Erratic Optical Mouse Behavior

[JD]

Lately I'm very frustrated because my cursor will not move where I want it
to. It "lags" and sometimes "drifts." I wiped the bottom with a damp cloth
and thought that helped, but before very long the behavior began again. I
pulled out the USB plug and reinserted it. To no avail.
Is it likely that I need to buy a new mouse? (It's only a little over a year
old.) Perhaps even return to the "old reliable" roller ball type?

 

[Guest]

Try sliding the back of the top of the optical mouse off if you have Logitec
(look for way to open other brands). You should have batteries and it sounds
like they need replacement.

 

[JD]

Thanks for the suggestion. It never occured to me that the mouse might have
batteries.

 

[JD]

There do not seem to be any batteries here. This is not a "wireless" mouse
so the power source is the PC. Thanks anyway for the suggestion.

 

[Guest]

What type of mouse pad are you using? The optical mouse doesn't particularly
care for the one that comes with Dell computers. Try testing with a plain
white sheet of paper. If that helps, think about replacing the mouse pad.

 

[JD]

I went to Best Buy and got a mouse pad "designed for optical mice." That,
along with cleaning the underside of the mouse, seems to have corrected the
erratic mouse behavior. Thanks.