BASIC question on stylus/pen for 5579....

Hi. I have a new 5579 Inspiron. It comes with active pen support.

I don't have have an active pen. My question is, should I be able to use the Sketchpad with a basic (dumb) stylus, or even my finger, to draw things? I find that my basic stylus and finger is detected since I see that "trail" that appears behind the tip when drawing. But the desired permanent line doesn't appear. Canvas remains white.

I notice that I can select color, tip size, etc from the menu using finger/stylus, but as mentioned I can't make drawings.

In short my question is, while I know active pen is supported, is it REQUIRED? Or, perhaps there's a config setting that will allow me to disable active pen features so I can use a stylus or finger to draw.

Thanks in advance for your comments.

-Kurt Euler