tired of the trackpoint

This is my first thinkpad (t420) and loving it, and got used to the trackpoint. But sometimes I feel I can't use it effectively, and at the same time I can't go back to the trackpad.

Is there a way to use the trackpoint more efficiently?

 

Practice and time, really. I would set it to a slightly higher sensitivity then you are comfortable. Eventually, you would get use to it. Set it again to a higher sensitivity, rinse and repeat until you can control the acceleration of the trackpoint.

 

The soft rim requires less force to move the pointer. You may wish to check it out.

 

Consider disabling pointer acceleration?

 

Try the different types of TrackPoint top, and experiment with sensitivity, speed, and acceleration thresholds.

 

Well the first thing I do with any new Thinkpad is disable the touchpad

I never can understand how on earth people do that whole swiping around thing, seems so counter-productive compared to the track point.

As mentioned, I think the key is getting the pointer sensitivity down. Once you are comfortable having the pointer move based on certain amount of pressure that you're comfortable with you're golden.

Being able to mouse around without having to leave the keyboard is a tremendous productivity booster.

 

Have your new Thinkpads (X220, e.g.) come with multiple types of Trackpoint caps? My two have not.

 

I don't remember if mine came with extra TrackPoint caps or not. I think not. Nevertheless, you can get them from Lenovo or from ebay.

Design Matters Poll Results – TrackPoint Caps

http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/...BFC554CEBA4D064394A24A0B8&&hide_menu_area=yes

 

I think they stopped shipping new ones with the little package of caps because it wasn't cost-efficient to do so. You could just order it if you want.

 

Do I have bad luck or am I so dumb that I can't use the trackpoint?

Sometimes while using it I feel I have to "push really hard" on the red point to move the cursor, it feels so heavy, even with light gestures. Then when i release the trackpoint i find the cursor moving on its own... ???

Trackpoint sensitivity: maximum.

 

You can also increase the windows mouse sensitivity. Barring that, try the soft rim, which takes less force than the nubs.

 

I have windows pointer speed: Fastest, Ultranav Touch sensitiviy: maximum.

I don't want to buy anything extra cuz it'll take time and huge money for internaitonal shipping.

 

The TrackPoint's design is a set of strain gauges that may become miscalibrated, and hence cause a net pressure in a particular direction, hence cursor drift.

The TrackPoint recalibrates when you take your finger off it to prevent cursor drift. It detects cursor drift as a continuous pressure in one direction, and the driver/hardware may be accidentally picking up intentional sustained pressure.

 

Mess around with tips. But as with all things in this world practice makes perfect. I carry a usb mouse with me, but I haven’t used it on a thinkpad in years and that was only for gaming. On my t400 I disconnected my touchpad a looong time ago, and thankfully the x200s doesn’t have one.

 

Same thing with me on my X220. Seems to be getting worse too. Anyone know a fix?

It doesn't seem to be recalibrating itself with mine.

 

Don't rest your finger on it when you're not actively moving the cursor.

 

For me, the trackpoint's require too much pressure to move, causing inaccuracy. Perhaps if they yielded under lighter pressure, they would be better for me.

 

you can control the input pressure required from within the trackpoint/ultranav tab of the mouse control panel (assuming you have the software installed).

mine have always been set to require the lightest pressure possible.   you could move the trackpoint with a piece of paper it's so light.

i then use mouse pointer speed to compensate for display size, slowing it down on small displays and going a tick or two faster on large displays.

 

I usually just increase my pointer speed so the cursor moves more freely. These are my settings:



If you're putting too much pressure on the Trackpoint then you probably not used to it. As erik said all you need is just the lightest of touches to navigate the Trackpoint. Though I haven't installed the Trackpoint software or driver on mine, i'm just using Microsoft's default mouse driver and it works fine out of the box for me.

It will take time before it will all come natural, nowadays I find the Trackpad that is present on the majority of notebooks sold today to be extremely frustrating to use in comparison to the Trackpoint!

 

For the trackpoint to be comfortable for me the trackpoints need to yield more displacement for a given amount of pressure. Drivers cannot change that. If the lever arm was longer that might accomplish that.

 

The TrackPoint needs to have no pressure applied for a second and it'll recalibrate. You'll notice the cursor will stop drifting.

I have my Windows pointer speed set to default, Enhance pointer precision (acceleration) disabled, and UltraNav set to Lightest touch. However, this setting varies between keyboards and/or machines. So your experience may vary.

 

Will give those settings a try and see if it helps- thanks.

 

Did it help?
It seems that i'm still having bad experience with the trackpoint...

 

sorry to dig up an old thread...

but I'm still not satisfied by the trackpoint. I sometimes feel it's "hard" to move the trackpoint around, here are my settings:

Pointer speed: fastest
Precision: off
Lightest touch

 

If you don't like it, why use it? Tried the TrackPad?

 

I fixed that issue on my T61 by uninstalling the UltraNav driver and installing the generic one: Drivers | Synaptics

 

There is a possibility that your Trackpoint is slightly defective and is getting worse over time. I have owned many, many Thinkpads over the last 17 years, and only occasionally have come across your problem. Replacing the keyboard fixed the problem for me. As a matter of fact, the X60 Tablet I am using to reply to this post has a trackpoint that makes it harder to move the pointer to the right-left, up and down all work perfectly. So, a replacement keyboard is in order.

With you listed settings, it the pointer should be very easy to move-so I would look into a possible keyboard replacement.

 

I split time between the pad and the point... I've found for me the best setup is to max the pointer speed with acceleration enabled and to use the firmest touch setting allowed. I am a ThinkPad convert but had a point-like stick on my former laptops. Never really fell in love with it... I will say this... I use the ThinkPads more than I have any other... which includes Dell's and HP's versions... I imagine if I kept using it or even disabled the pad that I might fully convert, but I'm not ready for that...