I have started having some very strange problems with mine. I have 3 computers hooked up to one KVM switch so I only have one monitor, mouse, keyboard and speakers for all. My mouse is a wireless usb, my keyboard is older hp keyboard with a ps2 to usb adapter which plugs into my usb slot of the KVM switch. I can start up my hp xp computer and everything works fine, just as it should, my other computers, linux and new xp pc all work fine. The problem comes when I switch from my HP xp pc to one of the others on the kvm then switch back to the HP xp, then my mouse is locked up and at times so is my keyboard, my computer is on and working fine but I have no control, I tried unplugging the usb mouse and the usb keyboard but that now does not help, it seems as if there is no power to them. And the strangest part is I got my old ps2 mouse out and tried plugging it directly into the back of my HP xp machine and that did not work either, nor did plugging my ps2 keyboard directly into the ps2 plugin on the back of the pc. I have to do a hard shutdown of the HP xp machine to gain back my full control then all is fine. I do not have that problem on either of the other 2 pcs that are connected to the kvm switch. I have been going nuts trying to troubleshoot this and figure out what the heck is causing it. So if any of you have any thoughts or ideas on what to try please let me know I am willing to try anything just about at this point. I did just plug in a new keyboard which I had available, it is ps2 also so I have the usb adapter on it plugged into the usb slot on the KVM switch and still have the usb wireless mouse. I am on my linux pc now and everything works perfectly. I may try a system restore to before these issues started, it seems there are a few other settings that are different on my HP machine that happened about the same time but who knows if that is related. At this point I am just leaving it shut down till I need to access it then I boot it up do what I need and shut it down again. A pain! I do not know much about electricals and that sorta seems like what this maybe. I also considered if my usb card has gone wacky in my pc and is not providing good power to the kvm switch. Anyone??? got any ideas?

As ravencajun said it's important to answer questions because it makes troubleshooting easier. Based on what you describe - the same problem with two different operating systems that doesn't happen in safe mode with either O/S I'm inclined to think there's a conflict at the hardware level. If you've been around since 8088 days, you remember IRQs and maybe manually adjusting those? - If you are using a PS/2 (round connector, typically green and purple) make sure you have the plugged into the right place. We all make mistakes. - If you are using a USB connection (small rectangular connector), try a different USB port. If you are using any kind of USB hub, make sure the mouse/keyboard is plugged directly into the machine. If you have a USB add-on card, plug the mouse/keyboard cable(s) into a onboard (motherboard) port. Just for grins you can try the opposite too to rule out any port problems. - Check with the manufacturer of the motherboard or computer for an updated BIOS or chipset drivers - If you have any add-on peripheral cards (network, sound, video capture, etc.) trying removing them temporarily or moving them to another slot. - Borrow or buy another mouse/keyboard, preferably one that is wired. While most mass merchants (Best Buy, etc.) get a little expensive for that kind of stuff, computer stores (Micro Center, etc.) usually have really cheap mice/keyboards sitting on the bottom shelf somewhere. You can also try a Mom 'n Pop computer store, they typically have used stuff cheap.

OMG, those cat pics are priceless . . . I'll be chuckling the rest of the day! I wish we could get a cat but both my kids, and most of my siblings and their kids are allergic to cats. What would this be called . . . Murphy's Law? The morning after I posted my response here, I walked into our laundry room closet to start a load of clothes and there in the always-present mousetrap was a dead mouse! It's been half a year since one got in there and, darn it, of course it had to happen right after DH had left for work! I could do no laundry until DH got home from work that evening at 7:30PM to get it out of there, because (sigh) there is no way I'm touching a dead mouse! I was a real tomboy growing up and still have a lot of it left in me. As a room-parent, I thought nothing of hunting down and grabbing the class's wayward 3ft bull snake that periodically managed to escape it's big cage. I still routinely rescue large tarantulas and carry them to safety in my hands. In my mind, they're just gentle little misunderstood giants. So why is it that when I see a dead mouse, I totally flip out? Not a live one, mind you, that would be more logical, but those don't bother me at all. Only the dead ones bother me. I have a real dead-mouse phobia for some unknown reason. I don't ever recall even seeing a dead mouse until we moved out here to New Mexico. Apparently my childhood home never had any . . . at least that my parents told me about. And it's not the death specifically, because seeing dead birds, animals, bugs or whatever doesn't bother me; I just feel sad for them. But seeing a dead mouse in a trap hits me hard. It's like something knocks the breath right out of me and I stand there gasping for air. It's only in the past couple of years that I've managed to not holler out loud~ once I catch my breath again~ when I see one. What I need in a mousetrap is one that kills the mouse instantly (because I truly don't want it to suffer); that is some kind of longish, opaque box that holds the dead mouse inside the box where I can't see it and don't have to touch it; that has some sort of signal (like the red flag that goes up on a mailbox when you get mail) so that I know there's one to dispose of . . . and that allows me to simply touch a button to release the mouse into a (NOT! see thru) sack. Can someone please invent one like that? I'll take a dozen! Lynn PS: A funny now, but not funny then mouse story: years ago DH, the dead mouse disposer in our family, thought it would be much more sanitary to seal a dead mouse in a small ziploc bag and store it "out of sight" in our (attached )garage's upright freezer until trash day. Bad, bad, bad idea! I found it while searching for a package of ground beef later that day. Let me tell you that for someone with a dead mouse phobia, finding one in your freezer, and actually grabbing the bag to see what it was is even more (much, much more!) traumatic than seeing one in a trap! Luckily for me (NOT for him, though!), it was a weekend and he was home. My blood curdling scream and tirade that followed convinced him that our freezer was NOT a good place to store dead mice ever again! Funny now in the telling, but I still shudder when I think about touching that baggie!

The ears look a bit big for a House Mouse and the bicolored tail argues against this. It could be a Peromyscus species (either Keen's Mouse or a Deer Mouse - assuming P. keeni occurs in your area?), but what it looks most like to me is a Harvest Mouse (Reithrodontomys megalotis). Telling harvest mice from house mice is tough without looking for the grooves on the incisors.