Jumpy Mouse Cursor using Thinkpad X230 Touchpad

[cagara]

Really annoying bug!

Trackpoint moves the mouse cursor smootly,
when using the touchpad i have a jumpy cursor. (vertically it moves fine, horizontally it moves always 4 pixels at once).

Please see the following demonstration video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUVRKFUsAmc

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 12.10
Package: xserver-xorg-input-synaptics 1.6.2-1ubuntu4
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.5.0-11.11-generic 3.5.2
Uname: Linux 3.5.0-11-generic x86_64
ApportVersion: 2.5.1-0ubuntu2
Architecture: amd64
Date: Mon Aug 27 08:08:27 2012
InstallationMedia: Kubuntu 12.10 "Quantal Quetzal" - Alpha amd64 (20120824)
ProcEnviron:
 LANGUAGE=
 TERM=xterm
 PATH=(custom, no user)
 LANG=de_DE.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
SourcePackage: xserver-xorg-input-synaptics
UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install)

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

[Ilya Schurov (ily2)]

12.04 is also affected. Note also the following thread on x230 which may or may not be related to this bug: http://forum.notebookreview.com/lenovo-ibm/676519-x230-trackpoint-issue-very-choppy-not-smooth-all-normal.html . On my laptop, touchpad works fine under Windows, so it seems to be driver issues.

[Hein-PietervanBraam (hp)]

I have the same issue with ubuntu 12.04 on my X230

[Andy Hayward (ach)]

I suspect this behaviour is caused by the interaction of a couple of factors:

* the touchpad is anisotropic, about 2500DPI vertically but only 1500DPI horizontally
* both the synaptics driver and X are making making pointer acceleration calculations

These can be mostly fixed by tweaking the config; I'm currently using (add this as "/etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/50-touchpad.conf" and restart your Xserver):

Section "InputClass"
        Identifier "touchpad"
        MatchProduct "SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad"
        Driver "synaptics"
        # fix touchpad resolution
        Option "VertResolution" "100"
        Option "HorizResolution" "65"
        # disable synaptics driver pointer acceleration
        Option "MinSpeed" "1"
        Option "MaxSpeed" "1"
        # tweak the X-server pointer acceleration
        Option "AccelerationProfile" "2"
        Option "AdaptiveDeceleration" "16"
        Option "ConstantDeceleration" "16"
        Option "VelocityScale" "32"
EndSection

See also:
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/xserver-xorg-input-synaptics/+bug/621432

[Ilya Schurov (ily2)]

Thanks, Andy! Seems to work fine. I had to use "256" as "VelocityScale" (with 32 it's too slow for me), and it makes synaptiks unusable, but everything else is fine.

[Vijay Ravikumar (vijay-ravikumar)]

Yes, thank you! It worked beautifully for me too (I stuck with the 32 and
just increased the cursor speed slightly under system settings).

On Thu, Oct 18, 2012 at 8:44 AM, Ilya Schurov <email address hidden> wrote:

> Thanks, Andy! Seems to work fine. I had to use "256" as "VelocityScale"
> (with 32 it's too slow for me), and it makes synaptiks unusable, but
> everything else is fine.
>
> --
> You received this bug notification because you are subscribed to the bug
> report.
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1042069
>
> Title:
> Jumpy Mouse Cursor using Thinkpad X230 Touchpad
>
> Status in “xserver-xorg-input-synaptics” package in Ubuntu:
> Confirmed
>
> Bug description:
> Really annoying bug!
>
> Trackpoint moves the mouse cursor smootly,
> when using the touchpad i have a jumpy cursor. (vertically it moves
> fine, horizontally it moves always 4 pixels at once).
>
> Please see the following demonstration video:
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUVRKFUsAmc
>
> ProblemType: Bug
> DistroRelease: Ubuntu 12.10
> Package: xserver-xorg-input-synaptics 1.6.2-1ubuntu4
> ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.5.0-11.11-generic 3.5.2
> Uname: Linux 3.5.0-11-generic x86_64
> ApportVersion: 2.5.1-0ubuntu2
> Architecture: amd64
> Date: Mon Aug 27 08:08:27 2012
> InstallationMedia: Kubuntu 12.10 "Quantal Quetzal" - Alpha amd64
> (20120824)
> ProcEnviron:
> LANGUAGE=
> TERM=xterm
> PATH=(custom, no user)
> LANG=de_DE.UTF-8
> SHELL=/bin/bash
> SourcePackage: xserver-xorg-input-synaptics
> UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install)
>
> To manage notifications about this bug go to:
>
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/xserver-xorg-input-synaptics/+bug/1042069/+subscriptions
>

[Donjan Rodic (bryonak)]

@Andy:
Thanks for the very useful conf file!

