Inspiron 17r 7720se Alps Touchpad lost one finger scroll functions after W8 to 8.1 upgrade

Dell Inspiron 17r 7720se Alps Touchpad lost one finger scroll functions after W8 to 8.1 upgrade. The entire one finger gestures panel with controls for one finger gestures is missing. Only clunky two finger scrolling and three finger gestures are available. One finger vertical, horizontal, zoom controls are missing. The task bar icon animation shows the four zones are active (right, left, top and bottom) but have no effect. Have tried all drivers available on Dell website; tried windows compatibility troubleshooting; and invoking compatibility mode with no success. Reinstalled W8 and the touchpad works perfectly. Upgrade to W8.1 and it doesn't. This is a deal breaker. One finger scroll is of paramount importance. If this can not be resolved with a properly written and vetted driver for W8.1 the laptop will be returned. Btw, there are numerous other driver issues with W8.1 upgrade including Quickset and Bluetooth. Is Dell going to support W8.1 on the Inspiron 17R??