Touchpad Driver for WinXP on VAIO PCG-F350?

[Willy Nilly]

I recently upgraded my Sony laptop from W98 to WinXP. Although the touchpad
works (?ALPS?), it is not possible to enable tapping--the mouse setup dialog
that should control this defaults instead to a PS/2 setup.

Sony makes a touchpad driver available on its website, but it is only for
W2000; I can't get it to install on XP. (Perhaps the install package could
be modified?)

Does anyone know where I can get a driver that will enable me to control the
touchpad, so that I can turn on tapping?

Thanks!

 

[Miss Perspicacia Tick]

I recently upgraded my Sony laptop from W98 to WinXP. Although the
touchpad works (?ALPS?), it is not possible to enable tapping--the
mouse setup dialog that should control this defaults instead to a
PS/2 setup.
Sony makes a touchpad driver available on its website, but it is only
for W2000; I can't get it to install on XP. (Perhaps the install
package could be modified?)

Does anyone know where I can get a driver that will enable me to
control the touchpad, so that I can turn on tapping?

Thanks!

Why are you posting here?! Did MS make your laptop?! No, they did not. The
only people who will know if a driver exists is Sony.

 

[Jef Norton]

|I recently upgraded my Sony laptop from W98 to WinXP. Although the
touchpad
| works (?ALPS?), it is not possible to enable tapping--the mouse setup
dialog
| that should control this defaults instead to a PS/2 setup.
|
| Sony makes a touchpad driver available on its website, but it is only for
| W2000; I can't get it to install on XP. (Perhaps the install package
could
| be modified?)
|
| Does anyone know where I can get a driver that will enable me to control
the
| touchpad, so that I can turn on tapping?
|
| Thanks!
|
|

Hi Willy Nilly -

The Alps Touchpad Driver listed on the Sony Support site won't work for
Windows XP, regardless of whether or not you can get the installer to run.
Alps reports that you require version 5.3 of the driver for Windows XP and
the Sony Windows 2000 download contains version 5.0.

I can, however, probably help you.

I have placed the extracted Alps Glidepoint Driver version 5.3.510.9 from my
VAIO V505EX, running Windows XP on my personal web space.

Download the following file to your hard disk:
http://pages.sbcglobal.net/jefn/alps5.3.510.9.zip

I suggest you download the file directly to your C:\ root drive, so that
these instructions will be simpler for me to type.

Once you have the file, go into Windows Explorer (Windows Key + E) and
extract the driver files. This is done simply by navigating to your C:\
drive and then double-click on the alps5.3.510.9.zip file and then, in the
explorer window, click on File then Extract All. Click on Next then Next
then Finish. Close all three Explorer Windows you've opened up in this
process.

Go into Start | Control Panel (and, if using Category View, Performance and
Maintenance). Then double-click on the System Icon. Click on the Hardware
tab. Click on the Device Manager button. Expand the device tree by
pressing the plus-sign next to Mice and Other Pointing Devices. Right-click
on Alps Film Pointing-Device and click on Update Driver in the drop-down
menu.

Select the "No, not this time" radio button and click Next.

Select the "Install from a list at a specific location (advanced)" radio
button and click Next.

Select the "Don't search. I will choose the driver to install." radio
button and click Next.

Click the "Have Disk" button. Browse to the C:\Alps5.3.510.9 folder you
created when you extracted the .zip file from my download. Click the Open
button. Click Next. The driver will install. Click Finish and reboot when
instructed.

Please reply to this message when you have downloaded the driver so that I
can remove it from my personal web space.

Good luck!

Jef

 

[Willy Nilly]

|I recently upgraded my Sony laptop from W98 to WinXP. Although the
touchpad
| works (?ALPS?), it is not possible to enable tapping--the mouse setup
dialog
| that should control this defaults instead to a PS/2 setup.
|
| Sony makes a touchpad driver available on its website, but it is only
for
| W2000; I can't get it to install on XP. (Perhaps the install package
could
| be modified?)
|
| Does anyone know where I can get a driver that will enable me to control
the
| touchpad, so that I can turn on tapping?
|
| Thanks!
|
|

Hi Willy Nilly -

The Alps Touchpad Driver listed on the Sony Support site won't work for
Windows XP, regardless of whether or not you can get the installer to run.
Alps reports that you require version 5.3 of the driver for Windows XP and
the Sony Windows 2000 download contains version 5.0.