It seems that sometime in 2010/2011 the default directory has switched from /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/ to /usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/ ... so we should use that instead. There is already a 50-synaptics.conf file there. Currently I've pasted your config in a new 52-synaptics-x230.conf and it works well*.
But for a proper fix the responsible Ubuntu maintainers should put it into the already present 51-synaptics-quirks.conf (which is obviously meant for such an occasion) with the correct MatchTag.

I'd provide the MatchTag myself if I knew how to get it properly, but 'udevadm info --export-db' doesn't seem to offer anything directly useful and 'xinput -list' gives the fairly generic 'SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad'.

* As an aside, I'm not sure if your config is 100% tuned, because my touchpad still jumps (just a few pixels) when moving slow-ish over the screen, but much less than before and I'm generally using the trackpoint anyway, so it's no big deal for me.

[Donjan Rodic (bryonak)]

So far, Google doesn't bother returning a JumpyCursorThreshold with connection to the X230, so "someone" ;) will have to test it out... but we need a working MatchTag anyway for it to be of use.

[Hein-PietervanBraam (hp)]

I also added the config file suggested here to my xorg.conf directory and the problem also disappeared for me on my X230.

[Marius B. Kotsbak (mariusko)]

The matching could probably be done based on the whole system's information:

System Information
        Manufacturer: LENOVO
        Product Name: 34382BG
        Version: ThinkPad X230 Tablet
        Wake-up Type: Power Switch
        Family: ThinkPad X230 Tablet

[Marius B. Kotsbak (mariusko)]

Adding line:

  ATTR{[dmi/id]product_version}=="ThinkPad X230*", ENV{ID_INPUT.tags}="lenovo_x230_all"

to file /lib/udev/rules.d/66-xorg-synaptics-quirks.rules

and then using:

  MatchTag "lenovo_x230_all"

should limit the quirk for just this hardware.

[Brain (brain)]

I have the same problem on Lenovo Thinkpad Edge 530 and Ubuntu 13.04
The settings from comment #5 did not satisfy me since the cursor speed is pretty much affected (reduced) and increasing the VelocityScale returns back the problem.

After reading the Synaptics manpage I experimented a better configuration, that doesn't affect the speed: there is a
nice feature called NoiseCancellation.

I have created the following config file in /usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/50-thinkpad-touchpad.conf:

Section "InputClass"
        Identifier "touchpad"
        MatchProduct "SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad"
        Driver "synaptics"
        # fix touchpad resolution
        Option "VertResolution" "100"
        Option "HorizResolution" "65"
        # increment noise cancellation factor
        Option "HorizHysteresis" "50"
        Option "VertHysteresis" "50"
EndSection

You can increase the Horiz-/VertHysteresis even more if you experience still some jumping.

[Chow Loong Jin (hyperair)]

I've used a Thinkpad Edge E220S before, and I don't believe the problem mentioned in comment #14 is the same. It's the direct opposite, actually.

The Edges have hyper-sensitive touchpads that move the cursor even when your finger is stationary. Increasing the V/H-Hysteresis stabilizes the pointer and makes the touchpad really nice to use. Conversely, the X230 has a touchpad that feels like it has really low sensitivity -- shift your finger a bit, and the pointer doesn't budge, but move your finger a bit more, and the pointer jumps a couple of pixels.

The configuration in comment #5 appears to make the cursor less jumpy, though still visibly jerky, but causes the pointer to move overly slow. Additionally, something feels a bit off when moving diagonally, so I've commented out the Vert/Horiz-Resolution lines. With some further tweaking of the values, this is what I have come up with:

Section "InputClass"
        Identifier "touchpad"
        MatchProduct "SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad"
        MatchTag "lenovo_x230_all"
        Driver "synaptics"
        # fix touchpad resolution
        # Option "VertResolution" "100"
        # Option "HorizResolution" "65"
        # disable synaptics driver pointer acceleration
        Option "MinSpeed" "1"
        Option "MaxSpeed" "1"
        # tweak the X-server pointer acceleration
        Option "AccelerationProfile" "2"
        Option "AdaptiveDeceleration" "1000"
        Option "ConstantDeceleration" "16"
        Option "VelocityScale" "30"
        Option "AccelerationNumerator" "30"
        Option "AccelerationDenominator" "10"
        Option "AccelerationThreshold" "10"
EndSection

You'll need to either add the udev rule from comment #13 or comment out the MatchTag line to get this to work.

