[gentoo-user] synaptic touchpad stopped scrolling!

[gentoo-user] synaptic touchpad stopped scrolling!

[Iain Buchanan]

Hi,

I can't live without my touchpad extentions (scrolling, tap to click, 
etc).  All provided somehow by the synaptics driver, but I've never 
really looked into how.

Recently I noticed it stopped working but I don't know what I've changed 
as I've been docked for so long with a usb mouse.

I've had the same section layout for aaaages:
Section "InputDevice"
     Identifier     "Synaptic Touchpad"
     Driver         "synaptics"
     Option         "Device" "/dev/input/mouse0"
     Option         "SendCoreEvents" "true"
     Option         "Protocol" "auto-dev"
EndSection

The xorg.0.log error is:
SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad can't grab event device, errno=16

I tried first changing
  Option "GrabEventDevice" "false"
but that didn't work.  I noticed this:
  (II) config/hal: Adding input device SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad
so I thought maybe hal is grabbing the touchpad and interfering somehow. 
  I tried to turn off hal in my serverlayout section:
  Option         "AutoAddDevices" "false"
but that doesn't help either.  Now there's hardly any synaptic messages 
in xorg.0.log, no errors, and I still can't scroll.

I'm sure theres some simple USE flag or option that I need to use but I 
can't find it!  More to the point I would like to understand why it 
worked for so long but doesn't now (I've been using a similar xorg.conf 
file for... a long time!).

any suggestions?

thanks,
-- 
Iain Buchanan <iaindb at netspace dot net dot au>

It is up to us to produce better-quality movies.
	-- Lloyd Kaufman, producer of "Stuff Stephanie in the Incinerator"

Re: [gentoo-user] synaptic touchpad stopped scrolling!

[Florian Philipp]

Iain Buchanan schrieb:
> Hi,
> 
> I can't live without my touchpad extentions (scrolling, tap to click, 
> etc).  All provided somehow by the synaptics driver, but I've never 
> really looked into how.
> 
> Recently I noticed it stopped working but I don't know what I've changed 
> as I've been docked for so long with a usb mouse.
> 

Probably the new evdev-driver overrides synaptics. If you do not need 
evdev and can live with the normal drivers like kbd for keyboard and 
synaptics, you can try to disable it. There are various ways for doing 
it (google it), I recommend:

echo "x11-apps/xinit -hal" >> /etc/portage/package,use
remove evdev from /etc/make.conf INPUT_DEVICES
emerge -avC x11-drivers/xf86-input-evdev
emerge -av1 x11-base/xorg-server x11-apps/xinit

Restart x-server/xdm/whatever.

Re: [gentoo-user] synaptic touchpad stopped scrolling!

[Uwe]

On Tue, 25 Nov 2008 23:14:51 +0930
Iain Buchanan <iaindb@netspace.net.au> wrote:

> [...]
> The xorg.0.log error is:
> SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad can't grab event device, errno=16
> [...]
> any suggestions?
> 
> thanks,

Am I right, if I'm assuming, you're using HAL?

Maybe you could try this workaround from the archlinux-bugzilla:
http://bugs.archlinux.org/task/12143


HTH
Uwe

Re: [gentoo-user] synaptic touchpad stopped scrolling!

[j.romildo]

On Tue, Nov 25, 2008 at 11:14:51PM +0930, Iain Buchanan wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> I can't live without my touchpad extentions (scrolling, tap to click, 
> etc).  All provided somehow by the synaptics driver, but I've never 
> really looked into how.
> 
> Recently I noticed it stopped working but I don't know what I've changed 
> as I've been docked for so long with a usb mouse.
> 
> I've had the same section layout for aaaages:
> Section "InputDevice"
>     Identifier     "Synaptic Touchpad"
>     Driver         "synaptics"
>     Option         "Device" "/dev/input/mouse0"
>     Option         "SendCoreEvents" "true"
>     Option         "Protocol" "auto-dev"
> EndSection
[...]
> 
> I'm sure theres some simple USE flag or option that I need to use but I 
> can't find it!  More to the point I would like to understand why it 
> worked for so long but doesn't now (I've been using a similar xorg.conf 
> file for... a long time!).
> 
> any suggestions?

