No mouse at all working.

[jasonpwns]

Every mouse Ive tried to get working on a system that I just installed XP on will not work. Note these mice are ps/2 but it isn't the port because I used a Ps/2 to USB converter and that didn't work either? Note Ive rebooted the system every time I tried a new mouse so it isn't the restart needed.

 

[aford10]

Do they work in safe mode?

Try using a USB mouse without using a converter.

Check in the BIOS. Which is enabled, USB or PS2?

 

[soundguruman]

hold down F2 and start the computer, this should get you into the bios setup screen, go through all the bios settings and check that plug and play is turned on, check that PS 2 is turned on, check that the USB is turned on, exit bios and save changes.

If that doesn't work

There's a trick you can try...
make sure the mouse and keyboard are plugged in.
put the XP disk in the machine, start the machine and hold down F8, select boot from disk, windows will then load a bunch of drivers. After all these drivers load, it will get to the setup screen.
Don't start the setup. Shut the computer off by unplugging from the power, take out the disk, then restart the computer.

If that doesn't work...
unplug the computer from the power.
open the computer, take out the battery, short the battery terminals on the motherboard for 10 seconds, put in a new battery.
make sure the mouse and keyboard are plugged in.

put the XP disk in the drive and start a REPAIR install. Hold down F8 while starting, select boot from disk. Do not delete partitions, do not reformat the drive.
Look in Tom's XP forum, fifth post from the top, for the directions.
after the repair install finishes, try using the mouse again.

If that doesn't work...
The bios may have been damaged or erased. Try following the manufacturer's instructions for re installing the latest bios. Then try following above and repeat procedures.

 

[jasonpwns]

USB mice work, just not PS/2. Let me check if Legacy is turned on.

 

[jasonpwns]

There is no option to turn Ps/2 on? I guess it is on by default. Nothing working still. Will try battery/repair method later.

 

[soundguruman]

the methods I have described, have worked when nothing else will. Although unconventional, they get you to where you want to go.
It almost sounds like the bios has been rendered FUBAR.

 

[aford10]

Is there an option to enable USB mice? If yes, try disabling that. It may be a toggle that enables/disables the PS2 interface at the same time.

 

[soundguruman]

Some systems are just a pain, they loose track of the mouse, USB.
Ya, some bios has the PS 2 controls, some does not.

 

[tigsounds]

Every mouse Ive tried to get working on a system that I just installed XP on will not work. Note these mice are ps/2 but it isn't the port because I used a Ps/2 to USB converter and that didn't work either? Note Ive rebooted the system every time I tried a new mouse so it isn't the restart needed.

hold down F2 and start the computer, this should get you into the bios setup screen, go through all the bios settings and check that plug and play is turned on, check that PS 2 is turned on, check that the USB is turned on, exit bios and save changes.

You may wear a hole in your keyboard, right under the F2 key if that is not the key to invoke the BIOS. The F2 key is Not the holy-grail, one-size-fits-all method of accessing the BIOS. Look at your screen when it is fist powered on, it may show what key to press to enter setup.

There's a trick you can try...
make sure the mouse and keyboard are plugged in.
put the XP disk in the machine, start the machine and hold down F8, select boot from disk, windows will then load a bunch of drivers. After all these drivers load, it will get to the setup screen.
Don't start the setup. Shut the computer off by unplugging from the power, take out the disk, then restart the computer.

Do you smell smoke? You might if you try this stunt. Unplugging the power to a running computer is Russian Roulette with only one bullet missing, rather than only one present. Your chances of causing great damage are very high. Computers use switched-mode power supplies, and they don't give up under load nicely. The voltages will not decay evenly. You could have a component that needs +12 volts and - 12 volts to operate. Killing the source power supply may give you an imbalance sufficient to toast many chips. It allows input and output pin voltages to exceed design limitations, resulting in dead circuit chips.

put the XP disk in the drive and start a REPAIR install. Hold down F8 while starting, select boot from disk. Do not delete partitions, do not reformat the drive.
Look in Tom's XP forum, fifth post from the top, for the directions.
after the repair install finishes, try using the mouse again.

Be prepared to also repair NET.Framework and Direct-X if they are installed.
If Windows installed without issues, it is not going to be Windows fault that your mouse won't work,
so a re-install or repair is futile, Windows isn't broken.

