Suggestions on posting and getting better answers

Hello, and Welcome to the Forums!

In order for this tool to be of maximum service, you should know that this forum is run and maintained by users just like you. No one in these forums is formally employed by MSI. All the Moderators started out just like you coming here looking for help or to gain some knowledge about a particular product. In simpler terms, this is a user to user help forum period. Please treat is as such.

We ask that you try clicking through the "Service" link found at the top of this page before posting your question.

Also try taking advantage of the Search option available at the top of every page within the whole forum community.
Perhaps it already has been answered.

Please Read through all the "Important" and "Announcement" threads at the top of each forum you visit (These are known as "Stickies") these threads hold a lot of good information pertaining to each forum.

This will help us all stay focused on the current topics at hand and avoid having to answer the same question over and over again.

We request when posting a new topic/thread, you provide us with as much information as you can about the particular product and problem encountered. Please provide a brief, but complete history of what was done prior to the problem. It will give everyone a better chance at troubleshooting and minimize the chance of having to ask many questions to get to the root of your Problem.

If it's a general question that doesn't apply to a specific product, then it is not necessary to include make and model info. Just be advised that the less information you give, the more guesses you will get and your post is likely to be ignored by a majority. So do yourself and everyone else a favor and be detailed.

Suggestions for the subject line: (EXAMPLE)

1. Enter the model, then the MSI  Part number (If available) This also helps differentiate at a glance and helps in searches as well.
Keep in mind that MSI no longer lists products by Part Number, only by marketing name. Anytime you post a part number only and no one recognizes it, it's likely to be ignored. So please try to find the marketing name for your product. We are not privy to internal part numbers any longer.


2. Then, after the product description, add the problem or question.
Example: "K7N2G-ILSR MS-6570 Problem with graphics skipping"

Stay away from weak or lame posts like: "HELP, My computer is broke!"
Better yet, just keep the word "help" out of the subject entirely, we know why you're here. Exclaiming help is like pressing the elevator button repeatedly in hopes that the elevator will hurry up.

Please take advantage of the Signature option in your member profile and enter your Hardware, OS and any other info that will benefit users in troubleshooting your problem. Please, Don't leave out Power Supply information! This is the most commonly overlooked component in your system. Please look at the sticker found on the side of the PSU and include the corresponding amperages on the +12v, +5v, & +3.3v lines! If you run into a problem and we think it might be related to a power issue, you will be asked for this information. Save us the hassle of having to ask for it, please!

You can take my Signature for example or anyone else's. Just remember that you can change it at anytime and add/remove any information as needed.

Click on the button at the top, select "Forum Profile Information" from the menu on the left under "Modify Profile", then scroll down to the Signature box, and type in your signature there.

What we want to see

A simple list of all the important hardware in your PC:

• CPU brand, model and speed
• Motherboard model (full marketing name, not just MS-xxxx)
  
• Memory brand, type/speed, size, number of sticks
• Video card brand, chipset type, memory size
• Hard drive(s) brand, size, type, speed
• Any other peripheral cards and devices
• Operating system and version (including if 32 or 64bit!)
• Power Supply Unit brand and output in watts and DC output (amps) 
  
  Just a clear detailed list of what hardware you have. Please don't just copy and paste the above, substituting your parts for the examples shown.
  
  _______________________________________ ________
  
  Example:
  H55-GD65 BIOS 1.2, i3 530, XP Home/SP3 32 bit
  Crucial 2x2GB CT2KIT25664BA1339
  Corsair VX450W +12V~33A, +5V~20A, +3.3V~20A
  MSI N260GTX 2D896 OCSP
  WD Caviar Black WD5001AALS 500GB 32 MB cache SATA 3.0
  Ben-Q DVD/CD R-W w/LightScribe combo drive
  
   If CPU, RAM or GPU is overcloclocked please include that info and the speeds.
  _______________________________________ ______________________
  
  What we DON'T want to see...
  
  
• Any DXDIAG, Everest, Sandra system info reports.

Much of that which is contained in those log files is mostly irrelevant, so please refrain from doing so!


That's the basics. but consider if you're posting about a problem with a keyboard (for example) you have, then might it be helpful to actually tell us more about that particular hardware you have?

If you don't provide these basic details, as well as all relevant background information related to your problem, then it is very difficult for moderators and other users to be able to advise you better.

Now, before going back and editing your post (you weren't thinking about starting a new one now, were you?  ), make sure you have read through all the sticky topics at the top of the board you have posted in. Sticky topics are there for a reason, they contain useful information which answers questions that have been answered many times before. And also be sure to have ensured that you've used our comprehensive search facility, to make sure that another user hasn't experienced and solved a similar problem to yours already, because it sure gets dull when people find themselves answering the same questions over and over and over again... And of course we now have this new FAQ page, where you can find many answers to commonly encountered problems.