Windows Vista Mouse Issue

I am having a two-part problem with my mouse. I’m not sure if these are Vista related, though I am running Vista. The first thing that occurs is that the cursor sometimes jumps or skips. Visually, and feedback-wise, it’d be as if the cursor gets hung up on things as I move it across the screen, followed by it jumping forward (though not always where I think it should be). The other problem, definitely related, is that sometimes when browsing the internet the page will move back a page as if I had clicked on the "back page" button. In these scenarios not only had I not clicked back page, I often hadn’t even touched my mouse.

I’ve had the PC since Thanksgiving and the issue is new. I know it happened a few weeks ago but it went away, I was hoping it was just an anomaly. It doesn’t occur all the time, and also manifests itself when I’m playing the game TF 2 (my actions become jerky as the mouse responds in a stilted manner).

Also, the issue is intermittent in that it doesn't always last a full night. After I wrote this out in a word document, the rest of the night was fine-- so I don't know.

Any help would be appreciated. My mouse is a Memorex MX4200.

 

I have a newer one I can use that has a track ball (HP mouse that came with the PC) if you think this could be a factor. It seems odd to me that the issue is off and on, it isn't a consistent problem, but clearly this is something I'm not familiar with so I can change out the mouse if you think this might take care of it.

 

Most likely a bad mouse.

Some quick checks:
-check with another mouse
-try another USB port
-uninstall and reinstall mouse drivers.
-check the status of the USB ports in device manager for any problems.

Quite unlikely, but ....bad keyboard? Maybe it's the keyboard that is problematic, and not the mouse. I had an old Saitek Eclipse USB keyboard that behaved similarly..random keystrokes, stuck keys etc. and i had to replace it under warranty.