If that doesn't work...
The bios may have been damaged or erased. Try following the manufacturer's instructions for re installing the latest bios. Then try following above and repeat procedures.

If your BIOS is toast, the machine is going to sit there and do nothing.

I'm seeing a lot of "Snake Oil" remedies here lately. There is no silver-bullet fix in doing a "repair" or Restore Point rollback. Things need to be investigated. More information needs to be supplied by the person having the problem. I didn't see anyone ask this person the make or model of their mainboard so a lookup of that machine's BIOS could be made and see what options may exist for recommendation(s). Did anyone ask what color the mouse to USB converter is? Green or Purple? Maybe he has a keyboard converter instead of a mouse converter. Did they try each failed mouse in another computer proving they are working units?

I normally just roll my eyes at some of the so-called help I see here, but this one is actually going to cause more real damage than good for the person that confidently came here looking to us to help them.

I may inject some humor into some of my posted replies here, but even then, I strive to be Factually Correct in all I say. People that submit a request for help that can be understood by us deserve to get that help in the most accurate manner possible. If someone comes along and the best they can say is their machine broke... well, they are too far down the food chain of computer literacy to understand anything we might tell them. We can't solve everybody's problem, but those that we can, should be done with Facts, not some form-letter remedies. Sometimes the best that can be offered are "ideas" or trial and error suggestions, and there is nothing wrong with that, as long as the person is aware that what was just suggested may not work (because it is not founded in fact or experience).

~Tigsounds~

 

[jasonpwns]

Aren't mini-din ports just mini-din? I have a motherboard in my main system right now and it has a purple/green mini-din port (only one)

 

[tigsounds]

Aren't mini-din ports just mini-din? I have a motherboard in my main system right now and it has a purple/green mini-din port (only one)

The common, plug-on USB/PS2 adapters are either green or purple. Green is for keyboards, Purple for a mouse.
Some companies actually have a tiny keyboard or mouse molded into the plastic to show which one it is.

The mainboards like you mention are auto-detect, really cool stuff.

 

[jasonpwns]

The common, plug-on USB/PS2 adapters are either green or purple. Green is for keyboards, Purple for a mouse.
Some companies actually have a tiny keyboard or mouse molded into the plastic to show which one it is.

Yes but they are the same exact port. I learned that while in a class for A+. Like Ive had a few motherboard that did not distinguished between them since they could be used both ways. Which is why the Ps/2 or minidin port on my motherboard is colored halfway purple and halfway green and can have both devices work in it.


This board may not though, which is why I plugged it into the correct port and still nothing. USB works fine but a cable that is meant for both to go from Mini-din to USB didn't even work. Ive tried Three mice and no go. It doesn't seem to want to detect it for whatever reason.

 

[aford10]

Do they work in safe mode?

Try using a USB mouse without using a converter.

Check in the BIOS. Which is enabled, USB or PS2?

@Tigsounds
This is trying to narrow down if it's a malware issue, if it's a BIOS setting problem, or if it's a port/converter problem.

Is there an option to enable USB mice? If yes, try disabling that. It may be a toggle that enables/disables the PS2 interface at the same time.

@Tigsounds
This is further investigating the BIOS setting, as a clear answer didn't rule it out.

You're doing a lot of bashing. I'm not saying I disagree with you. But once you get off your soap box, I hope you can back it up with some advice.

Yes but they are the same exact port. I learned that while in a class for A+. Like Ive had a few motherboard that did not distinguished between them since they could be used both ways. Which is why the Ps/2 or minidin port on my motherboard is colored halfway purple and halfway green and can have both devices work in it.

Yes, some motherboards have a mouse/keyboard dual purpose port. If yours is that way, it wouldn't matter which adapter was being used.

If USB mice are working fine, and PS2 aren't, it's likely a dead port, there is a device conflict, or it's disabled in the BIOS.

 

[soundguruman]

There is nothing wrong with repairing windows to fix the mouse problem it has worked plenty of times, on lots of computers.

And there is nothing wrong with loading the drivers, from the install disk startup, and turning the computer off. That has also worked plenty of times, and it's not going to smoke. There is absolutely no danger of "smoke" when doing this.

What you have called "snake oil" remedies have worked over and over again. Perhaps you are upset that other people have alternate methods, but that does not make them wrong. They work, and they work just as well or better.

As far as bios damage, that has happened before too. Most of the bios can work, and some of it may not. Reloading an updated bios, when everything has been tried, is not an idiotic suggestion.