[Sicco van Sas (sicco)]

I have the same problem with my ThinkPad E530. The config file from comment #14 fixed it!

[Marius B. Kotsbak (mariusko)]

Comment #15 works great for my X230t.

[Christopher Barrington-Leigh (cpbl)]

This problem exists in 13.04 too.

[ramgorur (code-icted)]

I am also having similar problem with Ubuntu 13.10 on ThinkPad S431, any workaround for S431?

[nuovodna (nuovodna)]

solved with comment #15 adjusting the volume scale value

[Joel (ubu6tu)]

Ubuntu 13.10 with a simlpified version of #14 partially "fixes" Lenovo ThinkPad Edge E531.

Section "InputClass"
        Identifier "touchpad"
        MatchProduct "SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad"
        Driver "synaptics"

        # increment noise cancellation factor
        Option "HorizHysteresis" "50"
        Option "VertHysteresis" "50"
EndSection

The mouse behaves a bit strange, not good, but better than before. A hysteresis value above 50 makes it even worse (in another aspect) than it was before... Seems like this particular xorg-drug comes with a side-effect ;)

The E531 has a clickpad (i.e. it has its physical button under the finger-sensitivt part of the touchpad). The only way to right-click is to use this pad -.- The lack of precision affects the right click context menus, without the fix above right-clicking always opened some alternative in the right-click menu, often the first. Now, it doesn't click anything most of the time, but sometimes it does hit the first one. Left-clicking is also affected, but there is the alternative of tapping for these clicks.

Some walkarounds that really don't fix the problem:
* Only use tapping. Only works for left-click.
* Set AreaBottomEdge - cannot set for only right-click, has to take the whole bottom edge. Might work for you.
* Change the theme, some have had success with adding a non-clickable border around all context menus, effectively moving the menu way off the mouse so you don't accidentally click it.

I think what we really need is a ClickHysteresis, so that the mouse doesn't move when clicking the clickpad (both left and right click).

Maybe we should open a new bug for this issue? I think we could have two very similar bugs in one thread here.

[Jacob Boy (boy-jacob)]

I believe I have the issue described in comment #15 for the X230, on my Lenovo IdeaPad Z710.

With a steady finger drag the cursor will move very slightly for a couple pixels before quickly shifting forward a couple pixels, such that at first I believed that the cursor was merely snapping to each line of text.

The settings in comment i#15 are a fix because the problem does not occur with the AccelerationProfile set to 2, but it is imperfect because I prefer the other acceleration profile. Changing only the acceleration profile to 4 and the constant deceleration to 3 also works, depending on how you like your cursor.

It is difficult to tell which other acceleration profiles have the problem, but it may also occur in 3.

[Jacob Boy (boy-jacob)]

After more time with it, it appears the issue still appears with an acceleration profile of 4 although less noticeably.

[penalvch (penalvch)]

cagara, this bug was reported a while ago and there hasn't been any activity in it recently. We were wondering if this is still an issue? If so, could you please test for this with the latest development release of Ubuntu? ISO images are available from http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/daily-live/current/ .

If it remains an issue, could you please run the following command in the development release from a Terminal (Applications->Accessories->Terminal), as it will automatically gather and attach updated debug information to this report:

apport-collect -p xserver-xorg-input-synaptics REPLACE-WITH-BUG-NUMBER

Please note, given that the information from the prior release is already available, doing this on a release prior to the development one would not be helpful.

Thank you for your understanding.

Helpful bug reporting tips:
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/ReportingBugs

[Michael Faath (michael.faath)]

