MacBook, Windows 8.1, and the Trackpad
One of the best hardware features on the MacBook (Air or Pro) is the trackpad. It's likely the best one on the market. It's accurate, it supports multi-touch, and has an excellent texture.
It works like a dream on the Mac side of things, supporting gestures which allow quick navigation within the operating system.
On the Windows side of things, it's much different. Obviously the hardware feel doesn't change, but the way the hardware interacts with the OS is drastically different. Gone is support for gestures and multi-point input (outside of a two-finger right click). None of the Windows 8.1 specific gestures function with the Apple built driver, so you're kind of stuck in this weird limbo experience. If you don't know what the trackpad is capable of in Windows 8.1, then you don't know what you're missing out on, but if you are aware of what is possible, then you will feel a little frustrated at the lack of ability to perform the quick actions to get around inside Windows 8.1.
There is a solution, and right now it's the only solution I'm aware of. I'm not overly fond of this solution for reasons I will go into shortly.
The solution does offer ALL the functionality you would find in a trackpad that came with a Lenovo, or HP, or Dell. All the multitasking gestures work and suddenly the appeal of Windows 8.1 becomes more apparent. All the things that were wrong with Windows 8 have been mostly repaired since we Mac users don't have a tablet mode or a touchscreen, and there are plenty of laptops out there that don't support those dual purposes either.
The solution is to install two pieces of software: Power Plan Assistant and Trackpad++.
They are both from the same developer and are considered Donation Ware - it's free, but please donate if you can.
It sounds fantastic, and as long as you can live with a few little foibles, Trackpad++ works very well.
The first issue I have is that you can only install Trackpad++ if you first install Power Plan Assistant.
I'm not certain why there is a prerequisite for this to occur, but that's how it happens. It could be that the coding requires it this way or it could be that it was written that way. I don't know for certain, but that wouldn't be enough to turn me off of the software by itself.
The second thing is that, if you're running a 64bit OS, it has to change the way your computer handles certificates. Basically, these software titles run with a Test Certificate, not a co-signed by Microsoft certificate. This means that in 64bit versions of Windows, it won't let you install unless you change the way the OS handles the the certs - the installer will do this for you, by the way.
Once your system is in "Test Mode" it can install the software and the drivers for Trackpad++.
This opens your system up and removes a layer of security that was added to the 64bit versions of Windows and while I know I can be careful about what I install, the average user may not fully understand the implications of setting your system to "Test Mode."
That by itself wouldn't bother me too much either.
The third thing I've found is that the backlight on the keyboard won't work unless you actively adjust the brightness settings on the keyboard - it will then light up and remain lit until you step away and it dims again.
This frustrates me because the light sensor for the system should automatically turn on the backlights on the keyboard - Power Plan Assistant and Trackpad++ somehow disable the automated use of keyboard backlights.
This by itself probably wouldn't stop me from installing the software, however all three of these issues combined and I start to feel a little uneasy about everything.
This frustrates me because the light sensor for the system should automatically turn on the backlights on the keyboard - Power Plan Assistant and Trackpad++ somehow disable the automated use of keyboard backlights.
This by itself probably wouldn't stop me from installing the software, however all three of these issues combined and I start to feel a little uneasy about everything.
This doesn't mean that I don't recommend the software for those of you who want the full trackpad experience that should be available in Windows 8.1, but for me - I'm a little over cautious when it comes to software that changes my security settings so it can install, then kills other functionality after it's installed.
I wish that the author would get the digital signatures needed from Microsoft - I'd even pay for the software at that point. I also want them to suss out the issue around the keyboard backlights.
I wish that the author would get the digital signatures needed from Microsoft - I'd even pay for the software at that point. I also want them to suss out the issue around the keyboard backlights.
Considering how quickly little things like this have been fixed in the past, I suspect that will be fixed in short order.
Here are the links to the software titles:
Power Plan Assistant:
Trackpad++:
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