You stick to your methods, but don't rule out the possibility that others might have a method that works just as well. And as a matter of fact, these mentioned HAVE worked before.

 

[tigsounds]

@Tigsounds

<snip>

aford10 has offered the only sane advice so far in this thread.

 

[tigsounds]

There is nothing wrong with repairing windows to fix the mouse problem it has worked plenty of times, on lots of computers.

And there is nothing wrong with loading the drivers, from the install disk startup, and turning the computer off. That has also worked plenty of times, and it's not going to smoke. There is absolutely no danger of "smoke" when doing this.

Woa horse... Let's stop in here for a minute.      Now you say ok to "turning the computer off"
let's go back and see what you actually told jasonpwns to do..

There's a trick you can try...
<snip>
Shut the computer off by unplugging from the power, take out the disk, then restart the computer.

Looks like you said to [strike]kill[/strike] turn the computer off by "unplugging from the power." "Unplugging" is Not "turning the computer off!" as you now say.

What you have called "snake oil" remedies have worked over and over again. Perhaps you are upset that other people have alternate methods, but that does not make them wrong. They work, and they work just as well or better.

No, snake oil remedies have been repeated over and over again and have failed over and over again. I see simple settings issues being swept away with a worn-out message to "do a restore point rollback" or "repair," as it does get mixed around a bit, when the person only needed to do a settings change. Their rollback will re-load the same problem, but then they'll be told to do a repair, and that was not the problem either, so they leave thinking??    Generic answers are not solutions, they are unnecessary extra work. If the person didn't need to do a restore point, that makes the advice wrong, not just as good or better, Wrong. Not everybody has the 8 terabytes of hard drive space I do. They can't keep 50 restore points on tap at all times. When you send them back in time, they lose restore points that they may really need someday. Restore points are for when a machine cannot start due to unexpected corruption of a critical component of Windows, or one that can start but is severely crippled in functionality due to failed subsystems of Windows that are salvaged in a restore point. For the systems that cannot start, Microsoft has the Winternals ERD Commander that can perform a system restore point rollback from a bootable CD.

I love alternate methods, when they Actually Work. Your alternates will not make a proper setting change in the group policy editor or the registry, or make a home network connect because it was missing a protocol, or a huge number of other issues people bring here that don't require a restore point rollback. The repeated line of "Do a system restore point" or "Repair" is fine if that is the proper method of making a repair to Windows, otherwise it is showing that some advisers have no idea "what's under the hood" in Windows. It's the alternate methods advice of the lowest common denominator junk, that does not address or fix the problem, I oppose.

As far as bios damage, that has happened before too. Most of the bios can work, and some of it may not. Reloading an updated bios, when everything has been tried, is not an idiotic suggestion.

It's the BIOS that will boot whatever device holds the update. An "Update" assumes an improvement over the existing working code in the BIOS user data area. A damaged BIOS is broken. It can only be an experiment to try to re-flash a BIOS, and it rarely works. This is why the BIOS is in a socket, so it can be replaced if it fails.

You stick to your methods, but don't rule out the possibility that others might have a method that works just as well. And as a matter of fact, these mentioned HAVE worked before.

I will stick to my methods (research, understand, explain), you keep disappointing people with yours, that in a game of odds, you will certainly will cause a problem to be corrected- sometimes, but you will rarely fix a specific problem by dealing with that problem itself.

 

[soundguruman]

I'm glad you have so many happy things to say. As for all those who thanked me for a correct answer, that I guess was their imagination.

But for those of us who prefer not to "investigate" exactly what went wrong, down to the individual lines of code, repair install and restore works quite well. And we don't need to be scientists to accomplish the solutions.

In the interest of time and simplicity, I frequently skip research; that's because 90% of the people who ask how to fix these problems just want to fix it, and not to research, and most of them rarely answer the questions we ask them to start researching.

So in the end, the computer becomes fixed, researched or not.

Have you ever noticed that I rarely answer a post until it has been passed over by the other members of this forum? Why don't you answer them? Some people just appreciate that any person answered, and took the time to consider a solution. The reality being, that most of the people asking questions in this forum are not even reading the replies we give them, well maybe 1 out of 10.
I don't hear many constructive answers from you today, but if you have a better idea, why don't you just say so? What's your solution (besides complaining) to the mouse malfunction?

here was the question: "cant seem to finish installing SP2 operating system."
and here was your reply: "Yea..... There's a lot of that going around lately, sad it is I tell you, sad."

