chromenut, thanks for the reply. I am fully updated. something just happened that I think people will find interesting, as it seems that a lot of people are having this problem:
Since I figured out that this happens only under AC power I have been unplugging the laptop momentarily here and there to use the touch-pad while charging. A few minutes ago I did this and, wanting to use my left hand to pick up my coffee mug I rested the ac connection in the socket on the laptop, not plugged in, and definitely not registering as charging on the windows toolbar, just resting on the edge of the hole. And it still happened! Just as if it were truly connected to power, the touch-pad became nearly unresponsive and jumpy. and yes, I tried it a couple more times to be sure. This leads me to believe it is not only a hardware problem, but some kind of electrical interference. Something else I have recently noticed is it doesn't always happen right away, sometimes it takes a few minutes before the touch-pad starts misbehaving.