Terms of Service - The Dive Matrix

The Dive Matrix Terms of Service aka "Rules of Common Sense"

By using the Dive Matrix website or by registering as a member, you agree to the following terms and conditions. These terms may be updated without prior notification.

By completing your registration for permission to post messages on The Dive Matrix, you acknowledge that you have read our TOS and are agreeing to abide by it.

This is a dynamically changing document, so please feel free to bookmark this page so you can refer to it and remain current with future changes.

This is a "workplace friendly" board as defined below. Although the administrators and moderators of The Dive Matrix forums will attempt to keep all objectionable material off of this forum, it is impossible for us to review all messages. All messages express the views of the author, and neither the owners of The Dive Matrix, nor Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd. (developers of vBulletin) will be held responsible for the content of any message. If any message appears to violate the spirit of our TOS, please use the Report Bad Post button located at the bottom of each post to notify us.

The owners of The Dive Matrix forums and their staff members reserve the right to remove, edit, move or close any thread for any reason.

The Dive Matrix is primarily a place for diving related discussions. It is understood that non-diving topics will occasionally be explored in a thread, as is typical throughout the course of any discussion. However, diving is the focus of our forums and the hijacking of a thread is not allowed.

At The Dive Matrix, discussion forums serve a different purpose than chat rooms. Long threads which exist for the sole purpose of creating a chat environment are not allowed in the discussion forums at The Dive Matrix. We ask that this type of interaction be confined to our chat rooms which have been created for this purpose. Threads in our forums which turn into "chat threads" will be edited or removed.

There are certain areas of discussion, which elicit more animosity and subsequently tend to attract uncivil behavior. Consequently, we ask that discussions involving politics, religion, nationalities or anything of a sexual nature be reserved for other sites that are more appropriately structured for these topics. These topics are not expressly forbidden, but we ask that any discussion involving these topics remains related to diving. Discussions or posts that do not remain civil will be removed at the discretion of The Dive Matrix staff.

The Dive Matrix is a safety-oriented place. While there is much to be learned here and we recognize that many of the pioneers of diving learned how to do things on their own, we strongly advise against learning how to dive on your own. This includes, but is not limited to how to enter an overhead environment and how to conduct any mandatory decompression diving. A formal class is the best way to do this safely and we encourage you to avail yourself of as much training as possible. A competent instructor will be able to see safety concerns that you might miss. Consequently, promoting such conduct on The Dive Matrix either directly or by implication is not allowed.

In order to meet the needs of our members and maintain a professional level of discussion, The Dive Matrix operates under a “workplace friendly” code of ethics. While discussions may touch on “adult” subjects, profanity, personal insults, discrimination and otherwise offensive content is never allowed. Our intent is to ensure that any individual viewing The Dive Matrix in a workplace environment can feel comfortable that no co-worker, employee or supervisor would take offense to the content shown and that the content would not violate any law related to workplace harassment or discrimination.

Because different people have different standards for what is and what is not offensive, we have prepared this document to help users understand what constitutes various types of prohibited content. This list is by no means all-inclusive and ultimately issues will be addressed on a case-by-case basis. We feel that the TOS taken in its entirety should give anyone who reads it a fairly clear idea of what "workplace friendly" means with regard to the corporate culture at The Dive Matrix and the TOS will be enforced accordingly. If you feel a post violates these rules in word or in spirit, use the Report Bad Post button located at the bottom of each post to notify us.

Discriminatory posts: Topics targeting, exploiting, making fun of or otherwise baiting members into controversy based on race, color, ancestry, national origin, religion, marital status, disability, medical condition, age, sex, pregnancy, veteran status, sexual orientation or any other class protected by workplace laws are strictly prohibited.

Vulgar or offensive posts: Language or material that, in context, depicts or describes (in terms patently offensive as measured by contemporary standards for the broadcast medium) sexual or excretory organs or activities is prohibited. The Dive Matrix staff foresees that this area may be the hardest to enforce as individuals may differ on their interpretation. Therefore our rule is to assume a standard equivalent to that of a professional working environment for a large corporate entity. Because posts are in essence made to the public, it should further be assumed that our standard would be applied in the same way it would be to a relationship between co-workers in a work environment.

Harassment, threats and personal insults: Posts that contain direct or indirect threats of a physical or non-physical nature along with posts that contain personal attacks or insults are not allowed. Users are also expressly forbidden from engaging in activities that may be seen as harassment. This includes targeting other users with a personal attack, intentionally responding to all of a particular user’s threads in a negative manner in order to discredit them or otherwise seeking to intentionally anger, upset or continuously attack another member (trolling). Constructive criticism of other members and debate is encouraged as long as it does not turn into a personal attack. In the event that either party feels a debate is no longer constructive, we ask both parties to respectfully disengage before creating a disruption of the thread.

While debates may become very passionate and be strongly presented, there is no need to revert to personal attacks. If you feel that you have been personally attacked, please do not retaliate. Retaliation which violates any part of the TOS is not allowed. Use the Report Bad Post button located at the bottom of each post to notify us. No trolling or flaming of any sort is allowed in any section of The Dive Matrix. Posts advocating or condoning illegal activity are also not allowed on The Dive Matrix.

