Wait a minute, if they are using i3, then there is no desktop to click on, its keyboard driven.  You can click inside windows, but thats it.

I tried to explain it to him, but he wrote that

synclient RightButtonAreaLeft=1625 RightButtonAreaRight=3249 \
    RightButtonAreaTop=1800 RightButtonAreaBottom=2223 \
    RightEdge=2500 TopEdge=500 \
    RTCornerButton=2 RBCornerButton=0 \
    TapButton1=1 TapButton2=2 TapButton3=3 \
    ClickFinger1=1 ClickFinger2=2 ClickFinger3=3 \
    VertEdgeScroll=0 HorizEdgeScroll=0 CornerCoasting=0 \
    VertTwoFingerScroll=0 HorizTwoFingerScroll=0 \
    CircularScrolling=0

With that set up, I get a middle-button click area in the upper right corner, and also alternative left/middle/right buttons by 1/2/3-fincger taps and clicks (and scrolling sensing turned off, since I found it too easy to trigger while typing).

As I remember, it took a bit of experimentation to get the 6 magic numbers right. The first 4 tells where that middle-button area is, and the next 2 is for something else that I don't remember.  /var/log/Xorg.0.log might tell the x/y dimensions for your touchpad, and man synaptics provides documentation of the available options.

but cannot remember offhand its uses and advantages

I've used it a few times as a debugging tool exactly for that mouse issues. I fire xev, play with the mouse buttons and I can see what events are been actually fired.

Fun story: a relative of mine, time ago, said to me: "please update that program, it doesnt work anymore". xev said the mouse was malfunctioning; I changed the mouse and the program "worked" again

you said two-finger click 'does nothing', but double-check that a few times

Hi, Rick. Could we suggest the use of the old and good xev utility to help isolate the problem?

I know you said two-finger click 'does nothing', but double-check that a few times, because it's rather easy to do that in a way that's misparsed as single (regular) click.

If that still doesn't give desired results, some online discussion elsewhere suggests a couple of commands from the 'syncline' (utility for controlling Synaptics touchpads such as are used inside Intel Macs) sets up the distinction between single click and two-finger click:

synclient tapbutton1=1
# This enables tap to click on the first (left) button
synclient tapbutton2=3
# This enables right click via a two-finger-tap

If you have nothing better to try, run those two commands (the '#' lines are explanatory comments) and try again a few times with two-finger clicking.  If that works, then someone here can help add that to your runtime configuration.

(I'm about the worst person to help you with any of this, as I almost never have Devuan in a desktop configuration, only server ones.  Really, it would be good if one of the desktop-ey people stepped in to help you.)

Well, I hope one of the really knowledgeable desktop-computing people on this forum will help.  Yr. humble servant is basically a system administrator who has rather little to do with the X Windows System in any form, most days.

I do have a MacBook Air running Debian 9 'Stretch' in a virtual machine.  In that environment, right-Command-key clicking emulates right-click, which is a darned good thing because right-clicking is essential for the Window Maker environment.  You might be amused that I gravitate toward Window Maker because, in bygone days, I was a huge fan of NeXT, Inc.'s NeXTStep, a proprietary BSD Unix whose current offspring is Mac OSX.  Window Maker is an X11 window manager/desktop that's deliberately in the style of NeXTStep.

The Debian installation does NOT have an /etc/X11/Xorg.conf file, and instead relies (I guess) on Xorg hardware autoprobing and defaults.  I've not looked more deeply because it Just Works[tm], so I haven't poked around much.

Give that a try, anyway.  'Hope it helps.

Thanks for the suggestion, I installed it but unfortunately i'm still  unable to right click.
On the second partition with OSX the right click is ctrl +left click so I know its capable of doing it haha.

I do have a MacBook Air running Debian 9 'Stretch' in a virtual machine.  In that environment, right-Command-key clicking emulates right-click, which is a darned good thing because right-clicking is essential for the Window Maker environment.  You might be amused that I gravitate toward Window Maker because, in bygone days, I was a huge fan of NeXT, Inc.'s NeXTStep, a proprietary BSD Unix whose current offspring is Mac OSX.  Window Maker is an X11 window manager/desktop that's deliberately in the style of NeXTStep.

The Debian installation does NOT have an /etc/X11/Xorg.conf file, and instead relies (I guess) on Xorg hardware autoprobing and defaults.  I've not looked more deeply because it Just Works[tm], so I haven't poked around much.

Give that a try, anyway.  'Hope it helps.

MintCollie, I'm sorry, but if you attempted two-finger clicking as I suggested for the first thing for you to try, I didn't see you mention having done so.

I have and it does nothing. same if i try using ctrl, option, or command with left click. I've even tried three finger clicking as i know that was a thing with mx linux one time.

That was pretty enterprising of you, MintCollie.  I hope learning the lay of the land doesn't cause too many frustrations, but you will doubtless have to work through some.  On the right-click stumper, give a try at two-finger clicking.  That might just work without any further fiddling.

I notice that a Debian wiki page (https://wiki.debian.org/MacBookPro#Synaptics) has more.

Much like that Debian wiki page I did not get a xorg.conf for synaptics. I tried creating the file then entering the information on the wiki and restarting but im still not able to right click.

No right click anywhere, even if im in the xfce desktop trying to right click a file im unable to.

I am unable to right click. Is there something I need to do extra to set it up? Thanks!

Right click where? If in the i3wm window (in blank desktop), you will not be able to do that.

I notice that a Debian wiki page (https://wiki.debian.org/MacBookPro#Synaptics) has more.