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Cursor blinking in Excel

Anonymous
2017-10-22T13:48:40+00:00

PROBLEM

My dad installed the Fall Creators Update on both of his Windows 10 laptops, but one of them has an issue.

When he types in a cell in Excel, the cursor rapidly blinks between the "cross" cursor and the default arrow.

While I would not see this as a major issue, my dad says that he cannot stand the blinking cursor and wants a fix.

WHAT I'VE TRIED:

  1. This problem started on Office 2007, which was unsupported before the release of the Fall Creators Update, so I tried upgrading Office 2007 to Office 2010, and that did not work.
  2. I tried uninstalling the mouse driver and reinstalling it, but that did not work.
  3. I tried using the touchpad, and that did not work. I then tried out another mouse, and that failed as well.
  4. I looked on the Internet, but I could not find anything that was related to this issue.
  5. I matched the mouse settings with another Windows 10 PC without the issue (Also on Fall Creators Update), and that did not work.

SYSTEM INFO OF THE PROBLEM PC

Make: Samsung 

Model: RV520

OS:Microsoft Windows 10 (10.0.16299.15)

Office 2010 (Problem started on Office 2007)

Microsoft 365 and Office | Excel | For home | Windows

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  1. Anonymous
    2017-12-20T01:55:29+00:00

    Yes, I had the same issue and I spent another month of my life trying to fix it and could not. 

    I think it is made worse when you have data being piped into an excel spreadsheet in real time.

    In addition to this I had multiple system crashes every day for a month with no mini dump file and nothing in the log. In the end I gave up on the latest Windows 10 'update'/virus and reverted to my pre-upgrade system image of 1703-15063.. 

    Of course I had to switch to the business ring in Win Pro and defer updates another 365 days to ensure I get some breathing space prior to the next 'feature' virus rollout.  I have been using windows since Windows 3.1 and this is the worst yet.  MS seems to have lost the plot and is releasing buggy software all the time like it is little more than an app store now!

    Since my reversion to 15063. Not a single issue or crash.

    If when I am forced off this version the problems come back I will revert again and hack my installation so that Microsoft is unable to EVER send an update to me every again.

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  2. Anonymous
    2018-03-14T02:31:44+00:00

    This problem is back for me.

    After many hangs, crashes as well as this constant flickering cursor in excel I had to revert to the prior stable win10 version:  1703-15063.  I also change the update settings to 'business ring' and delay 365 days so prevent any upgrade for at least a year.

    However a few months later, MS has force rolled out upgrades even to 365 day delayed systems 'for security reasons'.

    So now I am on the latest version 1709  16299.248  and of course the constant excel cursor flashing is back.

    Now I see links on the web that MS believes it has fixed this issue with KB4054517.

    https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Excel-cursor-flickers-after-updating-to-Windows-10-Fall-Creators-Update-v1709-94b30c81-52eb-4008-b932-8f2e6aa03d1b?ui=en-US&rs=en-US&ad=US

    And I have tried to install that patch but it fails to install as it is for a prior build of win 10.

    I have also tried other suggestions wrt pen device (I have none)

    I have reinstalled nvidia GTX660 drivers with lates version.. no effect.

    I have uninstalled printer drivers... no effect.

    I have changed default printer to various... no effect.

    So... anyone know when MS will fix this annoying issue with the cursor flickering constantly between the pointer arrow and the large white plus sign?

    Of note... this only happens when the Java api that is feeding live data into the spreadsheet is running, but this api has been stable for over a decade.  The issue has crept in with the latest Win10 releases starting with fall creators update.

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  3. Anonymous
    2017-10-29T15:51:01+00:00

    Someone came to me in our office today to report that they installed the Fall Creators update and now they see the Cross then Arrow, then Cross, then Arrow. 

    Environment:

    * Office 2016 (Office 365)

    * Microsoft Surface of some variety (3 I believe). It is about a year old

    They are heavy Excel users and they noticed this right away after Fall Creators update finished.

    Yes, this is the same problem.

    I have tried the repair install and rolling back, but both did not work.

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  4. Anonymous
    2017-10-27T12:36:24+00:00

    Someone came to me in our office today to report that they installed the Fall Creators update and now they see the Cross then Arrow, then Cross, then Arrow. 

    Environment:

    * Office 2016 (Office 365)

    * Microsoft Surface of some variety (3 I believe). It is about a year old

    They are heavy Excel users and they noticed this right away after Fall Creators update finished.

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  5. Anonymous
    2017-10-23T06:03:25+00:00

    Hi,

    This issue could be due to software conflicts to the Office application from the Windows updates. Just to clarify, is the issue only happening to Excel?

    In the meantime, we suggest that you perform an online repair. To do this, click here and follow the steps provided. Please note that when you get the prompt, How would you like to repair your Office Programs, select Online Repair.

    We recommend that you go back to the previous versions of Windows and check if the issue will still manifest.

    We'll keep an eye out for your response.

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