Trolling: Trolling is the action of maliciously baiting someone into doing something that would violate the TOS or with the intent to create discord among members participating in a discussion.

Our community is by nature multi-cultural and often multi-lingual. It is important that possible misunderstandings among users be resolved in order to avoid any potential problems. Therefore, users are encouraged to request the assistance of moderators in resolving misunderstandings at an early stage.

It is also important to note that what may constitute inappropriate behavior depends on the totality of the circumstances including but not limited to the intent, severity and pervasiveness of the conduct. The Dive Matrix Team will make decisions about whether behavior is or is not appropriate.

The Dive Matrix expects members to maintain a high standard of ethical conduct toward each other. This means that we should treat others in the same way that we would be expected to treat others in a professional environment.

Agency bashing will not be tolerated. You may disagree about an agency's standards or practices and may voice an opinion about that at anytime. However, when serious commentary crosses the line into becoming an actual attack or ridicule concerning an agency it will be considered bashing.

To this end, please remember that everything should be taken in context. What may be offensive in one post may not be in another. This depends on the circumstances, topic and perceived intent of the author.

Moderators have the last word in any dispute and are responsible for interpreting the TOS. At their discretion, when they deem it in the best interest of The Dive Matrix, they may edit or delete avatars, pictures, posts and threads. When necessary, they will also ban users.

Should you feel that you are being unfairly targeted or judged by a moderator, please contact us directly at abuse@divematrix.com. We expect all staff to act fairly and equitably.

The creation of multiple accounts ("sock puppets") for one person is prohibited. Membership is a privilege, not a right. We reserve the right to deny service to any person at any time without cause or notification.

The Dive Matrix retains all rights and privileges to content posted to its user and other databases. Spam, data mining or recruiting our membership other than through authorized use of our forums and signature lines is expressly forbidden. We are dedicated to keeping our users' information private and will not sell it to a third party.

Promotional advertising whether commercial or non-commercial is only allowed on a per incident basis and pop-ups are expressly forbidden. A promotional post for a trip may be included in both the regional forum from which the trip originates and the regional forum to which it is going. The Calendar Event that is created will be placed only in the destination forum and a link to that event may be placed in a thread in the forum from which the trip is originating. Only one Calender entry per event is allowed.

The Dive Matrix maintains commercial relationships with numerous companies, which are unrelated to its membership. Advertisers are not entitled to extra privileges nor may they break or disobey our rules in any way. Advertising does not imply endorsement of a product, service or user. Please contact an administrator for further details about advertising on The Dive Matrix. While a commercial interest may respond to a request for information, they are expressly forbidden from providing unsolicited information about their goods or services in a way that does not honor the original poster's intent. A member may only include their company's URL within their signature line.

Signatures are automatically limited in size and may not contain images other than board-approved smilies. Supporting Members and Corporate Sponsors may include banners no larger than 88 x 31 pixels (industry standard "micro bar") in their signature lines. We reserve the right to edit or delete any signature we do not feel is appropriate for The Dive Matrix.

The Dive Matrix also sponsors a number of geographically based forums for its members. These exist to facilitate the gathering of local information for our members from all regions to plan dive trips and help build local dive communities at the same time. We have no control over and consequently no responsibility for any actions of users or their guests during these trips. If The Dive Matrix does not currently have a forum to serve your specific area, please contact any staff member for details about having a new forum created for a region.

The following pertains to The Dive Matrix medical discussions & forums:

The Dive Matrix, its moderators, administrators and affiliated health professionals provide these forums for the discussion of general questions concerning diving medicine. They are intended to be for general discussion and educational purposes only. Information provided by members, moderators and/or health professionals is in no way intended to serve as actual individual medical advice, diagnosis, or to provide treatment plans. In no way does participating on these forums constitute a formal or informal doctor/patient relationship.

Contributions to the Diving Medicine forums are not limited to physicians, doctors or other health professionals. All members are invited to participate. The Dive Matrix assumes no responsibility for the accuracy or reliability of any posts. It is possible that some information may be inaccurate, incomplete or otherwise flawed. As per The Dive Matrix TOS, the information in these posts may or may not be reviewed and is by no means endorsed or verified by The Dive Matrix, The Dive Matrix moderators, administrators or health professionals.

While your health is important to us, you are responsible for your own health care. In the event you feel you have any medical concerns regarding actual illness, injury or other possible risks, you should consult your physician or other health care professionals as you deem necessary and as soon as possible.

Any diver who believes that they or another diver may have an urgent medical problem including but not limited to any life threatening conditions, should initiate Emergency Medical Services (911 or equivalent) immediately and then contact their physician and the Divers Alert Network (DAN).

The Dive Matrix reserves the right to add to or amend the TOS without any prior warning or the mutual consent of its users. By completing your registration with us, you agree that your participation on The Dive Matrix will conform to any such additions or amendments to the TOS.

If you do not understand any part of our TOS, please contact a staff member for clarification.

Sincerely,

The Dive Matrix Team