isn't what was happening here, Donna. That would have really freaked me out.

It was just so strange. I would move it to the right and it wouldn't move at all, or as I got more frustrated and moved it more and more, the thingie (pardon the technical jargon ;) ) on the screen was moving but in different patterns and in a different part of the screen than where it should have been.

This morning it burped a couple of times and now seems to be working just fine.

I wish I wasn't such a technobozo.

Suz
 

Marcie Mac

Just Plain Ole Tired
Did you take the ball out of the mouse, clean it, and clean the contact's inside? Sometimes gunk just builds up in there.

I have comandeered easy child's mouse for my own - its a Logitech one, and its weighted - even comes with a little set of different weights so you can choose how heavy you want it to be, and even has a button where you can change the speed of it. Love it, Love it..

Marcie
 

slsh

member since 1999
Suz - I highly recommend the ... oh gosh, are they laser mice? Not cordless, but they have a red light on the bottom of them rather than the ball. I used to go through the old kind of mice every couple of months but (knock on wood) I've had this laser kind for almost 2 years now!
 

Lothlorien

Active Member
I have a laser cordless. No ball inside to gather dust and you don't need a mouse pad (except to save your furniture). When the battery wears, the mouse gets funny, but other than that, I have had no issues with my mouse. It's a Microsoft cordless. It's called a wireless optical mouse.
 

Suz

(the future) MRS. GERE
WOW,- how funny!- the young man at Best Buy must have been channeling all of your recommendations because he suggested a Logitech cordless laser mouse and that's what I got!

So far so good. Knock on wood.

Thanks, gals! :D

Suz
 

TerryJ2

Well-Known Member
Hey, that's what I have!
Enjoy.
One word of caution--Laser mice/mouses :) get sick, too. Occasionally mine will not obey me and will stick, or will take forever to respond. The next day it is fine. Technology is rarely perfect.
 
Top