TravelMate P2 P2410-G2-M NX.VGTAA.006 - Risks in installing Synaptics touchpad driver?

Sheesh.  I'm really fumbling with the web interface.  I tried twice to re-post the "AFTERNOTE" paragraph because it wasn't showing up, and now it shows twice.  No way to delete it.  Maybe a kind moderator will remove one of them.

I went into Device Manager and popped open the "HID-compliant mouse" entry.  I was going to post a photo, but the new laptop is undergoing an unusually long upgrade right now, apparently consisting of multiple reboots.  From memory, I believe that the details had the word "ELANT" in them.  There was nothing that looked remotely like Synaptics.  I can post the picture later, if still needed.

I will read up on recoveries.  I think I made one almost 10 years ago when ye olde Windows 7 laptop was new, and I was setting things up.  At that time, I don't recall having to use 3rd party software to create the recovery, but it may have been a restore point rather than a recovery (actually, it was called a recovery disc back then).

You asked why I needed Synaptics.  Many apps and environments I use rely on clicking, holding, and dragging a middle mouse.  This is not possible with Windows 10 gestures/tap customization.  I actually spend a lot of time relying on that behaviour quite a bit.

Carrying a real mouse is not a good solution, as I often don't have space or literally have only my lap.  Plus, if I am ever without the mouse, the laptop becomes dead weight.  For ye olde laptops with two buttons, Synaptics can program the left button to act as middle button.  Left button functionality can be emulated using only the touchpad and Synaptics features ("Tap again and hold to drag" and "Locking Drags").

OTHER BACKGROUND

I've spent several months trying to find a way to meet that need, but Synaptics was the only solution I could find. However, it's rare, so I resorted to the broader offerings online. The technical details often don't say whether the touchpad is Synaptics, so I check the vendor support/driver pages. But there are so many variations of models with slight differences in name, model or serial number, which themselves vary over the years. I was looking at the wrong page. The vendor rep isn't able to say whether specific models have Synaptics; they don't hear back from their 3rd party suppliers. (The vendor was clear up front that they don't accept returns unless there is a flaw).

It's probably just as well. There's no guarantee that further search would have turned up an alternative. Many other criteria also had to be met, e.g., the rare 14" screen, the avoidance of these new 1-piece "clickpads" with clickable corners.  I might have gotten something with more bang for buck if I had known the expensive and mediocre power TravelMate wasn't the right choice, but frankly, my big concern was getting Synaptics, 14", 8+ GB RAM, and i5 generation 8+.  The only laptops in real stores that had Synaptics were quite bad, and I think that the prospects of finding a decent alternative online is dim.

Thanks, brummyfan2.  I investigated the Windows 10 customization options before embarking on the lengthy search.  They do not allow emulation of middle button click-hold-drag-release.