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(last updated 5/1/2008)
Guiding Principles
- Be civil – Civil and constructive dialogue is expected from everyone involved in the ideas and commentaries. We’ll remove anything that is inappropriate, inaccurate, profane or defamatory. Needless to say, spam will not be tolerated. The site will be moderated by the community – users can and should flag any inappropriate materials and notify ThoughtBlend for removal.
- Be relevant – ThoughtBlend is dedicated to the discussion of ideas posed by its community in relevant categories. ThoughtBlend is not the appropriate channel to vent about aggrivations or dissatisfaction of products and services. ThoughtBlend provides a number of online categories and sub categories for users to share views and thoughts, discover new ideas, or seek advice on concepts – please make sure you use the category that suits your needs as it will both keep the community cleaner as well as aid those who search and browse.
- Be yourself – The goal of ThoughtBlend is to encourage the sharing and discussion of individual ideas, comments and solutions. We hope you will contribute your own ideas and comments. Please, no pitching for commercial interests.
- Be interesting – Ultimately, the value of this site is in the ideas presented and the level of discourse. All users should foster a creative and valuable exchange of ideas.
- Be honest and ethical – Users should follow basic legal restrictions just as they should on any other Web site – for example, not infringing on any patent or copyright or sharing any confidential information. Read more about this in the ThoughtBlend Terms of Service below.
Terms of Service
These Terms of Service and Guiding Principles [“Terms of Service”], the ThoughtBlend Website Terms of Service and ThoughtBlend's Privacy Policy govern your use of the website. These terms are not exhaustive and ThoughtBlend reserves the right to modify them at any time, effective upon posting. By registering as a user or using ThoughtBlend, you agree to abide by these terms. Any violation of these Terms of Service may result in the suspension or termination of your right to access ThoughtBlend. ThoughtBlend is a valuable place for people to exchange information and ideas and learn from one another. Like any community, ThoughtBlend is most valuable when everyone follows certain basic guidelines and rules of conduct. These Terms of Service and the Guiding Principles detail what is expected of you and what you can expect from other participants when using the site. ThoughtBlend is an English language forum, and use of ThoughtBlend is governed by U.S. law.
NOTE: Use of ThoughtBlend does not limit user by age, however all users below the age of 18 are required to obtain parental approval before posting any ideas or comments.
Registration
You are not obligated to register in order to access ThoughtBlend and read the ideas and comments. However, registration (by providing a valid email address, user name and password), login, and agreement to these Terms of Service are required in order to post an idea to the ThoughtBlend website, comment on an idea, rate an idea, or adjust user settings. If you change your email address, screen name or password, you may be required to indicate agreement with these Terms of Service again as your identifying information has changed. One user per email address, screen name and password is authorized. ThoughtBlend will handle all personal information in accordance with ThoughtBlend's Privacy Policy.
We may refuse to grant you a screen name or email address that is already being used, impersonates another person, belongs to another person, violates the intellectual property or other rights of any person, is vulgar or offensive, or that we reject at our discretion.
By registering for ThoughtBlend, you agree that all information provided in your profile is accurate, true, current and complete. ThoughtBlend may terminate your account if any of the information provided is found to be inaccurate, false, out of date, or incomplete.
Site Management
ThoughtBlend is not intended as a way for visitors to get firm advice or direction from ThoughtBlend.com or its users on any issue; it is intended as a means to exchange ideas and solutions. Unless the person is a site manager or otherwise authorized to speak on behalf of ThoughtBlend, the views, ideas, and statements of all ThoughtBlend users are theirs alone and do not represent an official company position.
License & Legal Disclaimer
You grant to ThoughtBlend and its designees a perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive fully-paid up and royalty free license to use any ideas, expression of ideas or other materials you submit (collectively, “Materials”) to ThoughtBlend without restrictions of any kind and without any payment or other consideration of any kind, or permission or notification, to you or any third party. Furthermore, you understand that all ideas and comments posted on ThoughtBlend are open to the public without any legal protection against plagiarism.
The license shall include, without limitation, the irrevocable right to reproduce, prepare derivative works, combine with other works, alter, translate, distribute copies, display, perform, license the Materials, and all rights therein throughout the universe in perpetuity in any and all media now or hereafter known. The ideas and comments you post are public property.
You acknowledge and agree that the relationship between you and ThoughtBlend is not a confidential, fiduciary, or other special relationship. We shall have the right, but not the obligation, to use your screenname, likeness, biography and other information about you in connection with any use of the Materials you submit.
By making a submission, you acknowledge and agree that ThoughtBlend and its designees may create on their own or obtain many submissions that may be similar or identical to the Materials you submit through ThoughtBlend or other channels and means. You hereby waive any and all claims you may have had, may have, and/or may have in the future, that the Materials accepted, reviewed and/or used by ThoughtBlend and its designees may be similar to your Materials.
General Release
You hereby release and hold harmless ThoughtBlend, its affiliated entities, employees, directors, officers, licensees and assigns and each of their respective designees (“ThoughtBlend Entities”) with respect to any claims, damages, costs, losses and expenses, including reasonable attorneys' fees, due to or arising out of content you submit, post, transmit or make available through ThoughtBlend, the use of such content by the ThoughtBlend Entities for any purpose, your use of ThoughtBlend, your violation of these Terms of Service or the Website Terms of Use, or the violation by you or the ThoughtBlend Entities of yours or any third party’s rights including, without limitation, intellectual property or other proprietary rights, rights of privacy and publicity, rights of attribution, or any other liability, direct or indirect, vicarious, contributory, or otherwise.
