Sometime when I'm using my MacBook the trackpad gets stuck on 'Drag Lock' mode. So that wherever I move my cursor it will drag whatever it comes across. Does anyone else have this problem? If so, how do I fix it?
MacBook 13-inch Aluminum (Late 2008),
Mac OS X (10.6.4)
I'm also experiencing this issue on a 15" Mid 2009 Unibody Macbook Pro . It started two weeks ago after I ran several software updates, including the latest trackpad update. Intermittently the trackpad will think it's stuck down but it physically is not stuck. Restarting the computer is the only reliable fix I've found. I do use tap to drag (and prefer that feature for ergonomics). I had my trackpad replaced but that did not resolve the issue.
After reading the threads here and throughout the discussion boards it does sound like a software issue, not a hardware issue. I've currently reluctantly disabled tap-to-drag until there's a fix for this (besides an erase and install).
That was it! I'd done this accidentally out of frustration before, but this was the first time I deliberately tapped my way across the trackpad, and lo and behold...
Thanks, that's another work-around I'll try and remember. Scrivener will have to come to the rescue once more... 🙂
I've had this problem too. Usually a restart or random tapping on the trackpad helped. But the tapping from one side to the other (left to right in my case) seems to have worked?
I just fixed the problem. From reading through this thread, it sounds like maybe there are different reasons for different people's problems. But here's what worked for me...
Keeping the laptop plugged in, I took the battery out. That's it! It completely removed the constant click-drag that has ruined the past two days for me. The battery itself is indeed - as others have mentioned - warped. The top of it is slightly rounded / bloated and it's highest point is right in the middle and that's right underneath the trackpad.
Incidentally, you get great access to the underside of the trackpad too by taking out the battery...
That solution only works on pre-unibody Macbook Pros; some of the older lithium ion battery cells swell causing pressure on the trackpad. Apple has acknowledged that and says it's expected behavior.
Many of us have this problem with unibody Macbook Pros. I can attest that my battery is not swollen and replacing the trackpad did not resolve the issue. I disabled drag-lock after reading this thread and haven't experienced the issue since but it's frustrating because I
like drag lock.
I realize I'm not really helping this issue, but I am also experiencing this problem. It began occurring around the end of this past summer. I initially thought that something small had fallen underneath the trackpad, causing some sort of pressure even though the trackpad was not being touched. I now believe this is a software issue and have been attempting edit my settings in order to fix it. I have disabled one-finger drag (which I'd prefer to use) and have yet to experience any issues, although it has only been a few hours.
I have had the same problem as others with MagicTrackpad since I started using it last september with my MacBook Pro 17" (early 2008). At the same time the built in Trackpad on the MacBook Pro continues to work perfectly normally. So does my MagicMouse.
Resetting the PRAM makes no difference. I can stop the misbehavior of MagicTrackpad for a short time by making a right click somewhere in a text document. After a short while the misbehavior starts again.
The local Apple dealer has already exchanged my first MagicTrackpad for a new one after having deemed the first one as not functioning properly. However the second MagicTrackpad misbehaves just as the first one. My (unsatisfactory) solution is to turn of MagicTrackpad and use MagicMouse instead, - with no problems turning up!
here is how i just fixed mine. and i mean fix fer good.
ok, i have an old 15" macbook pro i got on ebay. same problem --trackpad got stuck on click/drag.
i tried a mouse and didn't have the problem, so it seemed like a possible hardware problem. (so if a mouse still gives you a problem, this won't help you).
i took out the battery from the bottom. if you look at where the batter sits you can see the bottom of the trackpad. you can also tell which part is the button. i poked and prodded it with my finger in case something had gotten bent during shipping. did this a few times, gentle but with some force. a poke, not a tap.
put the battery back on. works like a charm.
i call this little trick "goosing your macbook".
thank you folks, it's been wonderful to be here.
Forgot to mention one other thing. When this does occur, you can hit the escape key and then click in the same region where you started the drag. This doesn't fix the problem (it'll happen again with your next drag) but it does allow you to get on with it until the next time you need to do a drag operation.
