How can I disable Windows Pen & Ink

Disable or reduce interference from Windows Pen & Ink in two places: Windows settings and Office apps.

1. Turn off “ignore touch when using pen” (can affect touch/drag)
   1. Open Settings > Devices > Pen & Windows Ink.
   2. If available, turn off the option Ignore touch input when I’m using my pen.
      • On some managed or customized devices this option may be hidden via the registry value HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Pen\HideSPTSettings.
2. Make the pen act like a mouse (stylus) in Office instead of inking Do this in each Office app used on the SMART Board (Word, PowerPoint, Excel):
   1. Open the app (for example, PowerPoint).
   2. Go to File > Options > Advanced.
   3. Under the Pen section, check Use pen to select and interact with content by default.
   4. Select OK.
   • This makes the pen behave like a pointer/selection tool by default and only ink when explicitly in Draw mode.
3. Quickly exit inking mode during class
   • In Word, Excel, or PowerPoint on Windows, after the pen starts drawing, press Esc to leave drawing mode and return to normal selection/click-and-drag behavior.

If the SMART Board software has its own pen/ink tools, use those for annotation and keep Office in selection mode as above to avoid conflicts.

References:

• Customize Windows Pen and Ink
• Draw and write with ink in Office
• Turn off automatic inking