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trackpad stopped working

dancks

dancks

macrumors regular
Original poster
Nov 8, 2009
100
0
It can move the mouse but very little. I am dual booted with Windows 7 and was on Windows at the time. I did notice the computer was being very unresponsive and I had to restart twice. Then after the 2nd reboot it just stopped working. It wouldn't even work when the screen shows up to pick which OS you want to boot with.

I'm gonna try and fix this myself. I'm not interested in dropping it off at the apple store. But I need some clues as to what I should do to try and at least figure out what's causing the problem. I have 10.6.8 and I don't appear to have that hardware test program that you can can on startup
 
skoldpadda

skoldpadda

macrumors 6502
Sep 28, 2010
360
2
What was the original OS loaded onto the machine? I believe if it was Leopard than the Hardware test program would be on disc 2 of your provided discs.

Does the trackpad not work fullstop? Or just windows?
 
dancks

dancks

macrumors regular
Original poster
Nov 8, 2009
100
0
Holmes093 said:
What was the original OS loaded onto the machine? I believe if it was Leopard than the Hardware test program would be on disc 2 of your provided discs.

Does the trackpad not work fullstop? Or just windows?
Click to expand...

Yeah I realized later I just need to put in the 2nd CD. It was originally leopard. But I haven't been able to use my optical drive since the case bent!

Anyways, yes, its both mac and windows. Something curious I noted is that when I booted back into windows, before plugging in a usb mouse, it worked fine for a couple of seconds before windows was done completely loading then went back to barely moving. I was having some trouble with Windows before this happened, I left my computer in sleep mode the other day in Windows and it went into emergency shutdown for some reason. I think the only thing that happened is Windows overwrote or corrupted software somewhere and I just need to figure out what or if I can run some kind of software test.
 
skoldpadda

skoldpadda

macrumors 6502
Sep 28, 2010
360
2
dancks said:
Yeah I realized later I just need to put in the 2nd CD. It was originally leopard. But I haven't been able to use my optical drive since the case bent!

Anyways, yes, its both mac and windows. Something curious I noted is that when I booted back into windows, before plugging in a usb mouse, it worked fine for a couple of seconds before windows was done completely loading then went back to barely moving. I was having some trouble with Windows before this happened, I left my computer in sleep mode the other day in Windows and it went into emergency shutdown for some reason. I think the only thing that happened is Windows overwrote or corrupted software somewhere and I just need to figure out what or if I can run some kind of software test.
Click to expand...

Okay, it would be good if you could verify your hard drive, to so this you have to be booted off of the HDD, by either CD/DVD USB or Target Mode.

By chance is your mac a white or black macbook? Model 3,1 or something similar?
 
dancks

dancks

macrumors regular
Original poster
Nov 8, 2009
100
0
Holmes093 said:
Okay, it would be good if you could verify your hard drive, to so this you have to be booted off of the HDD, by either CD/DVD USB or Target Mode.

By chance is your mac a white or black macbook? Model 3,1 or something similar?
Click to expand...

Its a Macbook early 2008 model, type A1181 if that means anything to you. Right Now I need to find a new case with screws or I'm going shopping for a new computer. I seriously can't get the thing back together lol.
 
dancks

dancks

macrumors regular
Original poster
Nov 8, 2009
100
0
dancks said:
Its a Macbook early 2008 model, type A1181 if that means anything to you. Right Now I need to find a new case with screws or I'm going shopping for a new computer. I seriously can't get the thing back together lol.
Click to expand...

I think it might be the frame itself: I took it apart but lost a few screws so I couldn't really put it back together. I turn it on anyway and it works like a charm. I'll just leave it like that for awhile, take note of any isuues and then talk to genius bar see what they find. It could either be the frame being warped or maybe a grounding problem???
 
skoldpadda

skoldpadda

macrumors 6502
Sep 28, 2010
360
2
dancks said:
Its a Macbook early 2008 model, type A1181 if that means anything to you. Right Now I need to find a new case with screws or I'm going shopping for a new computer. I seriously can't get the thing back together lol.
Click to expand...

Apple will replace the section where the keyboard and trackpad are for free, it is a common problem with that model that it is prone to cracking, one of my colleagues brought his to me to install Lion and Windows 7. I informed him of this offer from apple, he took the machine to an apple store in London and they replaced it, took them a week. When they replaced his first time his trackpad and keyboard stopped working so he took it back and they replaced it again, all working now.
 
dancks

dancks

macrumors regular
Original poster
Nov 8, 2009
100
0
Update: they replaced the top case and plastic surrounding the screen. They wouldn't specify why the topcase had a problem other than it had intermittent i/o failure. They didn't detect other defects with the computer other than the optical drive. They wouldn't touch the optical drive since I replaced the original. They wouldn't even sell me the part! Anyway, I'll just order from ifixit.com I got the one I have now from amazon.

In the mean time Can I operate a macbook with the optical drive missing? I plan on returning it but I can't really afford downtime.
 
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