ApportVersion: 2.13.1-0ubuntu1
Architecture: amd64
CasperVersion: 1.336ubuntu1
CurrentDesktop: Unity
DistUpgraded: Fresh install
DistroCodename: trusty
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 14.04
DistroVariant: ubuntu
LiveMediaBuild: Ubuntu 14.04 LTS "Trusty Tahr" - Alpha amd64 (20140115)
MachineType: LENOVO 2324CTO
Package: xserver-xorg-input-synaptics 1.7.1-0ubuntu1
PackageArchitecture: amd64
ProcKernelCmdLine: file=/cdrom/preseed/username.seed boot=casper initrd=/casper/initrd.lz quiet splash -- maybe-ubiquity
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.13.0-3.18-generic 3.13.0-rc8
Tags: trusty ubuntu reproducible
Uname: Linux 3.13.0-3-generic x86_64
UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install)
UserGroups: adm cdrom dip lpadmin plugdev sambashare sudo
dmi.bios.date: 02/22/2013
dmi.bios.vendor: LENOVO
dmi.bios.version: G2ET92WW (2.52 )
dmi.board.asset.tag: Not Available
dmi.board.name: 2324CTO
dmi.board.vendor: LENOVO
dmi.board.version: Win8 Pro DPK TPG
dmi.chassis.asset.tag: No Asset Information
dmi.chassis.type: 10
dmi.chassis.vendor: LENOVO
dmi.chassis.version: Not Available
dmi.modalias: dmi:bvnLENOVO:bvrG2ET92WW(2.52):bd02/22/2013:svnLENOVO:pn2324CTO:pvrThinkPadX230:rvnLENOVO:rn2324CTO:rvrWin8ProDPKTPG:cvnLENOVO:ct10:cvrNotAvailable:
dmi.product.name: 2324CTO
dmi.product.version: ThinkPad X230
dmi.sys.vendor: LENOVO
version.compiz: compiz 1:0.9.10+13.10.20131011-0ubuntu1
version.ia32-libs: ia32-libs N/A
version.libdrm2: libdrm2 2.4.50-1
version.libgl1-mesa-dri: libgl1-mesa-dri 10.0.1-1ubuntu2
version.libgl1-mesa-dri-experimental: libgl1-mesa-dri-experimental N/A
version.libgl1-mesa-glx: libgl1-mesa-glx 10.0.1-1ubuntu2
version.xserver-xorg-core: xserver-xorg-core 2:1.14.5-1ubuntu2
version.xserver-xorg-input-evdev: xserver-xorg-input-evdev 1:2.8.2-1ubuntu1
version.xserver-xorg-video-ati: xserver-xorg-video-ati 1:7.2.0-0ubuntu10
version.xserver-xorg-video-intel: xserver-xorg-video-intel 2:2.99.907-0ubuntu1
version.xserver-xorg-video-nouveau: xserver-xorg-video-nouveau 1:1.0.10-1ubuntu1
xserver.bootTime: Thu Jan 16 12:43:53 2014
xserver.configfile: default
xserver.errors:

xserver.logfile: /var/log/Xorg.0.log
xserver.outputs:
 product id 931
 vendor LGD
xserver.version: 2:1.14.5-1ubuntu2

[penalvch (penalvch)]

Michael Faath, thank you for your comment. So your hardware and problem may be tracked, could you please file a new report by executing the following in a terminal:
ubuntu-bug xorg

For more on this, please see the official Ubuntu documentation:
Ubuntu X.Org Team, Ubuntu Bug Control, and Ubuntu Bug Squad: https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Bugs/BestPractices#X.2BAC8-Reporting.Focus_on_One_Issue
Ubuntu Community: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/ReportingBugs#Bug_reporting_etiquette

When opening up the new report, please feel free to subscribe me to it.

Please note, not filing a new report will delay your problem being addressed as quickly as possible.

Thank you for your understanding.

[Mike Weinert (ironhalik)]

ThinkPad X220 on 13.10 and 14.04 (daily 17.01.14) is also affected. Config from #15, with hysteresis at 30 is helping a lot.

[penalvch (penalvch)]

IronHalik, thank you for your comment. So your hardware and problem may be tracked, could you please file a new report by executing the following in a terminal:
ubuntu-bug xorg

For more on this, please see the official Ubuntu documentation:
Ubuntu X.Org Team, Ubuntu Bug Control, and Ubuntu Bug Squad: https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Bugs/BestPractices#X.2BAC8-Reporting.Focus_on_One_Issue
Ubuntu Community: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/ReportingBugs#Bug_reporting_etiquette

When opening up the new report, please feel free to subscribe me to it.

Please note, not filing a new report will delay your problem being addressed as quickly as possible.

Thank you for your understanding.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

[Expired for xserver-xorg-input-synaptics (Ubuntu) because there has been no activity for 60 days.]

[here (here)]

lenovo x230t + 14.04 Trusty + xfce

touchpad jerky and unusable with fresh install
trackpoint works fine

comment #15 fixes touchpad movement by pasting into an existing or new conf file in /usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/

[penalvch (penalvch)]

here, thank you for your comment. So your issue may be dealt with as soon as possible, and so your hardware may be tracked by having necessary debugging information automatically attached, could you please file a new report with Ubuntu by executing the following in a terminal:
ubuntu-bug xorg

Please ensure you have xdiagnose installed, and that you click the Yes button for attaching additional debugging information.