Boy oh boy, is that some deep intelligent research, or what?

I think you are more cynical than you are helpful, you may know a lot about the technical aspects, but you don't really want to help anybody. I think you just post here to take out your underlying frustrations on people with computer problems. I can see that it's been building up for a long time.

 

[tigsounds]

I'm glad you have so many happy things to say. As for all those who thanked me for a correct answer, that I guess was their imagination.

But for those of us who prefer not to "investigate" exactly what went wrong, down to the individual lines of code, repair install and restore works quite well. And we don't need to be scientists to accomplish the solutions.

Yup, that's called "Quick and dirty"

In the interest of time and simplicity, I frequently skip research; that's because 90% of the people who ask how to fix these problems just want to fix it, and not to research, and most of them rarely answer the questions we ask them to start researching.

So in the end, the computer becomes fixed, researched or not.

Have you ever noticed that I rarely answer a post until it has been passed over by the other members of this forum? Why don't you answer them?

A:    I do. I have 249 post since 5/29/10. Look around.
B:    I've grown weary of cleaning up after you.

Some people just appreciate that any person answered, and took the time to consider a solution.

The reality being, that most of the people asking questions in this forum are not even reading the replies we give them, well maybe 1 out of 10.

Or they just leave in disgust seeing the lame answer they got.

I don't hear many constructive answers from you today, but if you have a better idea, why don't you just say so? What's your solution (besides complaining) to the mouse malfunction?

He's going to have to INVESTIGATE, you know, that thing you never learned to do because you don't think it's necessary. That's how REAL answers get found. He's going to need a voltmeter and an oscilloscope. He'll need to open a mouse (or have a ps2 plug with wires attached) and measure and probe. I don't know that he's up to it or has equipment to perform test. I think he has a defective socket, but only an investigation will prove that to be the true problem. You can keep telling him to keep pressing F2 or do a restore point.

here was the question: "cant seem to finish installing SP2 operating system."
and here was your reply: "Yea..... There's a lot of that going around lately, sad it is I tell you, sad."

Boy oh boy, is that some deep intelligent research, or what?

That person got a response of equal or greater value to the question presented (they didn't ask a question and they also didn't get an answer, only an agreeable statement). They qualify for my earlier statement:

If someone comes along and the best they can say is their machine broke... well, they are too far down the food chain of computer literacy to understand anything we might tell them.

Is there any point of getting into the technicalities of Windows with someone that shows up with no better understanding than that? He didn't even ask a question. If he expected more, he should have said more.

I think you are more cynical than you are helpful, you may know a lot about the technical aspects, but you don't really want to help anybody.

Hold on Dr. Spock... 249 post, 2109 points, 4 badges, 14 "Best Answer" awards, 10 of them in the XP formum, and one sanction, all in less than 45 days.
I didn't do that by misleading people with bunk answers so I wouldn't really be of any help.

I think you just post here to take out your underlying frustrations on people with computer problems. I can see that it's been building up for a long time.

My frustrations?? are seeing someone come here for useful advice, instructions or general help with a particular problem with their computer running Windows XP, and then see the misleading, retarded answers you supply. That's frustrating. How long have you seen it building up? I haven't been here 45 days yet.
I read past post and Falcon* is right, you Don't know what you are talking about.

*Apologies to Falcon, using name without his presence.

 

[aford10]

Relax guys. Excessive bickering in a thread can also run off an OP looking for help. Lets focus on Jasonpwn's issue.

 

[jasonpwns]

What the heck, anyways how can it be a broken socket if a PS/2 to USB doesn't even work?

 

[aford10]

What kind of keyboard interface are you using?

I assume the adapter that you're using, is similar to this?
http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=PS2-USB&cat=KYB

 

[jasonpwns]

Yeah, but it is a little gray cable. KEyboard is USB.

 

[aford10]

More like this?
http://www.pcgonmad.co.uk/product_info.php?pName=double-ps2-to-usb-adaptor-cable-2&cName=cables-keyboard-mouse-cables

Do you have the mouse connected to the correct adapter (green)?

 

[jasonpwns]

Yes, like that one but only one end and it is all gray.

 

[aford10]

Are you sure it's for a mouse? Or that it even works?

What kind of keyboard (USB or PS2)?