Function keys and settings - Lenovo IdeaPad

Question

On my old HP ProBook I invoked a setting that when I had an external mouse connected the trackpad would not function and when the mouse was removed the trackpad would function.

Lenovo help tells me to use Fn key+ the M Hotkey as part of their user instructions in this regard. I am, in the context of computers, a moderately competent USER (note USER and not amateur or gifted IT aficionado) and I take instrs literally so on the Hotkeys I look for one that can be interpreted as M... then I think 'is it the keyboard letter M'... but upper or lower case.... or is it jargon for the Microsoft Windows key (I have experienced this once or twice...). I try to question Lenovo, but their support lines continue to be absolutely useless, their AI Bot cannot seem to even interpret the question, and no person comes to the fore.

I am also stumped in that on the HP I invoked something whereby if I close the lid NOTHING HAPPENS but the display goes dark. As long as I had my external monitor connected that then functions as my display and as soon as it is disconnected then I will have the laptop display. Opening the lid of the HP did not turn off the external monitor.

On the Lenovo IdeaPad, however, opening the lid immediately turns off the external monitor display. I am struggling to find a solution - Lenovo is as quiet as the grave in the face of several online and email enquiries (I obtained the Lenovo laptop in late December 25). You may gather that I did successfully stop the laptop from switching OFF when the lid is closed but that menu appears to have retreated to the piece of electronic heaven that exists either on my computer or with Lenovo.

Sifting through the Lenovo documentation and some of their help resources there is scant help.

In one of my previous incarnations, as a soldier I completed a course on WRITING USER INSTRUCTIONS AND MANUALS and the emphasis on clarity and detail was enormous. It did not allow for any ambiguity or jargon to be used - certainly nothing that was not CLEARLY explained to the USER whose life may depend upon it. Not so much the case with commercial products...

Any suggestions you may have would be gratefully received.

I have NO IDEA if I have chosen the relevant tag and subtags - if my questions should go elsewhere please do redirect them?

Answer 1

Hi Dave, thank you again for your considered response - I thought I had seen this (#1) before and not been able to achieve anything

1. There is nothing showing for Synaptics on the sub-menu that comes up when I click the mouse icon on the expanded control panel....
2. The F keys are allocated alternate functions on this Lenovo IdeaPad laptop and those are referred to as HOTKEYS by Lenovo and selected by using the Fn + the key. It appears the Fn function can be locked on this keyboard not that I care about using all of that stuff. Anyhow I am reassured that the keyboard M is the one being referred to as that promises to give me control between using the touchpad or the mouse. I will go into that a bit later and try to figure it out. I went somewhere the other day and forgot to take my mouse with me and could not get the track pad working because I had assumed no mouse/automatic trackpad but no, some developer thought it would be fun to stuff people around and make it more confusing (fixing something that aint broke, y'know?).
3. I have sent several emails and online forms to Lenovo and had not a murmur back from them.
4. Erik

Answer 2

1

Open the old Control Panel.

Set View at the top to large icons.

Open the Mouse applet.

On the resulting utility, is there a tab named Synaptics, if so, on that tab you should find the setting for automatically disabling/enabling the touchpad when an external mouse is connected.

2

If the documentation indicates Fn + M toggles on/off the touchpad, then that is just the m key on your keyboard, but I have never heard of that key combination, usually if you look at the Function Keys (F1 - F12) one of those may have a touchpad icon and pressing that key or Fn + that key should toggle on/off the touchpad.