For more on why this is most helpful, please read the official Ubuntu documentation from the respective Ubuntu developer groups, and triage teams:
X.Org, Ubuntu Bug Control, and Ubuntu Bug Squad: https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Bugs/BestPractices#X.2BAC8-Reporting.Focus_on_One_Issue
Ubuntu Community: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/ReportingBugs#Bug_reporting_etiquette

When opening up the new report, please feel free to subscribe me to it.

As well, please do not announce in this report you created a new bug report.

Thank you for your understanding.

[Rüdiger Kupper (ruediger.kupper)]

Still an issue in utopic!

[Rüdiger Kupper (ruediger.kupper)]

Christopher, there already is a bug report for my specific hardware: bug #1176857. There has not been any activity since 5/2013.
I will mark package linux as affected.

[Or Schiro (orschiro)]

I am affected as well by a very imprecise and jumpy touchpad on my X230. I use the latest elementary OS Freya Beta 2 which is based on Ubuntu 14.10.

How can I help resolving the issue?

Thankfully,

Robert

[Or Schiro (orschiro)]

Any updates on this?

Here is another screencast that demonstrates the problem:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTgaf8tTNEc

~Robert

[Or Schiro (orschiro)]

This problem is still occurring on Ubuntu 17.04, sadly.

GIF animation demonstrating the problem:

https://i.imgur.com/gVV7OqI.gif

Is there really no solution to this?

Would switching to libinput help, maybe?

[Timo Aaltonen (tjaalton)]

you're free to try, but last I heard it's a firmware bug

[Or Schiro (orschiro)]

Can someone else confirm that using this configuration file does solve the problem? [1]

At least for me it did. :-)

[1] https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Lenovo_ThinkPad_X230#Touchpad

[Man (disposable84)]

Yes, confirming. And thank you for the link!

[Or Schiro (orschiro)]

Welcome. :-)

[Tony Mobily (tonymobily)]

Unfortunately, this:

[1] https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Lenovo_ThinkPad_X230#Touchpad

No longer works as a fix in Ubuntu 17.10

Why would that be? Is the file no longer considered by Xorg?
Does anybody here know how to make it work?

I have a fantastic X220, which is still pretty damn fast compared to "todays'" laptops, and it's barely usable because of this...!

[Or Schiro (orschiro)]

Hey Tony,

Have you made sure you are on Xorg and not Wayland session?

On Thu, Mar 29, 2018 at 4:33 PM, Tony Mobily <email address hidden>
wrote:

> Unfortunately, this:
>
> [1] https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Lenovo_ThinkPad_X230#Touchpad
>
> No longer works as a fix in Ubuntu 17.10
>
> Why would that be? Is the file no longer considered by Xorg?
> Does anybody here know how to make it work?
>
> I have a fantastic X220, which is still pretty damn fast compared to
> "todays'" laptops, and it's barely usable because of this...!
>
> --
> You received this bug notification because you are subscribed to the bug
> report.
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1042069
>
> Title:
> Jumpy Mouse Cursor using Thinkpad X230 Touchpad
>
> Status in xserver-xorg-input-synaptics package in Ubuntu:
> Expired
>
> Bug description:
> Really annoying bug!
>
> Trackpoint moves the mouse cursor smootly,
> when using the touchpad i have a jumpy cursor. (vertically it moves
> fine, horizontally it moves always 4 pixels at once).
>
> Please see the following demonstration video:
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUVRKFUsAmc
>
> ProblemType: Bug
> DistroRelease: Ubuntu 12.10
> Package: xserver-xorg-input-synaptics 1.6.2-1ubuntu4
> ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.5.0-11.11-generic 3.5.2
> Uname: Linux 3.5.0-11-generic x86_64
> ApportVersion: 2.5.1-0ubuntu2
> Architecture: amd64
> Date: Mon Aug 27 08:08:27 2012
> InstallationMedia: Kubuntu 12.10 "Quantal Quetzal" - Alpha amd64
> (20120824)
> ProcEnviron:
> LANGUAGE=
> TERM=xterm
> PATH=(custom, no user)
> LANG=de_DE.UTF-8
> SHELL=/bin/bash
> SourcePackage: xserver-xorg-input-synaptics
> UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install)
>
> To manage notifications about this bug go to:
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/xserver-xorg-
> input-synaptics/+bug/1042069/+subscriptions
>

