Code of Conduct

Terms of Use and E-Group Rules

Effective Date: 26 July, 2012

Terms of Use

By accessing this site, you agree to be bound by these Terms of Use and all applicable laws and regulations. If you do not agree to these Terms of Use, please do not use the site. By using this site, you acknowledge that you have read and understand and agree to be bound by these Terms of Use, as well as any additional terms appearing at applicable sections of this site. We reserve the right to change the Terms of Use at any time and will post any such changes here. Please review the Terms of Use regularly for updates and changes.

This site is provided as a service for the members of the Geological Society of America (GSA). GSA is not responsible for the opinions and information posted on this site by others. THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA and GSA's other brand names and logos are trademarks of GSA and may not be used as trademarks without prior written permission. We disclaim all warranties and liabilities with regard to information posted on this site, whether posted by GSA or any third party; this disclaimer includes all implied warranties of merchantability and fitness. In no event shall GSA be liable for any special, indirect, or consequential damages or any damages whatsoever resulting from loss of use, data, or profits, arising out of or in connection with the use or performance of any information posted on this site.

Do not post any defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, or illegal materials. Do not post any information or other material protected by copyright without the permission of the copyright owner. By posting material, the posting party warrants and represents that he or she owns the copyright with respect to such material or has received permission from the copyright owner. In addition, the posting party grants GSA and users of this site the nonexclusive, royalty-free, perpetual right and license (with full rights of sublicense) to display, copy, publish, distribute, transmit, print, and use such information or other material throughout the world in any media for any purpose. You further grant GSA and our sublicensees the right to use the name attached to the submissions. You waive any rights you may have in modifications or alterations. In addition, you hereby waive any and all moral rights.

Messages should not be posted if they encourage or facilitate members to arrive at any agreement that either expressly or impliedly leads to price fixing, a boycott of another's business, or other conduct intended to illegally restrict free trade. Messages that encourage or facilitate an agreement about the following subjects are inappropriate: prices, discounts, or terms or conditions of sale; salaries; profits, profit margins, or cost data; market shares, sales territories, or markets; allocation of customers or territories; or selection, rejection, or termination of customers or suppliers.

You will not submit any material which contains a virus or other harmful component, or otherwise tampers with, impairs or damages the GSA site or any connected network, or otherwise interferes with any person's or entity's use or enjoyment of the site. You further agree to defend and indemnify GSA for any breach of this agreement.

Subject to our Privacy Policy, the messages you post and content you submit to this site will be treated as non-confidential and non-proprietary and may be used by GSA for any purpose, without your consent or any compensation to you or anyone else. Submissions may be readily viewed by GSA and the general public.

GSA does not actively monitor the site for inappropriate postings and does not on its own undertake editorial control of postings. However, in the event that any inappropriate posting is brought to the attention of GSA we will take action as we deem appropriate in our discretion.

GSA reserves the right to terminate access to any user at any time for any reason.

This agreement has been made in and shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Colorado. By using this site, you agree to the sole and exclusive venue and jurisdiction of the state and federal courts of Colorado, for any and all disputes arising out of or related to this agreement or the use of this site.

This site is provided solely for the purpose of promoting GSA's operations, services and products in the United States. GSA makes no representation that the site is appropriate or available for use in other locations. If despite these conditions, you use the site from outside the United States, you are solely responsible for compliance with any appliable foreign or local laws.

E-Group Rules & Etiquette

Thank you for being part of our community. To ensure the best possible experience for all members, we have established some basic guidelines for participation.

By joining and using this community, you agree that you have read and will follow these rules and guidelines. You also agree to reserve discussions, shared files and content to that best suited to the medium. This is a great medium with which to solicit the advice of your peers, benefit from their experience, and participate in an ongoing conversation. Questions should be directed to the Geological Society of America (GSA) via the ‘Contact Us’ link on this site. Please take a moment to acquaint yourself with these important guidelines. This site is maintained by online community managers. In order to preserve a climate that encourages both civil and fruitful dialogue, we reserve the right to suspend or terminate membership in this community for anyone who violates these rules.

The Rules

  • Don't challenge or attack others. The discussions and comments are meant to stimulate conversation not to create contention. Let others have their say, just as you may.
  • Don't post commercial messages or employment advertisements on any discussion list, resource library entry, or other area where others might see it. Contact people directly with product, service, or employment information if you believe it would help them.
  • GSA maintains an active Geoscience Job Board. Please reference the Job Board for employment opportunities. To place an ad, please contact GSA's Advertising Manager.
  • Use caution when discussing people and products. Information posted on the lists and in the libraries is available for all to see, and comments are subject to libel, slander, advertising and antitrust laws.
  • All defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, libelous, slanderous or illegal materials or comments are strictly prohibited.  Rudeness, negativity, personal attacks, harassment, bullying or cruelty are also prohibited. Do not post anything that you would not want the world to see or that you would not want anyone to know came from you.
  • Please note carefully all items listed in the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy below, particularly regarding the copyright ownership of information posted.
  • Remember that other participants have the right to reproduce postings to this site unless you specify otherwise.
  • Post your message or documents only to the most appropriate list or library. Do not spam several lists or libraries with the same message.
  • All messages must add to the body of knowledge. We reserve the right to reject any message for any reason.

Discussion Group Etiquette

  • Include a signature tag on all messages. Include your name, affiliation, location.
  • State concisely and clearly the topic of your comments in the subject line. This allows members to respond more appropriately to your posting and makes it easier for members to search the archives by subject.
  • Include only the relevant portions of the original message in your reply. Delete any header information, and put your response before the original posting.
  • Only send a message to the entire list when it contains information that everyone can benefit from.
  • Send messages such as "thanks for the information" or "me, too" to individuals--not to the entire list. Do this by using the "Reply to Sender" link to the left of every message.
  • Do not send administrative messages, such as "remove me from the list." Instead, use the web interface to change your settings or to remove yourself from a list. If you are changing e-mail addresses, you do not need to remove yourself from the list and rejoin under your new e-mail address. Simply change your settings.
  • Warn other list subscribers of lengthy messages either in the subject line or at the beginning of the message body with a line that says "Long Message."