Mouse Problems

[jrkenn]

I finally got this 4000 Hard Drive problem fixed and now the mouse has went out. Is there any way to use a serial mouse or a ps2 mouse with an adapter?

I have the 4000 model with WB 3.1
I loaded this HD through WinUAE on my PC. Would that have anything to do with the mouse not working? It will right click
and bring up the menu but wont move at all

[rkauer]

 You have various ways to attack the problem:

 1- cut a little of the cable near the mouse itself and ressolder it (solves the problem if the cable is broken). To check if the internal infrared leds are working, see them through a cell or digital camera (with the mouse cover open and connected to the power-on Amiga);

 2- Mount one of the several hacks lying on Aminet and hook a PS/2 mouse in it;

 3- Buy a Cocolino adapter (to the very same as option #2) from Elbox;

 4- Hook a serial IBM/peecee mouse on the serial port of the Amiga and download the mouse software from Aminet (the worst solution: the mouse only works on Workbench).

[jrkenn]

Thanks for the tip, I did the search on Aminet and found some drivers I will try out until I can get another mouse or buy an adapter an use a PS2 which is really want I want to do.  

[AMC258]

Never messed with an A4000 but I know on other big box Amigas, if you unplug peripherals with the power on, you blow fuses.  The mouse port is especially susceptible to this.  Don't complain, it's a great feature.  It really does protect the motherboard.  You'll have to check schematics to find the fuse, or, put a shunt across the fuses one at a time until your mouse starts working.  Be careful though!  And, you could check the fuses with a multimeter but DON'T.  Not unless you have already desoldered them from the motherboard.

Okay, sorry, I didn't read all the way.  If you can right click, the fuse is good.  Then I'd assume you have a bad cable.

[da9000]

AMC258 wrote:
And, you could check the fuses with a multimeter but DON'T.  Not unless you have already desoldered them from the motherboard.

Why not? I've never had a problem testing them with a VMM/DMM.

For the original poster: the fuses on the A3000s are like resistors, but green and without stripes. I forget about the A4000... But first test with a working mouse, if you have one, that will point to the problem source: computer or mouse.

[Castellen]

I'd agree.  Given the symptoms, the likely suspects are either an open circuit fuse on the +5V_USER supply, or a damaged shift register, U975.

The action of the left and right mouse buttons is independant of the movement logic; they simply pull the left/right input to 0V.  So this will of course work without the 5V supply, which is required mainly to power the mouse quadrature encoder.

Checking the fuse is hardly rocket science, neither is replacing it if you can solder correctly.

I've written some brief notes on related subjects  here.

[Hodgkinson]

You could follow the Wizard mouse schematic on Ian Stedmans' website and see if you could modify a PC mouse into a Amiga mouse (Never actually done this myself, but I don’t see why it wouldn't be possible).

http://www.ianstedman.co.uk/Amiga/amiga_hacks/Amiga_mouse_repair/amiga_mouse_repair.html

Hodgkinson.

EDIT: If either of the Tx or Rx sensor pairs on one of the opto disks has become miss-aligned, that can stop that axis from working. Muck also has the same (Although cumulative...) effect.

[AMC258]

Why not? I've never had a problem testing them with a VMM/DMM.

If the fuse is open, you are not measuring the fuse anymore, you're measuring some part of the motherboard.  This may give a false reading.  Also, then you are forcing whatever current from your multimeter through some part of the motherboard, which in most cases you can get away with, but it's bad practice.

[da9000]

AMC258 wrote:
If the fuse is open, you are not measuring the fuse anymore, you're measuring some part of the motherboard.  This may give a false reading.

OK, thanks for explaining AMC258, but assuming you've set your meter to connectivity mode, if the fuse is blown, it'll immediately have > 0Ohm reading, and thus not beep, thus giving you the same results (in other words you'll get a beep only when the fuse is not blown, which is enough to help decide if it's blown or not). Right? OK, if the circuit is shorted elsewhere, it'll still beep, even though the fuse is blown. You'd have to be extermely unlucky though, you have to admit :-)

AMC258 wrote:
Also, then you are forcing whatever current from your multimeter through some part of the motherboard, which in most cases you can get away with, but it's bad practice.

OK, agreed, but I'm lazy when it comes to fuses :-)

[AMC258]

Sorry for the late reply, I totally missed this way back then.  I only found this accidentally in a search engine!

Here's the best solution:  Power up, and measure *voltage* across the fuse.  If you have 0V, the fuse is good.  If you have >0V, the fuse is no good.  That is the safest possible way to check the fuse in circuit.

Also, if you have an ammeter, you can measure the current in the circuit, across an open fuse.  If you measure more current than the fuse rating, IMMEDIATELY remove the ammeter from the circuit, or remove the power from the system.  At this point, you know that the fuse blew for a reason and you get to search out the fault.  If nothing else it saves you blowing another fuse for nothing.  Just don't leave the ammeter in the circuit like that for too long or you will fry whatever it was the fuse was supposed to be protecting.

[JimS]

I always used a voltmeter between the middle two pins of the bottom row of the mouse port. If you have 5v there, the fuse is OK. It's easier than taking off the whole case. I did this often enough at the shop that I made a little tester with a DB-9 plug, LED and resistor.

[chiark]

Safest in terms that no current will be shoved anywhere it's not expected by a multimeter...

However, the chances of slipping and shorting something out with multimeter probes are infinitely higher.  If you do go down that route, make sure you keep your probes where they should be!