Dell M6600: Annoying Track Point Issues

Question

Hi, after a 6-week wait finally got delivery on my Dell M6600 mobile workstation and it's a great notebook in all respects except one -- the track point stick in the middle of the keyboard. I'm having two problems, one software and one hardware: 1) In settings I have the track point set to fast speed, and it works fast SOME of the time, but sometimes when I have multiple windows open the cursor movement speed with the track point runs VERY VERY slow, driving me crazy. I've reinstalled the latest Dell drivers for the touchpad etc. and no change in behavior. Since it works sometimes, not others, it appears to me to be a conflict in the driver for the point stick probably with my graphics adapters( NVidia Quadro 300M or  the default Intel graphics built onto the motherboard. Hopefully some future driver upgrade for either will resolve this, since it makes it hard to use the track point, which is my primary way to navigate my PC.  It can't be a conflict with application software since I just got this M6600 and had nothing installed except Windows 7. 2) The black track point cap (cover button) supplied with the M6600 and M6400 is horrible design. It is concave, dips in, and therefore difficult to use without irritating your fingertip. You have to press hard to keep contact, a pain. I was so bothered with the finger pain I grabbed the old blue track point cap off a Dell D820, which fortunately fits, and enjoying the experience much better!  I went to the Dell Store to try to buy more blue caps which use to be Dell Part PH102 but cannot find any track point cover caps to buy.  Anyone know what the part number is? Dell lists very few accessories for the M6600 when you put that in or your service tag, and searching the store for 'track point' (which is Dell's name for trackpoint, track stick, pointing stick, etc.) produces no results for me.

AtlantaWebDesig · Answer

I'm discovering there is a bug in the Dell software in Control Panel. When you go to change the track point speed in Windows 7 to Control Panel and click on Hardware and then Dell Touch Pad, I am getting a .NET error there is something wrong with Dell's software. This is likely why when I change track point speed settings they are not being applied.

When I try to start the Dell Touch Pad in Control Panel I get a Windows error popup with:

See the end of this message for details on invoking

just-in-time (JIT) debugging instead of this dialog box.

************** Exception Text **************

System.NullReferenceException: Object reference not set to an instance of an object.

at DellDevices.App.Activate()

************** Loaded Assemblies **************

mscorlib

Assembly Version: 4.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 4.0.30319.235 (RTMGDR.030319-2300)

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.NET/Framework64/v4.0.30319/mscorlib.dll

----------------------------------------

DellTouchpad

Assembly Version: 1.0.0.22

Win32 Version: 1.0.0.22

CodeBase: file:///C:/Program%20Files/DellTPad/DellTouchpad.exe

----------------------------------------

Microsoft.VisualBasic

Assembly Version: 10.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 10.0.30319.1 built by: RTMRel

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.Net/assembly/GAC_MSIL/Microsoft.VisualBasic/v4.0_10.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/Microsoft.VisualBasic.dll

----------------------------------------

System

Assembly Version: 4.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 4.0.30319.232 built by: RTMGDR

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.Net/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System/v4.0_4.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.dll

----------------------------------------

System.Core

Assembly Version: 4.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 4.0.30319.1 built by: RTMRel

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.Net/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Core/v4.0_4.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Core.dll

----------------------------------------

System.Windows.Forms

Assembly Version: 4.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 4.0.30319.235 built by: RTMGDR

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.Net/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Windows.Forms/v4.0_4.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Windows.Forms.dll

----------------------------------------

System.Drawing

Assembly Version: 4.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 4.0.30319.1 built by: RTMRel

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.Net/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Drawing/v4.0_4.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/System.Drawing.dll

----------------------------------------

System.Runtime.Remoting

Assembly Version: 4.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 4.0.30319.1 (RTMRel.030319-0100)

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.Net/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Runtime.Remoting/v4.0_4.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Runtime.Remoting.dll

----------------------------------------

System.Configuration

Assembly Version: 4.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 4.0.30319.1 (RTMRel.030319-0100)

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.Net/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Configuration/v4.0_4.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/System.Configuration.dll

----------------------------------------

System.Xml

Assembly Version: 4.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 4.0.30319.1 built by: RTMRel

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.Net/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Xml/v4.0_4.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Xml.dll

----------------------------------------

PresentationFramework

Assembly Version: 4.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 4.0.30319.1

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.Net/assembly/GAC_MSIL/PresentationFramework/v4.0_4.0.0.0__31bf3856ad364e35/PresentationFramework.dll

----------------------------------------

WindowsBase

Assembly Version: 4.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 4.0.30319.1 built by: RTMRel

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.Net/assembly/GAC_MSIL/WindowsBase/v4.0_4.0.0.0__31bf3856ad364e35/WindowsBase.dll

----------------------------------------

PresentationCore

Assembly Version: 4.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 4.0.30319.1 built by: RTMRel

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.Net/assembly/GAC_64/PresentationCore/v4.0_4.0.0.0__31bf3856ad364e35/PresentationCore.dll

----------------------------------------

System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.Soap

Assembly Version: 4.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 4.0.30319.1 (RTMRel.030319-0100)

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.Net/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.Soap/v4.0_4.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.Soap.dll

----------------------------------------

System.Xaml

Assembly Version: 4.0.0.0

Win32 Version: 4.0.30319.1 built by: RTMRel

CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.Net/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Xaml/v4.0_4.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Xaml.dll

----------------------------------------

************** JIT Debugging **************

To enable just-in-time (JIT) debugging, the .config file for this

application or computer (machine.config) must have the

jitDebugging value set in the system.windows.forms section.

The application must also be compiled with debugging

enabled.

For example:

When JIT debugging is enabled, any unhandled exception

will be sent to the JIT debugger registered on the computer

rather than be handled by this dialog box.

=======================

AtlantaWebDesig · Answer

Update: got online with Dell Chat and the plan was to reinstall Dell ControlPoint System Software.

This updates the software running in Windows Control Panel for Dell Touch Pad.

That solved the issue.

See here for the download needed:

AtlantaWebDesig · Answer

Sorry to report that my software error has reoccurred. After I replaced the Dell ControlPoint System Software my pointstick speed is now running fast all the time, but whenever I start the Control Panel --> Hardware --> Dell Touchpad software I still get the .NET error reported above, so there is a bug in Dell's software. This error went away right after I reinstalled the ControlPoint system software but came back the following day, even though I haven't changed my system. I suspect after I rebooted the next day it came back, since I made no other changes to the system.

AtlantaWebDesig · Answer

Here's the answer to Point 2) about being unable to find a replacement track point (pointing stick) cap / cover . After searching for days I located Dell's parts supplier, SofPoint, and they sell online a pack of 6 caps for $10.50, much cheaper than the rip offs you see on eBay selling a single used cap for $15 or so. http://sofpoint.com/

After addressing the software problem in 1) I found it easier to use the pointing stick with less stress on my finger, but after testing the original concave black button that shipped with the Dell M6600 I've still concluded the round blue button from my old Dell 820 is far easier to use with less finger stress.

I'm a web designer whose finger is moving that pointing stick 14 hours a day non-stop so keeping my finger painless is a priority.

Locked Topics – Laptops General

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