|
Replies
:
11
-
Pages
:
1
-
Last Post
:
Nov 10, 2005 12:29 AM
by: Pedro Marques
|
|
|
Posts:
36
Registered:
Aug 2, 2004
|
|
|
|
Trackpad Button Requires Hard Push to Respond
Posted:
Nov 6, 2005 1:55 PM
|
|
|
Hi there,
now that my PowerBook has passed the one year mark, and thus out of warranty, I'm experiencing a very annoying problem:
The trackpad button now requires a hard push to respond. Parts of the button don't respond at all.. you must press square down on the middle.
Also, many times, a single click registers as a double click opening Safari links twice or opening a file I just meant to select.
I found a solution to this problem, but unfortunately, it is temporary. Pressing very hard on the button and sliding my fingers from side to side as if installing the button for the first time resolves the problem for about 20 or so clicks.. then the button returns to it's unreliable state.
Since I don't have Applecare, I would welcome suggestions on how to resolve this permanently on my own.
Could this be dirt under the button? It feels like the old problem that videogame console controllers experience. After hundreds of presses, they become unresponsive.
Somebody please help as this is dampening my Powerbook experience.
CAD$4,000 for a computer for one year ... *shakes head*
|
|
Posts:
36
Registered:
Aug 2, 2004
|
|
|
|
RE: Trackpad Button Requires Hard Push to Respond
Posted:
Nov 6, 2005 2:12 PM
in response to: Pedro Marques
|
|
|
... and there you have it. Quite appopriately, my problem has created 2 instances of this thread because when I meant to click the POST MESSAGE button, it must have registered a double click.
Even if you can't offer me a solution to this problem, I would welcome others with this issue to post your story as well.
Also, it would be useful if somebody could post a link to information on how to remove the trackpad button on a Powerbook.
|
|
Posts:
36
Registered:
Aug 2, 2004
|
|
|
|
RE: Trackpad Button Requires Hard Push to Respond
Posted:
Nov 6, 2005 5:52 PM
in response to: Pedro Marques
|
|
|
I've searched the net for a way to remove the trackpad button.
Many DIY websites show how to dismantle a PowerBook but all seem to omit information on how to replace a trackpad or at least remove it or its parts from the case.
The more I look into my issue, the more it sounds like there is simply a layer of dust/dirt on the button sensor which would easily be cleaned off if I could only remove the button.
|
|
Posts:
443
From:
Kent, UK.
Registered:
Apr 5, 2003
|
|
|
|
RE: Trackpad Button Requires Hard Push to Respond
Posted:
Nov 7, 2005 12:50 PM
in response to: Pedro Marques
|
|
|
Radtech sell kits for maintaining the hinges on a PowerBook.
Just a thought, it may well be worth giving them a call, as they may have a product you could try and spray/work under your trackpad button.
|
|
Posts:
36
Registered:
Aug 2, 2004
|
|
|
|
RE: Trackpad Button Requires Hard Push to Respond
Posted:
Nov 8, 2005 10:27 PM
in response to: Pedro Marques
|
|
|
Still no info on the web on how to remove a PowerBook's trackpad button 
|
|
Posts:
2,056
From:
Gotham
Registered:
May 4, 2005
|
|
|
|
RE: Trackpad Button Requires Hard Push to Respond
Posted:
Nov 8, 2005 10:39 PM
in response to: Pedro Marques
|
|
|
You could always ask Apple on the phone, or drop by an Apple Store or an AASP and ask in person.
But, I think the reason you may not be finding any information of how to remove the "trackpad button" is that there is no way to remove the "trackpad button" per se. Perhaps the only way to get at the trackpad is to remove the top case from the bottom case.
For example, here's a PowerBook G4 Al upper case sold by PBfixit, which as you can see includes the trackpad. Maybe there is no real way to "take the trackpad apart" in the way one can disassemble a mouse or trackball or something like that.
If you find out the answer for sure, definitely post back.
|
|
Posts:
36
Registered:
Aug 2, 2004
|
|
|
|
RE: Trackpad Button Requires Hard Push to Respond
Posted:
Nov 8, 2005 11:11 PM
in response to: Pedro Marques
|
|
|
Thanks for the link JDee ... this looks like it will be an expensive repair
I'm very disappointed that my $4,000 PowerBook is lasting me less than a cheapo PC I had previously.
I'm sure there is a way to detatch the button since it is after all, "a part". It wasn't built into the top of the case.
Since the button still works, albeit erratically, I'm hopeful that I can repair it myself.
|
|
Posts:
449
Registered:
Jan 9, 2005
|
|
|
Posts:
36
Registered:
Aug 2, 2004
|
|
|
|
RE: Trackpad Button Requires Hard Push to Respond
Posted:
Nov 9, 2005 8:57 AM
in response to: Pedro Marques
|
|
|
Thanks for the directions, but that explains how to remove the upper case and not the trackpad button.
|
|
Posts:
2,056
From:
Gotham
Registered:
May 4, 2005
|
|
|
|
RE: Trackpad Button Requires Hard Push to Respond
Posted:
Nov 9, 2005 9:47 AM
in response to: Pedro Marques
|
|
|
I'm sure there is a way to detatch the button since it is after all, "a part". It wasn't built into the top of the case.
I'm not so sure. If you look at the picture in the PBfixit guide of the upper case being removed, it looks (to me anyway) like the the trackpad is an integrated component of the upper case, or at a minimum that in order to separate the trackpad (and its button) from the upper case, the upper case would necessarily have to be removed first.
Seems like the only way to tell for sure would be to consult with the experts -- Apple or an AASP, whom I'm sure could solve this riddle with certainty.
|
|
Posts:
21
Registered:
Aug 27, 2002
|
|
|
|
RE: Trackpad Button Requires Hard Push to Respond
Posted:
Nov 9, 2005 4:14 PM
in response to: Pedro Marques
|
|
|
I feel your pain. i had the same issue with my ibook. called it in under warranty and i was told to take it to an apple store. its an hour round trip each way, i thought they would send me a box. my powerbooks button behaves fine, so i new it was a hardware problem.
anyway, in october (after 1 year) it got worse, so i called apple again, complained that i should have gotten a box last time, and they OK'd a 1-time fix. got it back in 3 days and its great.
|
|
Posts:
36
Registered:
Aug 2, 2004
|
|
|
|
RE: Trackpad Button Requires Hard Push to Respond
Posted:
Nov 10, 2005 12:29 AM
in response to: kipsy
|
|
|
Thanks for sharing your story kipsy.
I've convinced Apple to repair my PowerBook at no cost. Hopefully they will solve the problem.
Do you know if they replaced the entire top part of the case or did they just repair the trackpad?
Since it's a hardware issue, will they wipe out my hard drive? I will back it up in case, but hopefully they don't wipe it out.
Now I guess I need to search these forums for a list of OSX items that need to be backed up....
iCal .. e-mails ... iPhoto .. iTunes ... Bookmarks ... hummm.. I got a lot of thinking to do.
|
|
|
