I'm hoping a Boing Boing reader might have an answer to a problem I'm having with my 1.5Ghz 12-inch PowerBook. I bought it last week from Apple's online store as a rebuilt machine. It operated without a problem for a few days, but now the trackpad and button becomes unresponsive after 3-15 minutes of use.
The Keyboard & Mouse preference pane doesn't even show the trackpad tab after it freezes. (I am using a USB mouse right now, which works just fine).
Sometimes, but not always, after a shut down the computer, the trackpad will work for a few minutes, but it always freezes up again after a couple of minutes.
I've tried resetting the PRAM and the the power management system (but shutting the machine down, taking the battery out, pressing down the power key for five seconds, and rebooting), but this doesn't solve the problem. I've changed the Energy Saver preferences to "Better Performance."
I've checked off the "ignore accidental input" checkbox on the trackpad. I've tried Apple's official recommended trackpad reset method of covering the entire trackpad with my palm for five seconds and lifting my hand off in a smooth motion. This does not reset my trackpad.
I'm at a loss, here. Do you have any ideas? If you do, please email me.
Reader comment: Bill Scannell says:
I don't know whether you've solved your problem or not, but having just solved mine, I thought you might be interested. It turned out to be the Airport card. Simply take out the battery, remove the Airport card and then reinstall the card. My card turned out to be loose. The card sits underneath the trackpad, which is why I think a loose Airport card causes the trackpad to go wonky. As always, YMMV.
