SeleniumHQ/selenium · error · TypeError

# is not a valid pointer type

Error message

#{pointer.inspect} is not a valid pointer type

What it means

Raised as TypeError by PointerInput#assert_kind when the kind passed to PointerInput.new(kind, name:) is not a key in KIND. KIND permits exactly :mouse, :pen, :touch (each maps to itself as the wire pointerType). The check happens in the constructor, so the error fires at device creation, not at action perform time.

Solutions

1. Use one of the three Symbols: :mouse, :pen, or :touch.
2. If you hold the kind in a variable, symbolize and validate: kind = kind.to_sym and check PointerInput::KIND.key?(kind) before constructing.

Example fix

# before
pointer = Selenium::WebDriver::Interactions::PointerInput.new(:finger) # => TypeError

# after
pointer = Selenium::WebDriver::Interactions::PointerInput.new(:touch)

KIND = Selenium::WebDriver::Interactions::PointerInput::KIND
kind = kind.to_sym
raise "unsupported pointer kind: #{kind}" unless KIND.key?(kind)

pointer = Selenium::WebDriver::Interactions::PointerInput.new(kind)

def valid_pointer_kind?(k)
  Selenium::WebDriver::Interactions::PointerInput::KIND.key?(k.is_a?(Symbol) ? k : k.to_sym)
end

When it happens

Trigger: Constructing PointerInput.new(:stylus), PointerInput.new('mouse') (String instead of Symbol), PointerInput.new(:finger), or any value outside {mouse, pen, touch}.

Common situations: Appium/W3C examples that use 'finger'/'stylus' (not supported here); passing a String constant; building a custom PointerInput for a touch test on desktop where only :mouse makes sense.

Related errors

• # is not a valid action
• button must be a positive integer or one of #
• # is not a #
• # is not a valid button!
• Button number cannot be negative!

AI-assisted analysis of SeleniumHQ/selenium@aa36b38e69 (2026-08-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/4c331f097bf8fec8. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at rb/lib/selenium/webdriver/common/interactions/pointer_input.rb:47

      class PointerInput < InputDevice
        KIND = {mouse: :mouse, pen: :pen, touch: :touch}.freeze

        attr_reader :kind

        def initialize(kind, name: nil)
          super(name)
          @kind = assert_kind(kind)
          @type = Interactions::POINTER
        end

        def encode
          output = super
          output[:parameters] = {pointerType: kind} if output
          output
        end

        def assert_kind(pointer)
          raise TypeError, "#{pointer.inspect} is not a valid pointer type" unless KIND.key? pointer

          KIND[pointer]
        end

        def create_pointer_move(duration: 0, x: 0, y: 0, origin: nil, **)
          add_action(PointerMove.new(self, duration, x, y, origin: origin, **))
        end

        def create_pointer_down(button, **)
          add_action(PointerPress.new(self, :down, button, **))
        end

        def create_pointer_up(button, **)
          add_action(PointerPress.new(self, :up, button, **))
        end

        def create_pointer_cancel
          add_action(PointerCancel.new(self))

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