KB Updates: MacBook pointers, slot-loading drives, and stacked computers

Apple has updated a few knowledgebase documents covering a few issues people may have with MacBook and MacBook Pro computers. These include information on mouse cursors behaving unexpectedly, problems and solutions for slot-loading optical drives, and stacked computers going to sleep.

MacBook and MacBook pro: Cursor reacts unexpectedly

There may be times when the mouse on your MacBook will not seem to respond properly to input, especially when typing. This is mainly because the trackpad is picking up inadvertent input from your hands while you are typing. In OS 10.5, the Trackpad system preferences contain a setting to ignore accidental trackpad input, which should be enabled if you have this problem. If you have upgraded to Snow Leopard, these settings have been moved to the "Universal Access" system preferences in the "Mouse and Trackpad" tab.

Keep in mind that for newer MacBooks with multitouch trackpads (see this KB article), Apple does not support the option to ignore accidental input so this setting will not be available.

Troubleshooting slot-loading drives

Apple's slot-loading optical drives in MacBook, iMac, and Mac Mini computers may run into a number of problems, including disk incompatibilities, drives not accepting disks, drives scratching disks, and disks automatically ejecting. This article covers these and more issues, and how to best address them.

Stacked computers going to sleep

Perhaps some people have found that stacking closed Mac laptops might save some space; however, doing so may result in the computers going to sleep. This is because the magnets that activate when the screen bezel is in close proximity to the bottom case will get activated by the second computer being on top of it. This article describes this issue, and recommends that people do not stack their systems when they are running. It will not hurt the systems to do so, but may result in them constantly going to sleep.

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