Yesterday I was just looking for a solution to this same problem on my
notebook.

I have found out that synaptics now defaults to dual finger scrolling
(see the man mage), and tap to click is off by default. I have added the
following in my configuration file:

Section "InputDevice"
	Identifier	"Touchpad"
	Driver		"synaptics"
	Option		"Device" "/dev/input/mice"
	Option		"Protocol" "auto-dev"
	Option		"Emulate3Buttons" "yes"
	Option		"SendCoreEvents" "true"
	Option		"SHMConfig" "true"
	Option		"TapButton1" "1"       # Left button
	#Option		"TapButton2" "2"       # Right button
	#Option		"TapButton3" "3"       # Middle button
EndSection

Romildo

Re: [gentoo-user] synaptic touchpad stopped scrolling!

[Jorge Peixoto de Morais Neto]

> Probably the new evdev-driver overrides synaptics. If you do not need evdev
> and can live with the normal drivers like kbd for keyboard and synaptics,
> you can try to disable it.
I hope you don't consider this to be thread hijacking, but can you
point me to a simple and high-level (but not exaggeratedly
dumbed-down, as articles by mainstream media journalists tend to be)
explanation of what evdev is good for?
My only input devices are a PS2 keyboard with standard Brazilian
layout (with no foolish extra "multimedia" keys) and a PS2 mouse with
two buttons and one scroll wheel that also works as a third button. Do
I need/want evdev?

OT: I like to keep my system simple and disable what I don't use. I
like to be able to understand my system.
My point of view is, that when I keep my system simple (such as by
using Xfce with the minimal USE flag, instead of Gnome/KDE and foolish
3d effects), it not only gets very fast and stable, but also far
simpler allowing me to understand it. When something goes wrong in
Ubuntu, I often have little clue of the cause. When something goes
wrong in my simple Gentoo system, it is far easier to find the cause.

Speaking of Ubuntu, I have the impression that they are becoming a
system that Just Works most of the time, but if you are unlucky and it
doesn't work, it Just Doesn't Work and it is hard to find the cause. I
continue to advocate Ubuntu to Linux newcomers, but my own system will
remain Gentoo.

-- 
Software is like sex: it is better when it is free - Linus Torvalds

Re: [gentoo-user] synaptic touchpad stopped scrolling!

[Jorge Peixoto de Morais Neto]

> My only input devices are a PS2 keyboard with standard Brazilian
> layout (with no foolish extra "multimedia" keys) and a PS2 mouse with
> two buttons and one scroll wheel that also works as a third button. Do
> I need/want evdev?

I should put this in a more specific manner: would it be safe/wise to
remove evdev from INPUT_DEVICES (which currently includes evdev,
keyboard and mouse) ?

The relevant sections of xorg.conf are

Section "InputDevice"

    Identifier	"BrazilianKeyboard"
    Driver	"kbd"

    Option "AutoRepeat" "500 30"

    Option "XkbRules"	"xorg"
    Option "XkbModel"	"abnt2"
    Option "XkbLayout"	"br"

EndSection


Section "InputDevice"

    Identifier	"SimpleMouse"
    Driver	"mouse"
    Option 	"Protocol"     "IMPS/2"
    Option 	"Device"       "/dev/input/mice"

    Option "ZAxisMapping"   "4 5 6 7"

EndSection

Re: [gentoo-user] synaptic touchpad stopped scrolling!

[Andrey Vul]

On Tue, Nov 25, 2008 at 08:44, Iain Buchanan <iaindb@netspace.net.au> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I can't live without my touchpad extentions (scrolling, tap to click, etc).
>  All provided somehow by the synaptics driver, but I've never really looked
> into how.
>
> Recently I noticed it stopped working but I don't know what I've changed as
> I've been docked for so long with a usb mouse.
>
> I've had the same section layout for aaaages:
> Section "InputDevice"
>    Identifier     "Synaptic Touchpad"
>    Driver         "synaptics"
>    Option         "Device" "/dev/input/mouse0"
>    Option         "SendCoreEvents" "true"
>    Option         "Protocol" "auto-dev"
> EndSection
Add the following line:         Option "VertEdgeScroll" "1"


-- 
Andrey Vul

A: Because it messes up the order in which people normally read text.
Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing?
A: Top-posting.
Q: What is the most annoying thing in e-mail?