I can, however, probably help you.

I have placed the extracted Alps Glidepoint Driver version 5.3.510.9 from
my
VAIO V505EX, running Windows XP on my personal web space.

Download the following file to your hard disk:
http://pages.sbcglobal.net/jefn/alps5.3.510.9.zip

I suggest you download the file directly to your C:\ root drive, so that
these instructions will be simpler for me to type.

Once you have the file, go into Windows Explorer (Windows Key + E) and
extract the driver files. This is done simply by navigating to your C:\
drive and then double-click on the alps5.3.510.9.zip file and then, in the
explorer window, click on File then Extract All. Click on Next then Next
then Finish. Close all three Explorer Windows you've opened up in this
process.

Go into Start | Control Panel (and, if using Category View, Performance
and
Maintenance). Then double-click on the System Icon. Click on the
Hardware
tab. Click on the Device Manager button. Expand the device tree by
pressing the plus-sign next to Mice and Other Pointing Devices.
Right-click
on Alps Film Pointing-Device and click on Update Driver in the drop-down
menu.

Select the "No, not this time" radio button and click Next.

Select the "Install from a list at a specific location (advanced)" radio
button and click Next.

Select the "Don't search. I will choose the driver to install." radio
button and click Next.

Click the "Have Disk" button. Browse to the C:\Alps5.3.510.9 folder you
created when you extracted the .zip file from my download. Click the Open
button. Click Next. The driver will install. Click Finish and reboot
when
instructed.

Please reply to this message when you have downloaded the driver so that I
can remove it from my personal web space.

Good luck!

Jef

 

[Willy Nilly]

A blessing upon thee and thy progeny to the umpteenth generation.

Your driver has substantially restored "tapping" to my touchpad.

It is still a little weird, though. Double-tapping seems required where it
wasn't in the past. And I don't find any GUI to set the double-click speed.

But--it is still better. Congenital finger-macro still has me tapping the
pad for a click.

This computer has a label on the dashboard stating that it and Windows are
"made for each other". A pity that the mouse is still considered such a
peripheral peripheral. Engelbart must be spinning in his grave.

Again: many, many thanks.

~William Nilleigh

 

[Jef Norton]

|A blessing upon thee and thy progeny to the umpteenth generation.
|
| Your driver has substantially restored "tapping" to my touchpad.
|
| It is still a little weird, though. Double-tapping seems required where
it
| wasn't in the past. And I don't find any GUI to set the double-click
speed.
|
| But--it is still better. Congenital finger-macro still has me tapping the
| pad for a click.
|
| This computer has a label on the dashboard stating that it and Windows are
| "made for each other". A pity that the mouse is still considered such a
| peripheral peripheral. Engelbart must be spinning in his grave.
|
| Again: many, many thanks.
|
| ~William Nilleigh
|


Hi William -

Thanks for posting back. I'll remove the download from my personal web
space.

Glad to hear that the touchpad driver (mostly) performs to your
expectations. The driver functions exactly the way you describe on my
V505EX -- the Tapping and Function tabs in the Control Panel | Mouse Applet
have no settings regarding a single tap vs. a double tap... so I guess Alps
changed things in the time since your original driver was released. In any
event... this is probably something you can get used to.

I don't believe Sony will be releasing Windows XP drivers for your computer
(shame on them) and Alps isn't in the business of providing drivers to
anyone other than original equipment manufacturers.

Fortunately most of the Windows 2000 drivers, once you extract them from the
Sony installer programs, will function under Windows XP. Unfortunately the
Touchpad drivers wasn't one of them.

To extract other Windows 2000 drivers, attempt to run the installer. When
you get a prompt that the driver does not support your operating system or
your computer, rather than pressing the button to quit, press CTRL-ALT-DEL
and end the process in the Applications tab. Then go exploring your hard
disk (possibly your C:\Documents and Settings\[username]\Local Settings\Temp
folder). You may find a sub-folder containing the extracted driver files,
where you can install them in the same manner as I described earlier. Sony
installers have this annoying habit of "cleaning up" after themselves.

Good luck with your computer.

Jef

 

[Jef Norton]

Forgot to mention...

The double-click speed is controlled in Control Panel | Mouse. See the
right side of the Buttons tab:

http://pages.sbcglobal.net/jefn/mouse.jpg

Jef