Inconsistent Left Click

[arc1953]

Recently, my 2009 Macbook started malfunctioning and went to the repair shop. While there it received a 750g hard drive and upgraded to Mountain Lion. When I got it back Garageband, iTunes, iPhoto, and iMovie were gone, but I managed to recover these from a previous backup. It seemed that 'left click' was a little iffy. This seems to happen most in Safari. I often times read articles from a news site, when I click the 'back' button on the browser to go back to the main page to select another article I have had to click it as many as 6-8 times to make it work. I find it easier to 'right click' outside the page to get a drop box and select 'back'. I took it back to the shop and complained about it and when I got it back they said they took it apart and cleaned the trackpad and it would not malfunction for them. At the time I didn't realize that the problem was mostly predominant in Safari. Looking at 'History' afterwards, I find no evidence that they had it online, although it showed my previous online history. Even typing this I have to make several attempts at placing the cursor back to insert another word. Problem #2, when I open Safari, it goes to 'top sites'. I prefer a blank page. I have been to all the places that should change it, but I can't get it to change. I have done the software updates. I can live with that if I have to, but the 'left click' problem is the big one. OSX 10.8.5, Safari 6.2.8
arc

 

[kriskringle101]

I never ran mountain lion, I just skipped from lion right up to Yosemite. I believe the installation requirements are the same so it just made sense for me. That being said, I would expect that you can fix issue #2 by going to Safari > Preferences > General and setting both the "New windows opens with" and the "New tabs open with" settings to "Empty Page." As for the main issue, it seems odd that it is Safari dependent. I would guess that you are having an issue with the fact that you did an upgrade and then a backup restore (to get back your missing apps.) It seems plausible that during the restore you somehow upset the underlying framework for the safari webkit. I would just take it back and complain again, this time showing them the issue in safari. Or I would just install mavericks or better.

 

[arc1953]

Ok, I guess I need to correct myself. Although it seems the problem is mainly in Safari, that might be because lately that's what I'm doing. When I started it from 'sleep' a while ago I typed in my password, hit enter and clicked on 'turn wifi on' 5 times before it did it. I then moved to the dock and after 2 clicks Safari opened. Had to click twice to bring this forum up. Clicked 3 times to set the cursor on the user name spot. It's not just Safari, although that's where I notice it most. Thanks for the reply Kris, I am thinking along the same lines as you're thinking, that it's a software incompatibility issue.

 

[arc1953]

Kris, you hit the nail on the head with your suggestion for problem #2. I followed you suggestion and that took care of that. Thank you. Actually I feel kind of silly for not seeing the options. Thanks again. As for the first problem, maybe an upgrade to Mavericks or Yosemite might make a difference, but every time the Apple website tells me that I could upgrade, I read the reviews of them and some of them scare me. I guess I am old fashioned and don't like to change things. I was perfectly happy with the way the Macbook ran all these years. 'It if ain't broke, don't fix it'.
arc

 

[arc1953]

Ok…..it's been almost a week and I am still waiting for a positive approach to fixing this problem. While another poster offered valuable thoughts as to his opinion, I need more than that. In the past few days of using this Macbook, I have observed that the problem is not only in Safari. It is most apparent when I awake it from sleep. I have taken to just holding left-click down on 'Safari' and 'turn wifi on' until it starts to do something. In iTunes, a double click usually doesn't start a song playing, I have to do it again. While I believe the problem is software related, I am reluctant to upgrade to Mavericks, Yosemite, or El Capitan. This problem started with an upgrade. I have read on this forum of the many posts and solutions to problems that to me were quite complex, and am confident that someone can offer a meaningful solution. Thank you.
arc

 

[Cory Cooper]

Sorry we haven't gotten back to you this week.

