msomers

Q: Force Touch Trackpad input while typing

Apple claims that OS X ignores trackpad input while typing and has removed the option to enable this. However, I just purchased a 2015 15" Retina MacBook Pro with the Force Touch trackpad and it regularly takes input while typing and the cursor jumps all over the place - I've even watched the cursor move slowly across the screen as I type.

 

Has anyone else experienced this? Is there any way to fix it?

MacBook Pro, OS X Yosemite (10.10.4)

Posted on Jul 26, 2015 9:07 AM

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Q: Force Touch Trackpad input while typing

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  • by Mike.Glish,

    Mike.Glish Mike.Glish May 13, 2016 9:00 AM in response to dobes918
    Level 1 (4 points)
    May 13, 2016 9:00 AM in response to dobes918

    I had three MBAs prior to my MBP experience.  I had three MBAs because I worked for three different companies during that time, not because they had issues.  To the contrary – I loved each one.  Ironically, my IT team still had the MBA I was using prior to getting the "lemon" MBP.  So while it was in for repair (after I put my foot down), I used my old MBA for a week.  I absolutely agree with you – I missed the Retina display and a few other MBP features but the trackpad worked flawlessly!

     

    If they could take the current MBA and add a Retina display, I would get one in a heartbeat.  The design may be a little old at this point but it is rock-solid.

  • by dobes918,

    dobes918 dobes918 May 16, 2016 2:40 PM in response to niugnep
    Level 4 (1,442 points)
    Notebooks
    May 16, 2016 2:40 PM in response to niugnep

    I picked up my computer at the Apple Store at 10 this morning, was home and getting to work by 10:30. Now it's 5:30 and I've been working on it for 7 hours - without a single skip. Who knows, tomorrow I may be writing that it's skipping again, but today it's been perfect.

     

    They replaced the top case, meaning the keyboard, trackpad, etc., under warranty. The tests they performed in the Apple Store the day I brought it in did not detect anything wrong, but thank heavens, when I demonstrated typing for the Genius, the cursor skipped, so he believed me.

     

    I really hope this turns out to be a cure -- and one available to all of you, too.

  • by niugnep,

    niugnep niugnep May 16, 2016 5:53 PM in response to dobes918
    Level 1 (4 points)
    May 16, 2016 5:53 PM in response to dobes918

    dobes918 wrote:

     

    I picked up my computer at the Apple Store at 10 this morning, was home and getting to work by 10:30. Now it's 5:30 and I've been working on it for 7 hours - without a single skip. Who knows, tomorrow I may be writing that it's skipping again, but today it's been perfect.

     

    They replaced the top case, meaning the keyboard, trackpad, etc., under warranty. The tests they performed in the Apple Store the day I brought it in did not detect anything wrong, but thank heavens, when I demonstrated typing for the Genius, the cursor skipped, so he believed me.

     

    I really hope this turns out to be a cure -- and one available to all of you, too.

    That's awesome! Sounds promising!

     

    Please keep me up to date in a few days, and if it still doesn't skip then I might make the sacrifice and take mine in for repair too!

  • by malibongwe,

    malibongwe malibongwe May 18, 2016 1:34 AM in response to dobes918
    Level 1 (8 points)
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    May 18, 2016 1:34 AM in response to dobes918

    It would be interesting to know what Apple said was the cause the initial problem.  Was it hardware related to specific product range? It appears to be the case.

  • by malibongwe,

    malibongwe malibongwe May 18, 2016 5:40 AM in response to niugnep
    Level 1 (8 points)
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    May 18, 2016 5:40 AM in response to niugnep

    Stick the following command into the terminal and see what happens.  I found this on Reddit thanks to tombiscuit:

     

    defaults write -g com.apple.trackpad.setWantsRestingTouches -bool TRUE

  • by Mike.Glish,

    Mike.Glish Mike.Glish May 18, 2016 6:13 AM in response to malibongwe
    Level 1 (4 points)
    May 18, 2016 6:13 AM in response to malibongwe

    What is this supposed to do?  If you don't like what it does, how do you cancel it?  If you do like what it does – is it persistent or do you have to reissue that command after every reboot?

  • by dobes918,

    dobes918 dobes918 May 18, 2016 6:16 AM in response to Mike.Glish
    Level 4 (1,442 points)
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    May 18, 2016 6:16 AM in response to Mike.Glish

    It is a little scary to mess around in Terminal. But in general, you don't have to re-enter commands, and you can negate them if they don't work or do something wonky by repeating the command exactly, only with FALSE instead of TRUE at the end.

