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I assume there's some Linux command to deactivate (and reactivate) a laptop's touchpad or other pointing device? I'm using my laptop only on desks and tables, and used the BIOS editor to deactivate the touchpad because I don't need or want it. (This laptop is used, and the trackball is erratic--that's why I bothered to shut it off.) But if I ever need to use it because I don't have a hard surface to use the mouse, I'd have to reboot to get into the BIOS again. I do also have one of those soft round plugs in the middle of the keyboard resembling a pencil eraser (I forget what they're called), but I don't like it any more than a touchpad. (Who prefers laptop native pointing devices to a mouse?)
Last edited by newbiesforever; 11-30-2013 at 11:58 AM.
Some laptops have a hardware key to toggle the touchpad on and off. On my Acer Travelmate, it's one of the function keys and has an icon that looks like a football field with a rocket shot into it--it's supposed to be a touchpad with finger on it, but you'd never crack the code without help.
$ cat touchpad.sh
#!/bin/bash
# touchpad.sh Written by Atanas S / Siteground Support Team
# First we need to get the device ID from the xinput
# if it does not work for you, you may need to set the cut -f option to another number
# I would suggest that you test the command in your terminal first to see the result
# It should output an integer usually between 8-15, at least on my lap top :D
getdev=`xinput list |grep pointer |grep PS |cut -f 2`
devid=${getdev/id=/}
#Second we need to get the device status, if it is enabled or not
# if it does not work for you, you may need to set the cut -f option to another number
# I would suggest that you test the command in your terminal first to see the result
# It should output 0 or 1
getstatus=`xinput list-props $devid |grep 'Device Enabled' |cut -f 3`
#once we get the device status depending on the status we set it the other way arround
if [ "$getstatus" == "1" ]; then
newstatus="0"
else
newstatus="1"
fi
`xinput set-prop $devid "Device Enabled" $newstatus`
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