A few questions:

-This issue started after the repair you mentioned?
-Which exact model of 2009 MacBook? Removable battery or unibody with rubber bottom?
-Do you have any third-party extensions installed in Safari? Safari > Preferences > Extensions
-Do you have any third-party toolbars installed in Safari?
-Does it happen as frequently in non-browser applications such as Finder, iTunes, etc?
-If it has a removable battery, it is swelling? That can put pressure on the bottom of the trackpad and cause it to not click properly.
-Do you have a USB or wireless mouse? If so, does it exhibit the same issue?
-Can you switch the left and right click functions in System Preferences > Trackpad, and then does the issue persist when clicking the right side of the trackpad button?

It sounds to me more like a hardware issue than a software issue. Even though they cleaned it, it could still have some small piece of foreign material lodged in it that is preventing proper click functionality.

C

 

[arc1953]

Hello Cory, thank you for your reply.

This issue started after the repair you mentioned?

Yes

Which exact model of 2009 MacBook? Removable battery or unibody with rubber bottom?

This is a late 2009 Macbook. Serial#WQ9426KB8PW I don't know if the battery is removable. No rubber bottom.

Do you have any third-party extensions installed in Safari? Safari > Preferences > Extensions

Ghostery is installed and has been for years.

Do you have any third-party toolbars installed in Safari?

No

Does it happen as frequently in non-browser applications such as Finder, iTunes, etc?

Yes

If it has a removable battery, it is swelling? That can put pressure on the bottom of the trackpad and cause it to not click properly

I don't know about the battery. I have seen this problem mentioned here and elsewhere, so I would think that this is a common problem that the people at the workshop would have checked when I took it back to them.

Do you have a USB or wireless mouse? If so, does it exhibit the same issue?

No external mouse.

Can you switch the left and right click functions in System Preferences > Trackpad, and then does the issue persist when clicking the right side of the trackpad button?

It does not appear that I can switch left and right click functions.

Last night after reading your post I started looking for extensions and other things that could possibly affect the performance of this Macbook. A couple of things that I found caught my attention. A long time ago I had 'Flip 4 Mac' and 'Elmedia Player' installed but I thought they were deleted. I found the icons for them in Applications. After moving the icons into the trash and dumping the trash, I believe the Macbook started behaving much better. I am thinking that when I retrieved the missing apps from my external hard drive, it picked up remnants of these old applications.
Thanks for your help, Cory
arc

 

[arc1953]

Another thought….while on the subject of dumping wayward apps, is just moving the icons into trash sufficient? What other housekeeping duties should be performed? I really believe that we are on the right track to restoring this old mac. Thanks again.
arc

 

[Cory Cooper]

Thanks for the additional information.

-Is your MacBook white plastic? If so, it should have a white plastic bottom with a rectangular removable battery, or a gray rubber bottom.

When you delete apps from the Mac, dragging them from the Applications folder gets rid of most pieces. However, there are some pieces of software like Flip4Mac, Adobe Flash, MacKeeper, CleanMyMac, and other add-ons/utilities that do install parts in various places in the Library and User > Library folder, in the folders named Internet Plug-Ins, LaunchAgents, LaunchDaemons, StartupItems, etc. Some of them also add Login Items in System Preferences > Users & Groups > Your User > Login Items. So, you may want to look around those folders to get any remnants of the apps you deleted/uninstalled.

You can also repair disk permissions using Disk Utility.

C

 

[arc1953]

Yes, the Macbook is white plastic. The bottom is a plain featureless white plastic. I will continue to see if I can find any more remnants of deleted apps. As far as repairing disk permissions, I have never done that, afraid to tamper with things that I don't know about. What is the proper procedure for this? Thanks for your help.
arc

 

[Cory Cooper]

Repairing Disk Permissions is a safe maintenance/diagnostic procedure.

Repair disk permissions with Disk Utility

Let us know if you have any questions about removing the rest of specific apps.

C

 

[arc1953]

The Macbook is running perfectly now. I found and deleted the remnants of old applications, and ran 'Repairing Disk Permissions'. It's great to have the Macbook back to normal. Thank you very much, Cory.
arc

 

[Cory Cooper]

No worries...glad it turned out well and that it wasn't a hardware issue.

C