     

    If mine skips again, I'll try it. But I tried to find the conversation on reddit, and couldn't. If anyone finds it, post a link? 

  • by niugnep,

    niugnep niugnep May 18, 2016 1:45 PM in response to dobes918
    Level 1 (4 points)
    May 18, 2016 1:45 PM in response to dobes918

    dobes918 wrote:

    ...I tried to find the conversation on reddit, and couldn't. If anyone finds it, post a link? 

     

    I think this might be it:

    https://www.reddit.com/r/applehelp/comments/4dqmqs/force_touch_trackpad_input_wh ile_typing/d1teibu

  • by Angharaz,

    Angharaz Angharaz May 18, 2016 5:54 PM in response to niugnep
    Level 1 (4 points)
    May 18, 2016 5:54 PM in response to niugnep

    Can anybody confirm if it works?

  • by dobes918,

    dobes918 dobes918 May 19, 2016 6:56 AM in response to Angharaz
    Level 4 (1,442 points)
    Notebooks
    May 19, 2016 6:56 AM in response to Angharaz

    I'm willing to say it works. I can certainly tell you it doesn't do anything bad to your computer. I put it in Terminal yesterday morning, when my cursor skipped for the first time since having my top case replaced. By this time, I've had three trackpads since January on a new 12" 2015 Macbook, and they all have the same problem, so I don't believe it's a hardware problem any more. This line in Terminal seems to replace the "ignore accidental trackpad input" setting that used to be in Systems Preference. Apple says they removed it from System Preferences because it was put into the software as default, but we can see that our computers behave as though they don't understand that. So yesterday I put it in and since then I have typed without checking the position of my hands or the speed at which I am typing -- and my computer is behaving absolutely normally.

     

    I do see the secondary cursor flash on the screen from time to time as I type - probably an indication that I have accidentally brushed the trackpad - but so far, it has not relocated the cursor. I am reluctant to call this an absolute cure because I have been very hopeful about other fixes before. But try it -- it won't hurt. I think the best thing to do is copy and paste, so that you get all the spaces right. Then let me know if it works for you.

  • by allovertheplace,

    allovertheplace allovertheplace May 20, 2016 12:02 AM in response to malibongwe
    Level 1 (4 points)
    May 20, 2016 12:02 AM in response to malibongwe

    I too am willing to say that this terminal command as posted (and repeated here for convenience) seems to work.

     

    defaults write -g com.apple.trackpad.setWantsRestingTouches -bool TRUE

     

    Thank you for posting this, and shame on apple to deny the problem exists instead of pointing people to this simple potential fix.

  • by Mike.Glish,

    Mike.Glish Mike.Glish May 20, 2016 5:07 AM in response to dobes918
    Level 1 (4 points)
    May 20, 2016 5:07 AM in response to dobes918

    Does this persist after a reboot or do you have to enter the command every time you reboot?  Seems to me that you would have to reissue after a reboot.

  • by dobes918,

    dobes918 dobes918 May 20, 2016 5:21 AM in response to Mike.Glish
    Level 4 (1,442 points)
    Notebooks
    May 20, 2016 5:21 AM in response to Mike.Glish

    I'm not a developer so I don't know for sure, but it seems to me that Terminal commands generally stay in place until they are contradicted. Any time I've entered one, the only way to change it back has been to re-enter it with FALSE at the end.

     

    There is probably someone who knows better, but my idea is that Terminal commands become part of the code - that's why I don't like to mess with them too often. But desperate times.....

  • by dobes918,

    dobes918 dobes918 May 20, 2016 5:28 AM in response to malibongwe
    Level 4 (1,442 points)
    Notebooks
    May 20, 2016 5:28 AM in response to malibongwe

    It does seem to be definitely related to the Force Touch trackpad. No one is reporting this issue on an Air, as far as I know. But when I first had the problem in January on a brand new 12" Macbook, the Apple Store gave me a new computer. It happened on that one, too, and so a couple of weeks ago they replaced the top case, including the trackpad -- and then it happened again. That satisfied me that it is either a hardware issue built into the Force Touch trackpad, or a software issue.

     

    The Terminal line above is still solving my problem, so  now I'm becoming fairly sure the problem is in the software.

  • by mikkibarry,

    mikkibarry mikkibarry May 20, 2016 7:01 AM in response to msomers
    Level 1 (4 points)
    May 20, 2016 7:01 AM in response to msomers

    Unfortunately, this did not work for me on a brand new MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2015).  As I basically write for a living, this has been a disaster.  I've had Apple products since the Apple II and it is truly sad to see quality going downhill in both hardware and software.  As for customer service, I'm usually treated like a know nothing. 

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