Mouse control gone crazy

[Jeroen T. Vermeulen]

Binary package hint: xorg

My mouse control has been going crazy lately. This is on a MacBook Pro, June 2009 model, running Maverick.

Symptoms:
 * Phantom right-button clicks, popping up unexpected menus and creating unwanted folders in Nautilus.
 * Mouse clicks appear to be ignored.
 * Attempts to drag an icon on my desktop turn into "drag-select boxes."
 * Attempts to drag an icon on my desktop creates unexpected links to applications instead.
 * ubuntu-bug claims it can't capture my mouse.

Usually, switching to a different virtual desktop (using the keyboard) and back sometimes fixes it for a while. Then, possibly as soon as one mouse click later, things go wrong again.

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 10.10
Package: xorg 1:7.5+6ubuntu3
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.35-24.42-generic 2.6.35.8
Uname: Linux 2.6.35-24-generic i686
NonfreeKernelModules: wl
Architecture: i386
CheckboxSubmission: e56271c144a9c8f9f675c77e2e4edb56
CheckboxSystem: 7e42599bda39ea7ff8b528272b6ef52b
DRM.card0.DisplayPort.1:
 status: disconnected
 enabled: disabled
 dpms: Off
 modes:
 edid-base64:
DRM.card0.LVDS.1:
 status: connected
 enabled: enabled
 dpms: On
 modes: 1440x900 1152x864 1024x768 800x600 640x480 720x400 640x400 640x350
 edid-base64: AP///////wAGEKScAAAAABYTAQOAIRV4CuWFo1RPnCYOUFQAAAABAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBqyKgoFCEGjAwIDYAS88QAAAZAAAAAQAGEDAAAAAAAAAAAAogAAAA/gBMVE4xNTRCVDA4AAogAAAA/ABDb2xvciBMQ0QKICAgAKw=
Date: Wed Jan 19 09:02:35 2011
DkmsStatus:
 bcmwl, 5.60.48.36+bdcom, 2.6.36-999-generic, i686: built
 bcmwl, 5.60.48.36+bdcom, 2.6.35-22-generic, i686: installed
 bcmwl, 5.60.48.36+bdcom, 2.6.35-23-generic, i686: installed
 bcmwl, 5.60.48.36+bdcom, 2.6.32-24-generic, i686: installed
 bcmwl, 5.60.48.36+bdcom, 2.6.35-24-generic, i686: installed
GdmLog:
 Error: command ['gksu', '-D', 'Apport', '--', 'cat', '/var/log/gdm/:0.log'] failed with exit code 1:
 (gksu:5187): Gdk-CRITICAL **: IA__gdk_draw_pixbuf: assertion `GDK_IS_DRAWABLE (drawable)' failed
GdmLog1:
 Error: command ['gksu', '-D', 'Apport', '--', 'cat', '/var/log/gdm/:0.log.1'] failed with exit code 1:
 (gksu:5194): Gdk-CRITICAL **: IA__gdk_window_set_opacity: assertion `GDK_IS_WINDOW (window)' failed
GdmLog2:
 Error: command ['gksu', '-D', 'Apport', '--', 'cat', '/var/log/gdm/:0.log.2'] failed with exit code 1:
 ** (gksu:5201): WARNING **: System clock seemed to go backwards?

 (gksu:5201): Gdk-CRITICAL **: IA__gdk_window_set_opacity: assertion `GDK_IS_WINDOW (window)' failed
MachineType: Apple Inc. MacBookPro5,4
ProcCmdLine: root=UUID=e82d9a35-caee-4503-8594-8cd1eb26eec9 ro quiet splash
ProcEnviron:
 LC_TIME=en_DK.UTF-8
 PATH=(custom, user)
 LANG=en_US.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
SourcePackage: xorg
Symptom: display
dmi.bios.date: 06/15/09
dmi.bios.vendor: Apple Inc.
dmi.bios.version: MBP53.88Z.00AC.B03.0906151647
dmi.board.asset.tag: Base Board Asset Tag#
dmi.board.name: Mac-F22587A1
dmi.board.vendor: Apple Inc.
dmi.board.version: MacBookPro5,4
dmi.chassis.asset.tag: Asset Tag#
dmi.chassis.type: 10
dmi.chassis.vendor: Apple Inc.
dmi.chassis.version: Mac-F22587A1
dmi.modalias: dmi:bvnAppleInc.:bvrMBP53.88Z.00AC.B03.0906151647:bd06/15/09:svnAppleInc.:pnMacBookPro5,4:pvr1.0:rvnAppleInc.:rnMac-F22587A1:rvrMacBookPro5,4:cvnAppleInc.:ct10:cvrMac-F22587A1:
dmi.product.name: MacBookPro5,4
dmi.product.version: 1.0
dmi.sys.vendor: Apple Inc.
system:
 distro: Ubuntu
 codename: maverick
 architecture: i686
 kernel: 2.6.35-24-generic

[Jeroen T. Vermeulen (jtv)]

I'm also getting this with a USB mouse plugged in, even though it otherwise seems to disable my track pad. My hands don't need to be anywhere near the system. In fact I've caught this bug creating empty folders on my desktop and doing other manic stuff while I was standing a meter away. It's driving me nuts.

[Jeroen T. Vermeulen (jtv)]

I finally observed the problem in another operating system! It was harder to spot because it was nowhere near as bad as it was in Ubuntu, but it must be a hardware or firmware problem that the recent shop tests failed to detect.