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Dev tools pop up in all browsers

Anonymous
2021-03-13T06:11:14+00:00

I have a windows 10 notebook pc and recently (about a month) any internet browser starts popping up a panel full of HTML which I think is the developer tools pop-up.

It pops up and disappears randomly.

Sometimes in a fraction of a second and other times stays for several seconds.

This happens in Chrome, Edge and Firefox browsers and it has become impossible to type anything because the cursor jumps from the browser to the dev tools panels.

No matter what I try, I cannot stop this from popping up.

I have installed all updates and pc os is uptodate.

This only happens when an internet browser is opened.

All other pc apps work normally.

I suspect it is a Windows internet access issue because it does not seem to be specific to any one internet browser.

I don't know where to go from here.

Any advice greatly appreciated.

Microsoft Edge | Other | Windows 10

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  1. DaveM121 869.3K Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2021-03-13T08:26:48+00:00

    Hi Luke

    I am Dave, an Independent Advisor, I will help you with this . . .

    1

    Check the F12 key on your keyboard to make sure it is not damaged

    2

    Open the Settings App

    Go to Update & Security - Troubleshoot

    Run the Keyboard troubleshooter

    3

    If that does not resolve this for you

    Open Device Manager

    Expand the Keyboards section

    Right click your keyboard and choose 'Uninstall'

    Then restart your PC

    2 people found this answer helpful.
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  2. Anonymous
    2021-03-14T06:35:47+00:00

    Hi Dave,

    I'm starting to doubt that it is a keyboard problem.

    Every key works fine when used with any program other than an internet browser.

    I suspect that the problem lies with the Windows interface with internet browsers.

    It is of course possible that there is also some incompatibility with the my particular notebook pc and Windows. Although everything worked fine until recently.

    I have read that others have also had this exact problem dating back several years. But this does not help me.

    To me it seems ridiculous that this type of problem should be able to happen under any circumstance since 99% of users have no interest in dev tools and so accessing these should have to require more than just pressing a function key.

    The pc is useless for accessing the internet now so I was considering re-installing windows from scratch and see if the problem goes away.

    One interesting observation is that just opening a browser does not seem to display the problem until I click on a link or type in the search bar.

    Thank you very much for all your suggestions. 

    Cheers,

    Luke

    1 person found this answer helpful.
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  3. DaveM121 869.3K Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2021-03-13T09:28:37+00:00

    Hi Luke

    In Edge or Chrome,

    Press F12 to open Dev Tools

    Click the gear icon at the top right of Dev Tools

    Uncheck "Enable JavaScript source maps"

    Uncheck "Enable CSS source maps"

    Restart the browser

    If that does not solve this annoyance, the best option to try is to backup your favorites and reset Edge or Chrome, to see if that resolves this . . .

    1 person found this answer helpful.
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  4. Anonymous
    2021-03-13T09:22:47+00:00

    Hi again Dave,

    F12 is working normally. It also has a Fn function which works as it should so the key must be ok.

    I ran the keyboard troubleshooter which completed without any errors.

    Cheers,

    Luke

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  5. Anonymous
    2021-03-13T09:18:12+00:00

    Hi,

    Thank you for you suggestions.

    Tried each one but unfortunately it did not resolve the problem.

    Cheers,

    Luke

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