Problem description: For a brief moment after typing, the mouse on a laptop using a trackpad is suddenly disabled.
Hardware affected: Most notably Synaptics mouses (using Synaptics drivers and software)
Operating systems: Both Windows and Linux

Cause: Synaptics mouse software has a featured called “Palm Check” which, in order to help the user avoid accidentally clicking on things while typing, disables the mouse while you are typing and for about a second after you stop typing. While this feature may be useful in an office environment, a user who is gaming or switching back and forth between applications frequently may find this incredibly frustrating.

Solution:
Easy (all software changes, no changes to hardware).
In Windows, press Start and type “Mouse” to find the mouse control program (or go to Control Panel> Hardware and Sound> and click “Mouse” under Devices and Printers.)

Click the last tab titled “Device Settings” from within the mouse configuration window. Select the device (Usually “Synaptics Touchpad”) and click “Settings”.

From here, it varies from various versions of the Synaptics driver and software versions. Search around for options related to “Palm Check” (usually under Pointing> Sensitivity> “Palm Check”).

While you cannot fully disable Palm Check, you can set it to its minimum setting which is sufficient for most users. You can also simply lower the value, as it is a useful feature to have with a touchpad (though it infringes on productivity at its default settings).

In Linux (Specifically Ubuntu), “go to [1] System > Preferences > Mouse > Touchpad and uncheck “Disable Touchpad while Typing”” (from here: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/SynapticsTouchpad)
[1] You should also be able to hit the Super Key and search for “Mouse”.
Different Synaptics drivers in Linux may yield different results.

If this helped you, please comment and let us know (and let us know if it didn’t as well!)