Disclaimer of Warranties and Limitation of Liability
Most of the content posted to ThoughtBlend is provided by third parties like you. Such third-party content is the sole responsibility of the person originating that content. ThoughtBlend does not control, and is not responsible for this third-party content. ThoughtBlend does not warrant or guarantee the accuracy, reliability, completeness, usefulness, non-infringement of intellectual property rights, or quality of any content on ThoughtBlend regardless of who originates that content.
You expressly understand and agree that you bear all risks associated with using or relying on that content. ThoughtBlend will not be liable or responsible in any way for any content posted on or linked from ThoughtBlend including, but not limited to, any errors or omissions in content, or for any losses or damage of any kind incurred as a result of the use of or reliance on any content.
Links
ThoughtBlend allows users to post hypertext links to content hosted and maintained by third parties. Links are subject to treatment like any other type of content posted to ThoughtBlend. You may not include a link that directs users to any content or information that, if posted in ThoughtBlend, would constitute a violation of these Terms of Service. The linked sites and content are not moderated by ThoughtBlend, are not under ThoughtBlend's control, responsibility or endorsement and your access to any linked site is at your own risk. When leaving ThoughtBlend using any link provided by a user, you should be aware that ThoughtBlend's terms and policies no longer govern, and you should review the terms and policies, including privacy and data gathering practices, of that particular site. If you access a linked site and find materials to be in violation of these Terms of Service, you may report the link or idea.
Enforcement
ThoughtBlend generally does not pre-screen, verify or edit the content posted by users in ThoughtBlend. However, ThoughtBlend and its agents reserve the right to do so and investigate any violation of the ThoughtBlend Website Terms of Use and these Terms of Service and to take appropriate remedial action. ThoughtBlend has absolute discretion to enforce the terms of these documents, including, but not limited to, warning users of violations, disabling or suspending ThoughtBlend access, deleting, screening or editing any content, or prohibiting any behavior that does not comply with these Terms of Service, or which is otherwise inappropriate for ThoughtBlend. Deliberate attempts by users or someone on their behalf to evade or circumvent their suspension or termination of rights to use ThoughtBlend violates these Terms of Service, constitutes an unlawful trespass to ThoughtBlend's equipment and systems, and may result in legal action.
ThoughtBlend also may release information concerning your use of ThoughtBlend (including posted content, registration information, and network records) when ThoughtBlend believes release is appropriate to comply with the law; to enforce or apply ThoughtBlend's Website Terms of Use and these Terms of Service; to protect ThoughtBlend's rights or property, or to protect ThoughtBlend's users from fraudulent, abusive, or unlawful use of ThoughtBlend; or if ThoughtBlend reasonably believes that an emergency involving immediate danger of death or serious physical injury to any person requires disclosure of communications or justifies disclosure of records.
Content
By participating in ThoughtBlend, including the posting of content and commentary, you agree that you will not upload, post, or otherwise transmit any content (including text, links, communications, software, images, sounds, data, or other information) that:
- Is not consistent with the permissible uses outlined by the Terms of Service, including, but not limited to, content that is unlawful, harmful, threatening, abusive, harassing, defamatory, libelous, invasive of another's privacy, vulgar, profane, sexually explicit, obscene, racially or ethnically offensive or otherwise objectionable;
- Infringes on any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, or other proprietary rights of any party;
- Constitutes advertising or promotion, junk mail, "spamming," chain letters, or any other form of unauthorized solicitation. Links that connect to commercial websites will not be considered unauthorized solicitations unless the link or the website content appears to be intended as a means of solicitation as determined by ThoughtBlend in its sole discretion;
- Contains software viruses, Trojan horses, worms, time bombs, cancelbots or any other computer code or files that are designed to disrupt, damage, or limit the functioning of any software or hardware;
- Provides any non-public information about ThoughtBlend or any other company or person without the proper authorization to do so. This includes providing the names, addresses and extension numbers of ThoughtBlend employees and ThoughtBlend participants;
- Intentionally interferes with the operation of ThoughtBlend or with a fellow user's ideas and comments, without limitation, mail or "post" bombing, news bombing, other flooding techniques, deliberate attempts to overload a system and broadcast attacks, or attempts to avoid messaging blocking;
- Impersonates any person or entity, including a ThoughtBlend employee, or forges any TCP-IP packet header, e-mail header or any part of a message header. This prohibition does not include the use of aliases or anonymous remailers;
- Attacks or insults another ThoughtBlend user or site manager;
- Suggests or encourages illegal activity; or
- Violates U.S. export law, including, without limitation, the Export Administration Act and Export Regulations maintained by the Department of Commerce.
Governing Law and Venue
THIS AGREEMENT SHALL BE GOVERNED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY AND ITS VALIDITY, CONSTRUCTION AND EFFECT SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND ENFORCED PURSUANT TO THE SUBSTANTIVE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY. THE PARTIES AGREE THAT ALL LEGAL PROCEEDINGS IN CONNECTION WITH THE ENFORCEMENT, CONSTRUCTION, INTERPRETATION, BREACH OR VIOLATION OF THIS AGREEMENT SHALL BE SUBMITTED TO THE STATE OR FEDERAL COURTS IN LODI, NEW JERSEY AND THAT JURISDICTION AND VENUE ARE PROPER IN SUCH COURTS.
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