What determines if Start Screen auto scrolls to the right?

Was playing with a Windows 8 machine today and noticed that it would scroll the start screen by having the mouse simply to the right side of the screen...without having to use the scroll bar at the bottom of the screen.

What enables that, is it a driver, is it built into Windows 8, etc? I've got some other laptops around running Windows 8 and with an external mouse attached, they aren't auto scrolling.

Hey Patrick,

Usually you would need to install the touchpad drivers, and enable the "edge swipe" type option. Afterwards, it should scroll when swiping either edge of the touchpad.



If it's a Synaptics touchpad, then 16.2.21 is the latest driver version.

Drivers | Synaptics

But I'm not using a touchpad, it's a desktop with a physical mouse.

I'll have to look at this on the laptops.

What about a desktop that has a physical mouse? I think this test box I am using right now has NOTHING special loaded, just Windows 8 from the DVD and it's working for me.

For a mouse, usually the scroll wheel (if available) on it will let you scroll the Start screen.

pparks1 said:

I've got some other laptops around running Windows 8 and with an external mouse attached, they aren't auto scrolling.

Click to expand...

They are here.
In this case it's a PS-2 mouse in a USB converter connected to USB. I also use external keyboard with the provided splitter.

I don't know if the result differs from setup, be it USB connected or PS-2 connected mice or if it's due to the drivers.
Have you tried different connector ports, re-inserting the mouse?

But I think you'll probably need to click on an empty space on the Start Screen if the focus is on one or another icon and try again then.
I'm not sure.

Does the screen resolution make a difference?
I know that on my old laptop (with its 1280x800 screen) some functionality isn't enabled.

DavidY said:

Does the screen resolution make a difference?
I know that on my old laptop (with its 1280x800 screen) some functionality isn't enabled.

Click to expand...

Here it's 1366x768 small as well.

Hi there
I've tried to replicate this problem (running W8 X-64 Enterprise)

a) Bog standard PS/2 mouse
b) Wireless USB Logitech Mouse
c) Ms Wireless laser USB 5000 Mouse.

B) and C) as Brink says - scroll wheel scrolls tiles.
A) No reaction via scroll wheel.

Couldn't replicate the problem -- I can only surmise what might have happened -- sometimes the button on the Ms Wireless mouse gets "stuck" and I experience say a word document automatically scrolling downwards until I repress the button again (on the Ws mouse you can press the scroll wheel as the central button on a 3 button mouse).

Suggest problem might be caused by some "sticking hardware". I don't think it's anything to do with W8 drivers per se.

Cheers
jimbo

Wait.... you didn't know that?

It can scroll either left or right just with the mouse pointer regardless of driver or hardware. I've seen this with touchpads that are designed for Windows 8 and from vista as well to the Microsoft Touch Mouse and other random mice to a Wacom Bamboo touchpad. That's how the UI was designed, for both touch and MOUSE. It's like if you had two monitors with the Desktop showing, you mouse over from one screen to the other, except with the Start Screen, you pan over.

Windows 8 and the Start Screen were designed that way, to work with old and new hardware and input methods. This is a fact I believe has been THOROUGHLY overshot with some people if you ask me.

Well, most of the machines I have run Windows 8 on have been dual monitor setups on laptops and the scroll is not working on the right and left edges.

We got some AiO's into the office and I noticed the scroll worked on them automatically. I also noticed my single desktop windows 8 test box scrolls too (I never noticed before because I don't have enough tiles to warrant scrolling).

That's odd, the mouse scrolling should work regardless of anything. Maybe the tile count is preventing you from doing so? Did you try making all sorts of tile groups and mousing over?

but how would Windows 8 know whether I wanted the second screen or wanted to scroll. I think that is why it doesn't work with dual monitors.