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I installed the new macOS High Sierra last night on my MBA and when I went to use it today the cursor was erratic (it was bouncing all over the place like it had a palsy). The computer is literally unusable as it is. I tried restarting the computer but to no avail. I hope that they put out a bug fix quickly. I doing this post from my iPad.
MacBook Air, macOS Sierra (10.12.6), MBP/MBA/IPadPro/iPadAir/iPhone6/AW2
Dialabrain- I tried both suggestions and cursor still whacky. I see they just came out with iOS 11.0.1 bug fix for my iPhone and iPad to fix bugs for the final I just installed on Friday. I hope that they will come out with macOS 13.0.1 quickly to fix these bugs. Although, since the cursor issue doesn’t even go away with a safe mode startup, I don’t know how I’m going to install it. I have a USB Startup thumb drive that I could try and revert back to a pre-High Sierra OS but I’m not sure if my relatively new MBA will take it (I think they only take an OS equal to or newer than what was on it when manufactured.) Doesn’t make me happy to be in this fix and very unproductive with my time.
I don't know that it is a bug. I have High Sierra installed on three Macs and none of them have your problem. Two iMacs and a MacBook. I do have a 2013 MacBook Air which I haven't updated yet. Will be doing so shortly and will see if I encounter the problem. If not, it's most likely some software you have installed.
I'll post back.
"most likely some software you have installed"
I notice that three applications were greyed and X out as not-compatible but I couldn't get the cursor to click on them to drag them to the trash. The cursor won't go where you want it to (I use the touchpad and not a mouse). That's what is so frustrating. Even doing the safe mode and doing the login items check (there was only one) was a chore because trying to move through the steps was not easy (I ended up using the tab and arrow keys to navigate) and trying to click on an item was a game.
Okay, so I upgraded my MBA to High Sierra and no crazy cursor behavior. So I still think it may be an incompatible software issue or perhaps a hardware issue. You are going to need to find a USB mouse you can use to try and run some tests.
My cursor is not bouncing but it does not indicate that it is on a link or something clickable by changing its arrow to whatever it does when it is on a clickable item. Hard to describe but it is wonky.
Dialabrain- I finally gave up. I pulled out an older MBA (2010) running Sierra 10.12.4 but it's much slower and not as responsive as the newer MBA. It’s about 50 miles to the closest Apple Store and a Genius so I took it to a local independent authorized Apple dealer. I wanted them to install Sierra 10.12.6 since I couldn’t get the cursor to be controllable enough to go to my TM backup and install it. They ran a diagnostic test and the computer and drive etc were ok. Because my MBA is relatively new, they think it might have been a corrupted High Sierra download (wi-fi).. They will do a complete backup and fresh reinstall of High Sierra - not with wi-fi - ($$$). I hope it resolves the problem. Thanks for your suggestions and responses.
While I don't have a solution, I wanted you to know you are NOT alone. I have this issue too on ALL my devices - a wired mouse, a wired keyboard, a magic mouse and wireless keyboard, and a wacom. I am having to switch between them constantly for moves. At the moment the wireless devices kind of work but the mouse wont scroll. When then suddenly stop I'll have to change back. When things get really funky (its a minute by minute thing), I have to use my wacom to select something like a button. I too hope they come up with a fix. I don't have third party things on my mac other than adobe photoshop and lightroom. Everything worked prior. Immediately after, no. There is definitely something odd with what this install did to the devices. I have an older MAC. Don't know if that is part of the issue.
Iphonelike- thanks for your post. It’s always nice that we don’t feel like we’re standing alone in the rain. Now that I know that I’m not the only one, I hope that the fresh install works or I will have to go back to Sierra. Let’s hope Apple comes out with a fix soon...all of the new features and enhancements in High Sierra are nice - which is why I went for the first release instead of waiting.
My son and his fiancé were over last night and both are animators (both teach animation at college level) and both are heavy Mac users. we talked about this. She said she always backs up her harddrive and then zeros it out and does a fresh install of the new OS. I guess that’s what I should have done.
I’ve done that many times over the years myself as well. I usually opt for the quick method rather than the one that takes forever but is more secure. I don’t know if that will work in this case. I read an article yesterday that said Apple has problems updating firmware in a percentage of Macs. They don’t yet know why or how the firmware was compromised. The article said that if that is why, iit can’t be fixed. It said you should check to see if you have the latest version and if not try to update.
iphonelike - as an update...I had the local authorized Apple dealer reinstall High Sierra ($$$), hoping that there may have been a corruption in my online install. The new install made the cursor slightly better but did not resolve the issue (the touchpad). Then a day after i picked up my computer, Apple released the 10.13 "Supplemental" install. I did the update, hoping it resolve the issue...IT DID NOT !!! It's usable (better than before) but frustrating. I just read an article in The Register (a UK newsletter - really good and also headlines with a great sense of humor). The article said NEVER INSTALL A FIRST RELEASE...ALWAYS WAIT FOR xx.0.3 or xx.0.4 - I'll follow that advice religiously from now on.
For what it is worth, I am back to using my wireless keyboard and mouse and they are working ok now. I had to abandon my wired devices. They still had issues. I am running 10.13. My settings tracking speed is lowered to half. All options are enabled on point and click and more gestures, FYI.
This has been driving me crazy. After my post, I Googled it and discovered many, many postings on multiple Mac focused sites complaining about this issue - AND, going back to the 2011 MBA. I even found posts back to the iBook in 2002 with the same issue.
Three suggestions that I read and that I tried last night, amazed me. They all worked.
1. Put your left hand finger(s) beside the trackpad on the MBA-cover (to get in metallic contact), and move the cursor with your right finger on the trackpad. Amazingly, the cursor will function correctly,!! But it's no real solution to the problem.
2. Unplugged the charging cable and the cursor functions correctly!!
3. Licked fingers to moisten, then wiped them on his jeans and then the cursor would function correctly!!
Another poster stated that it was a “static” problem. These three suggestions point to a “static” problem and, perhaps, the static problem occurs when the unit is plugged in and charging. Last night I was trying to place an emoji in a post and it was going to another place in the text...this confirms the static issue with me…I was making the post with my iPhone - THAT WAS PLUGGED IN AND CHARGING !! When I unplugged it, the cursor behaved normally. (I'm writing this post with my left hand on the MBA next to the trackpad. I guess it's grounding the computer?)
FYI Update: I took my MBA to the Genius today (100 mile roundtrip) and he ran the trackpad diagnostic and guess what? The diagnostic test confirmed the problem...a hardware problem. Luckily, the computer is still under warranty, plus I have AppleCare. They're fixing it and will mail it back (to save me the 100 mile roundtrip to pick up).
I've been dealing with this issue since Sept 25th, when I installed High Sierra the erratic cursor made the computer unusable. The local authorized Apple dealer did clean reinstall of High Sierra but apparently did not run any diagnostic tests (which would have identified the problem right away. However, the reinstall made the cursor "a little better" but still not really useable so I did TM restore, putting macOS back to Sierra 10.12.4 but the trackpad cursor issue still remained. I upgraded it to 10.12.6 but the cursor problem remained. So, I made the Genius appointment (the nearest I could get was 6 days - today). Now that I know the problem and it's being fixed, I'm a happy camper. 🙂
Cursor going crazy after High Sierra install...computer unusable
