====== LRF = Microsoft mouse? ======

Upon bootup, Windows XP will sometimes detect the laser rangefinder as a Microsoft serial mouse ([[http://support.microsoft.com/kb/283063/EN-US/ | MicrosoftKB article]]) - that has happened if you see the cursor jumping all over the screen with context menu and selection box popping up at random. Here are the steps you should take to fix this problem:


  * Download the following file and extract //comdisable.exe// into a directory of your choice: {{documentation:microsoft_comdisable.zip}}\\ Note: //comdisable.msi// is an installer that simply extracts //comdisable.exe// and //readme.txt// into C:\\Program Files\Microsoft COMDisable, you can also get the installer directly from [[http://download.microsoft.com/download/b/2/6/b2624690-0fdc-4842-b850-8d21ca893962/comdisable.msi | Microsoft]]
  * Next, from command prompt navigate to the directory where //comdisable.exe// is located:

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  * You may view the available serial ports on your computer by issuing a //comdisable /list// command

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  * You will see a listing of all the serial ports together with their status - enabled or disabled

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  * To disable a port, type //comdisable /disable COM#//, like in the example below. Note that the port won't be disabled until you reboot the machine.

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  * If you issue a //comdisable /list// command now, you will see that the port you just disabled has its status changed to "disabled"

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  * Repeat the //comdisable /disable COM#// command for all ports you want to disable. Since comdisable only stops Windows from scanning serial ports in an attempt to detect a mouse, it's a good idea to disable all ports - the ports will still function, you just won't be able to use a serial mouse.

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  * //comdisable /list// should tell you now that all ports have been disabled. At this moment reboot the machine for the changes to take effect.

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Here's Microsoft's knowledge base article about the COMDisable tool: [[http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;819036 | COMDisable]]