rebertino,

Make sure your system is running the latest BIOS version and touchpad drivers. This should alleviate the difficulty.

Go to http://support.dell.com
Choose your country if you have not done this yet
Enter your service tag or choose your system type
Click on Downloads for your system
Select the proper category and locate the proper file that you need
BIOS updates will be listed under the Flash BIOS section.
Once you download the file, double-click on it to extract the files to a floppy disk and then reboot the system with the floppy disk inserted in the system to update the BIOS.

I loaded the latest synaptics touchpad driver and have changed nothing else. My cursor has not jumped once since I did that earlier this evening. I have typed enough that it usually would have jumped many times. I think the problem is fixed!

Robertino. Re your wild cursor. I've been trying to get mine fixed for several week now, and may have finally done it. I was on the phone with Dell for 3 hours today, and the problem appears to be gone. The guy ultimately had me "uncheck" all but a very few necessary programs from the Start menu,and he reversed the boot-up sequence from First to Second on the big Startup window....that's it. I've been typing for two hours now, and this pointer and cursor have both stayed right where they belong. I just hope it lasts. It sure is nice not having to chase and correct all those errors. Good luck.

This is a common complaint I have heard. It is caused by a number of things.
First step go to start, settings, control panel, mouse.
On the touch pad set palmcheck to max and sensitivity to minimum. Take the check off of Tap to click and tap and drag, change the pulldown bar to pointing stick and repeat these steps.

This works for most users. The thing to understand is that these devices are highly sensitive and many users have a heavy touch. With a touchpad, four buttons, and a trackstick that react to the slightest touch this can cause problems. I admit I've had trouble adjusting to using the touchpad. It isn't a design flaw though. I loan my system to my mother quite a bit. She has a light touch and has never reported a single problem to me. It's a matter of getting used to it or adjusting the settings to work for you.

I also have this problem. I have the latest touchpad drivers, which did not help.

I do not have a floppy drive on my system. How do I update the BIOS without one?

hi,

Do you know for a fact that the latest BIOS has a fix for this specific problem? Or are you just taking a shot in the dark hoping it will help?

Updating the BIOS is not fun or easy (I do not have a floppy drive).

thanks,
Gerry

p.s. the jumping cursor problem is much more awful thing than you may realize. It is incredibly annoying!

Is it related to using the SHIFT key?  For example, if you holf the SHIFT key down a bit longer than usual?

the previous post was in reference to flashing without a floppy drive.

I have the latest BIOS (A15 for Dell 8100), which by the way installs straight from hard disk and I have the latest touchpad drivers and the problem still exists.

I'd say that touchpad must be faulty hardware. The only way to correct this problem is to completely disable the touchpad and use a mouse.