Rodney Dangerfield  - "I looked up my family tree and found out I was the sap."

Re: [gentoo-user] synaptic touchpad stopped scrolling!

[Florian Philipp]

Jorge Peixoto de Morais Neto schrieb:
>> My only input devices are a PS2 keyboard with standard Brazilian
>> layout (with no foolish extra "multimedia" keys) and a PS2 mouse with
>> two buttons and one scroll wheel that also works as a third button. Do
>> I need/want evdev?
> 
> I should put this in a more specific manner: would it be safe/wise to
> remove evdev from INPUT_DEVICES (which currently includes evdev,
> keyboard and mouse) ?
> 
> The relevant sections of xorg.conf are
> 
[...]

I'm not really an X11-guru but I'm pretty sure you don't need evdev. As 
far as I understand it, the big advantage of evdev is that it's generic. 
As a user, you don't have to worry about which driver you need because 
evdev fits them all. As a developer, you only need to maintain one module.
You also don't need to configure it in your xorg.conf because evdev 
grabs them all from udev (hald?).

With a 'conservative' system like yours (no special hardware, no daily 
plug'n'play, ...) you don't need it as long as evdev does not surpass 
the other drivers in other regions like configurability, performance, 
whatever.

Hell, even I don't need it and I rely on synaptics, three different 
USB-mice (two of them with additional buttons) and multimedia buttons on 
two different laptop or laptop-like keyboards (USB and PS2). All of it 
with daily suspend-to-disk, suspend-to-ram, plug'n'play and usage of a 
docking station.

Re: [gentoo-user] [SOLVED] synaptic touchpad stopped scrolling!

[Iain Buchanan]

j.romildo@gmail.com wrote:
> On Tue, Nov 25, 2008 at 11:14:51PM +0930, Iain Buchanan wrote:
>> Hi,
>>
>> I can't live without my touchpad extentions (scrolling, tap to click,
>> etc).  All provided somehow by the synaptics driver, but I've never
>> really looked into how.
>>
>> Recently I noticed it stopped working but I don't know what I've changed
>> as I've been docked for so long with a usb mouse.

[snip]

> Yesterday I was just looking for a solution to this same problem on my
> notebook.
>
> I have found out that synaptics now defaults to dual finger scrolling
> (see the man mage), and tap to click is off by default. I have added the
> following in my configuration file:

hm, I don't like it when defaults change so dramatically!  So the 
problem wasn't evdev / hal related.  Why on earth would tap to click be 
turned off by default now?

Two finger scrolling was on, but "broken" on the new synaptic driver, as 
every time I scroll up, then lift my finger off, it scrolls down further 
than I can scroll up!

Even the acceleration had changed to make it unusable.  I've left the 
evdev mouse driver as a second mouse to catch all usb mice, and I have 
my touchpad as the default:

Section "InputDevice"
     Identifier     "Synaptic Touchpad"
     Driver         "synaptics"
     Option         "Device" "/dev/input/mouse0"
     Option         "SendCoreEvents" "true"
     Option         "Protocol" "auto-dev"

     # turn on finger tap:
     Option		"TapButton1" "1"       # Left button

     # don't use two finger scrolling:
     Option "VertTwoFingerScroll" "false"
     Option "HorizTwoFingerScroll" "false"

     # use edge scroll areas:
     Option "VertEdgeScroll" "true"
     Option "HorizEdgeScroll" "true"

     #continue scrolling when touchpad end reached
     Option "CornerCoasting" "true"
     Option "CoastingSpeed" "2"

     #set speed and accel:
     Option	    "MinSpeed" "0.20"
     Option	    "MaxSpeed" "0.60"
     Option	    "AccelFactor" "0.020"
EndSection

Note I only used TapButton1, not 2 and 3, as I want to double tap for a 
double click, not double tap for a midle/right click.

thanks for all the suggestions!
-- 
Iain Buchanan <iaindb at netspace dot net dot au>

Binary, adj.:
	Possessing the ability to have friends of both sexes.