Why do these boxes keep popping up on my Windows screen?

January 25, 2017 8:16 AM

Driving me crazy! This and this keep popping up on my screen when I do anything! New Thinkpad. Windows 8.1Pro.
posted by DMelanogaster to Computers & Internet (15 answers total)

Looks like you're getting a false right-click. That would suggest that there's a problem with the right button on the trackpad, assuming you're not doing something to trigger a right-click.
posted by pipeski at 8:21 AM on January 25, 2017 [1 favorite]

Agree with pipeski. Here are instructions on how to adjust sensitivity for the touchpad.
posted by Karaage at 8:26 AM on January 25, 2017

Are you possibly resting your wrist on the touchpad causing the system to think you did a right click?
posted by tman99 at 8:29 AM on January 25, 2017 [1 favorite]

I vote for oversensitive trackpad.
posted by Obscure Reference at 8:32 AM on January 25, 2017 [1 favorite]

This keyboard key might be causing it too although the touchpad thing is more likely.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 8:43 AM on January 25, 2017

Yes before changing the touchpad settings look for the "menu key" on your keyboard and see if you're not accidentally hitting it. It's usually to the right of the space bar, between Ctrl and Alt
posted by teabag at 8:58 AM on January 25, 2017

These are right-click menus. I've never seen anyone do this on a touchpad, but you can change your mouse settings if you're left-handed so that the buttons are reversed. I.e., your left-click is a right-click and vice versa. Googling shows that this can be done. Could it be that someone configured your computer for a lefty? Go to Control Panel > Mouse Settings and check.
posted by kevinbelt at 9:04 AM on January 25, 2017

Best answer: Also, the default Thinkpad touchpad settings are such that if you touch the pad with two fingers, it's a right click.
posted by blue_wardrobe at 9:22 AM on January 25, 2017 [1 favorite]

if you touch the pad with two fingers, it's a right click

And the palms of most people's hands, when curved for typing, make a little mini-buttocks underneath that's always threatening to approach the touch pad in two distinct spots at once.

I loathe and detest touch pads. That's why every laptop I've ever owned has had the little steering nipple as well, plus a driver that lets me disable the pad and just use the nipple and associated buttons.

If you get no joy from adjusting the sensitivity, you might want to connect a wireless mouse and disable the laptop's inbuilt pointing controls altogether; one of the Fn-enabled alternate functions on your function keys row usually does this. Look for a legend that might be a touch pad if you apply a bit of imagination.
posted by flabdablet at 10:06 AM on January 25, 2017

This also happens if you click the Thinkpad touchpad in the bottom right corner. Don't click there.
posted by blue t-shirt at 10:37 AM on January 25, 2017

Response by poster: I turned the touchpad sensitivity to the lowest setting, and it hasn't been doing it for the five minutes or so I've been back on the computer! Fingers crossed!!! thank you
posted by DMelanogaster at 4:37 PM on January 25, 2017

Response by poster: Still doing it.
posted by DMelanogaster at 2:21 PM on January 27, 2017

Have you tried disabling the touchpad altogether and relying solely on the trackpoint or an external mouse?
posted by flabdablet at 1:51 AM on January 28, 2017

Also worth trying: turn off tap to click, so the only way to register any kind of click is to use the physical buttons. That way, you reduce the trackpad's most annoying capability to unintentional mouse pointer moves.
posted by flabdablet at 1:53 AM on January 28, 2017

Response by poster: I think that it's that I click on something, using two fingers; then my left thumb is still resting on the trackpad while I scroll around with my right index finger; the trackpad says "that's two fingers" and brings up those right-click menus.

I need to train myself to get my left hand off the trackpad when I'm not using it.
posted by DMelanogaster at 6:44 AM on April 20, 2017