[Tony Mobily (tonymobily)]

Hi,

Oh my goodness...
I am using Wayland!!!

merc@merc-ThinkPad-X220:/disk/home/merc$ ps ax | grep wayl
  922 tty1 Ssl+ 0:00 /usr/lib/gdm3/gdm-wayland-session gnome-session --autostart /usr/share/gdm/greeter/autostart
  968 tty1 Sl+ 0:00 /usr/bin/Xwayland :1024 -rootless -terminate -core -listen 4 -listen 5 -displayfd 6
merc@merc-ThinkPad-X220:/disk/home/merc$

I didn't think it'd be the default. It just works so beautifully... I assumed it was Xorg!
Also, I used Xmodmap to remap some keys. So... I had no hints that I was not running Xorg.

Soooooooooo the question then would be: I know _zip_ about Wayland. This is obviously a hardware issue that we could get around with some Xorg magic.

Is there any way to replicate the 'fix' with Wayland?

Merc.

P.S.
Oh my, do we really live in a post-Xorg world _finally_? I've been waiting for it ever since the world talked about "Berlin" (I doubt anybody here would even know what I am talking about... This was published some 18 years ago (!) https://nnc3.com/mags/LM10/issue/04/Berlin.pdf )

[Tony Mobily (tonymobily)]

I am even more confused as I installed -- and configured -- the Compiz setting manager. So... is it really all compatible? How the heck...?

[Tony Mobily (tonymobily)]

Well I just wanted to confirm that I switched back to Xorg and unfortunately the hack to 50-synaptics.conf no longer works -- the mouse is still jumpy

[Or Schiro (orschiro)]

Cannot test right now on Ubuntu because I'm on Fedora 27 right now but
there I didn't have to apply any tweaks. The TouchPad is just working fine.
Maybe that's due to different kernel versions?

On Sat, Mar 31, 2018, 02:19 Tony Mobily <email address hidden> wrote:

> Well I just wanted to confirm that I switched back to Xorg and
> unfortunately the hack to 50-synaptics.conf no longer works -- the mouse
> is still jumpy
>
> --
> You received this bug notification because you are subscribed to the bug
> report.
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1042069
>
> Title:
> Jumpy Mouse Cursor using Thinkpad X230 Touchpad
>
> Status in xserver-xorg-input-synaptics package in Ubuntu:
> Expired
>
> Bug description:
> Really annoying bug!
>
> Trackpoint moves the mouse cursor smootly,
> when using the touchpad i have a jumpy cursor. (vertically it moves
> fine, horizontally it moves always 4 pixels at once).
>
> Please see the following demonstration video:
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUVRKFUsAmc
>
> ProblemType: Bug
> DistroRelease: Ubuntu 12.10
> Package: xserver-xorg-input-synaptics 1.6.2-1ubuntu4
> ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.5.0-11.11-generic 3.5.2
> Uname: Linux 3.5.0-11-generic x86_64
> ApportVersion: 2.5.1-0ubuntu2
> Architecture: amd64
> Date: Mon Aug 27 08:08:27 2012
> InstallationMedia: Kubuntu 12.10 "Quantal Quetzal" - Alpha amd64
> (20120824)
> ProcEnviron:
> LANGUAGE=
> TERM=xterm
> PATH=(custom, no user)
> LANG=de_DE.UTF-8
> SHELL=/bin/bash
> SourcePackage: xserver-xorg-input-synaptics
> UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install)
>
> To manage notifications about this bug go to:
>
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/xserver-xorg-input-synaptics/+bug/1042069/+subscriptions
>

[Kirill Kornilov (kirill-ka)]

I just found a kind of hardware solution to this problem. There's a touchpad configuration flag named "absolute position filtering" which roughens the position reporting.
Accessing that configuration is a bit tricky, but there's a code in fwupd project which demonstrates how it's done.
I created a "proof of concept" script which changes the flag.
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/KIrill-ka/x230-touchpad-scripts/master/x230-abs-filter-disable.tcl
Run as root. It's rather safe, trust me :)
Despite of the name, the script works on x220. The hardware is the same.
The configuration stays there until the next reboot (or suspend).
It should be possible to store the configuration permanently in the touchpad's flash. But it requires more work.

[Kirill Kornilov (kirill-ka)]

The script in action. Note the change in "cont capablities".
One who was tinkering with the synaptics' stuff will probably find the output painfully familiar.