Cannot "unselect" cell...

[carrr]

I'm a little puzzled, and...this might be a hardware problem versus being Excel related, so apologies in advance if that's the case.
I've seen three instances inside of a month on the same user's machine where - when I get to the pc - she has managed to get her cursor/pointer stuck in a particular cell. It's mired there and when you move the mouse in any direction, all cells in that range become highlighted/selected. You can move back to the original point of orientation (that one original cell), but cannot exit the cell and return to normal Excel operation. I was able to free it once, but was trying key combos so quickly that I can't pinpoint what worked. The other times, I've had to Ctrl+Alt+Del out, forcing past a "Cannot Close Excel" message.
Any input gratefully received...

 

[bluedragon2]

I haven't ran across that problem, but do you remember trying to hit Esc to free it?



Blue

If I wasn't Blue, I would just be a Dragon...

 

[MakeItSo]

Yepp,

the user obviously started to accidentally enter a formula, i.e. hit the +, - or = sign, then this thing happens...
ESC will do it and sometimes STRG+Z (Undo) will suffice (if she accidentally overwrote the original cell value...

MakeItSo

Andreas Galambos
EDP / Technical Support Specialist
Bowne Global Solutions Wuppertal, Germany
(andreas.galambos@bowneglobal.de)
HP:

http://home.arcor.de/andygalambos

 

[carrr]

Esc doesn't work as a solution, but thanks.
Alt+Esc brings up the Start menu, but other key combos, i.e. Alt+F11 don't.

No, the user wasn't obviously entering a formaula (outside this particular user's bailiwick, if you know what I mean.)
The "stuck" cell was empty, not intended for any use.
User says it happens when she accidentally moves the mouse with button(s) clicked.

 

[xlhelp]

Are you sure it's not your mouse wheel that is stuck in the depressed position?

Deja Moo - "I have heard that bull before"

 

[carrr]

No wheel mouse, but thanks.
I'm replacing her mouse as an experiment, though.

 

[bluedragon2]

I didn't want to insult your Intelligence by mentioning the Esc button, but sometimes I overlook the most simple things (usually always)..

One thing that has happened to me quite often but not in excel, is if I click on a non link area on a web page, as I move the mouse, it grabs text like I had the button held down. Don't know if this is mouse software, OS, or just freaking magic. Sorry I couldn't be more help...




Blue

If I wasn't Blue, I would just be a Dragon...

 

[TonyJollans]

Hi carrr,

I suspect your user is in Extend Mode (probably hit F8). Hitting F8 again or right clicking EXT on the status bar and selecting None should clear it.

Enjoy,
Tony

 

[carrr]

Appreciate the input, everyone. I've replaced the mouse, which is likely the source of the problem. On closer examination, the users mouse could have been a real mouse considering the density of food crumbs inside it and under the keys.

 

[smah]

If that's not the case look for a 'click-lock' setting. Like one of the accessability options for the keyboard. Where a certain key sequence (or hold time) will essentially 'lock' a particular key (Alt, Shift or CTRL) in the depressed position. Maybe the same thing exists for the mouse.

 

[IFRs]

How about Scroll Lock being activated ???

 

[carrr]

Thanks all. The problem now is, I can't test any of these suggestions, as I'd already returned the user to normal operation by forcing the program to close and reopening it (she'd done little new data entry, so no loss). I've compiled the suggestions put forth for trial next go round, as I'd really like to defnitively point a finger at the cause.

 

[JCDugas]

carrr,

Have you run into this again? I received a call yesterday about this and couldn't stop it from happening. I even logged on and tried myself. Same results.

Was it a hardware issue?

Jeremy

 

[carrr]

It appears that a new mouse corrected the problem. I've yet to see it happen again. If the solutions offered above do not fix the problem, I'd swap out the mouse. If one of the solutions works, let the poster know.

Good luck!

 

[Doroth]

I think that the person who mentioned the mouse scroll button was possibly onto something. I used to have this happen when I would accidently click the scroll button on the mouse. I finally figured out that if I clicked it again, I could move to a different cell without the highlighting effect.

Glad you solved it though!

 

[UKG]

I've had this problem re occour on one machine in our company. In the end I switched out the mouse for another one and updated the mouse drivers and the problem seems to have gone.

Cheers