Disabling Dell Latitude D600 mouse pointer stick on Linux Mint 8 (Ubuntu 9.10)

Sorry… have to geek out for a second. (This post is mostly for me. In case I need to do this again.)

Ubuntu 10.04 came out a few weeks ago, so I decided to do a fresh install on our kitchen laptop (Dell Latitude D600). All went well except for two things. The wireless connection would drop and reconnect. It happened often enough for it to be almost unusable. The second problem was the little mouse nub eraser nipple thingy in the middle of the laptop keyboard. When you typed it would move the mouse and then the mouse would have about a 30 second panic attack and you couldn’t get control of the thing. Typically the closer the key was to the pointer the worse the mouse would drift or wander around the screen. I searched for a while to try to fix both problems with no success. I did find this… Fixing mouse drift on a Dell Latitude C600 with a Sledgehammer

I gave up… and decided to give Linux Mint 8 a try. Installation was easy and wireless seems to be working with no problems. But the mouse drift problem is still there. After more searching I finally found this… Fully disabling touchpad in Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala

His solution worked for me. Here is the command I used…

xinput set-int-prop "DualPoint Stick" "Device Enabled" 8 0

I also added that command to my “Startup Applications” just like the other post discribes so this command will always run and disable the pointer.

2010 ING Georgia Half Marathon

I ran my fourth half marathon this weekend and accomplished my goal by one second. I have been trying to get under 1:50:00 since this race last year. Except for the rain, the weather was great because the temperature was perfect. It’s a fun course that hits a bunch a different neighborhoods of Atlanta.

Bonus photo: After the race

Ben is 3

Ben turned three! Yesterday, he had a “pirate” themed birthday party at the same gymnastics gym as last year. He had dinner at a hibachi place “Happy Sumo” for his first time. This morning he had a donut with a candle for breakfast. As you could imagine, he is a very happy little boy.

Alyssa – 6 months

Can’t believe Alyssa is 6 months old already. I don’t know where the time has gone. She already has two teeth and a couple more coming in, so that’s pretty exciting. By exciting I mean… she’s a drooling machine. She is a pretty happy baby and is very easy to make laugh. She really loves her big brother Ben and is amazed by everything he does.

2009 Atlanta Half Marathon

I ran the Atlanta Half Marathon for my second time and finished in 1:50:56 (8:28 mile pace). My goal was to get under 1:50:00, but I am still happy with my results. Check out these photos from the race.

Bonus Photo: Post Race Meal

Alyssa is 3 months old

Alyssa is three months old and is doing great. Everyone is finally starting to get some sleep around here and we are getting into a nice groove of having two children. I couldn’t imagine our house without her. She’s pretty amazing.

Ben’s Potty Chart

Ben is starting to show some interest in using the bathroom. We have been giving him matchbox cars when he successfully conquers the toilet. Since his frequency of trying to go has increased, we have decide to make him a potty chart. I found some nice Cars images and made the chart below. Every time he goes, he’ll get to put a sticker in a circle. When he reaches the fifth circle he’ll get a prize. (matchbox car, etc.)

In case you were thinking “that’s a lot of matchbox cars” you’d be correct. Although they only cost a dollar and with the cost of diapers, I think it’s a good investment.

UPDATE (Aug 18th)
Ben is doing great. He has already completed two of these charts.