Mapping Main Street Terms of Use

PLEASE REVIEW THE TERMS OF USE BEFORE USING THIS WEBSITE. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO THE FOLLOWING TERMS, DO NOT USE THIS WEBSITE.

General Description

Mapping Main Street is a collaborative documentary media project. Its goal is to work with individuals in order to document the more than 10,000 Main Streets that exist in the United States, through photos, videos, and audio recorded stories. Mapping Main Street maintains the website, MappingMainStreet.org (the "Website"). All individuals who view or otherwise use the Website shall be referred to herein as "Users" (or "you"). Those Users who upload content regarding Main Streets (including but not limited to photographic and/or video content) to various third-party websites, for presentation via the Website, shall be referred to herein as "Uploaders." Viewing of the Website constitutes acceptance of the Terms of Use and the Privacy Policy [http://www.mappingmainstreet.org/terms.html and http://www.mappingmainstreet.org/privacy.html], and Users will become a party to and will be bound by this Agreement and any Policies to which it refers. If you do not agree to and accept the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy [http://www.mappingmainstreet.org/terms.html and http://www.mappingmainstreet.org/privacy.html], please do not view the Website. These Terms of Use are also binding upon the parties' respective heirs or representatives, and Users may not assign their rights or obligations without Mapping Main Street's written consent.

Mapping Main Street is intended for adults, and Mapping Main Street does not screen content uploaded by Uploaders for suitability for children. Furthermore, viewing of the Website constitutes a representation that the User is over the age of 13.

As a community art project, Mapping Main Street seeks to incorporate the contributions of as many individuals as possible. Accordingly, Mapping Main Street is not the source of the content that Users may view via the Website. Mapping Main Street disclaims any responsibility or liability for the appropriateness or legality of such content, as further described below.

These Terms of Use constitute the entire agreement between the parties, and supersede all previous agreements relating to the use of the Website. Use of the Website is void where prohibited. Mapping Main Street may change this agreement from time to time at its discretion, and such modifications shall be effective upon posting on the Website. Continued use of the Website after the posting of the revised terms signifies an acceptance of the amended Agreement. It is important that Users periodically review this Agreement to ensure that they stay updated. The failure of Mapping Main Street to exercise any right or privilege described in the Agreement shall not constitute a waiver of the right or privilege. If any term of the Agreement is deemed to be unenforceable for any reason, then that provision shall be deemed severable from the rest of the terms and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of the remaining provisions.

Disclaimer of Warranty and Limitation of Liabilities

MAPPING MAIN STREET EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. MAPPING MAIN STREET DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE FUNCTIONALITY OF THE WEBSITE OR ANY OF ITS CONTENTS. THE WEBSITE AND ITS CONTENT ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE BASIS," AND YOU USE THEM AT YOUR SOLE RISK. MAPPING MAIN STREET IS NOT LIABLE FOR THE ACCURACY, SUITABILITY, OR COMPLETENESS OF ANY CONTENT. MAPPING MAIN STREET DOES NOT GUARANTEE THAT ANY PARTICULAR CONTENT WILL CONTINUE TO BE AVAILABLE THROUGH THE WEBSITE, OR THAT ANY CONTENT WILL BE AVAILABLE AT A GIVEN TIME. MAPPING MAIN STREET MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS CONCERNING ANY RISKS THAT MIGHT ARISE THROUGH YOUR ACCESS TO OR USE OF THE MATERIALS, AND IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY HARM OR DAMAGE THAT MAY RESULT FROM SUCH ACCESS OR USE. MAPPING MAIN STREET MAKES NO GUARANTEE THAT THE CONTENT AND USE OF THE WEBSITE WILL MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS AND THAT THEY WILL BE SECURE, TIMELY, OR RELIABLE.

MAPPING MAIN STREET IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY OFFENSIVE OR ILLEGAL CONTENT INCLUDED IN PICTURES, PHOTOGRAPHS, OR OTHER KINDS OF MEDIA SUBMITTED BY THIRD PARTIES. USERS ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE VIEWPOINTS EXPRESSED IN THE CONTENT SUBMITTED BY THIRD PARTIES REPRESENT THE OPINIONS OF THESE THIRD PARTY USERS AND MAPPING MAIN STREET DOES NOT ENDORSE SUCH OPINIONS. HOWEVER, MAPPING MAIN STREET RETAINS THE RIGHT (BUT NOT THE OBLIGATION) TO REMOVE ANY CONTENT THAT THE WEBSITE ADMINISTRATORS DEEM OFFENSIVE, FOR LEGAL OR OTHER REASONS. ANY ADVICE YOU OBTAIN FROM THE WEBSITE ADMINISTRATOR OR REPRESENTATIVES OUTSIDE OF THIS AGREEMENT DOES NOT CREATE A WARRANTY OR GUARANTEE THAT IS NOT EXPRESSLY STATED IN THESE TERMS.

ANY MATERIALS OBTAINED THROUGH THE WEBSITE WILL BE DONE AT YOUR RISK AND YOU WILL BE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR COMPUTER SYSTEM OR YOUR DATA. USERS ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR SOLE RESPONSIBILITY TO INSTALL ANTIVIRUS SOFTWARE AND TO TAKE ANY OTHER NECESSARY PROTECTIVE MEASURES TO PROTECT USERS' PERSONAL COMPUTERS FROM DAMAGE RELATED TO THE USE OF THE WEBSITE.

MAPPING MAIN STREET SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT OR INDIRECT DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE LOSS OF PROFITS OR OTHER LOSSES RESULTING FROM THE USE OF THE WEBSITE, INABILITY TO USE OR ACCESS THE WEBSITE, THIRD-PARTY CONDUCT ON THE WEBSITE, AND ANY OTHER ACTIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THE USE OF THE WEBSITE.

SOME JURISDICTIONS MAY FIND SOME OF THE ABOVE MENTIONED TERMS UNENFORCEABLE. IF THAT IS THE CASE, THEN SUCH UNFORCEABLE TERMS SHALL ONLY BE APPLICABLE FOR A PERIOD OF 30 DAYS AFTER THE FIRST USE OF THE WEBSITE.

Privacy Policy

Mapping Main Street respects the privacy of its users. Our Privacy Policy [http://www.mappingmainstreet.org/privacy.html], which is laid out in detail separately from these Terms of Use, is expressly incorporated herein by reference and made part of this agreement.

Community Participation

Mapping Main Street does not currently require Users to create a username and password in order to access the Website, but Mapping Main Street reserves the right to do so in the future if it so chooses. Uploaders may be required to create usernames and/or passwords in order to upload content to third-party websites that host such content, and Uploaders may be bound to such third-party websites' Terms of Service and/or Privacy Policy. For example, the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy of Vimeo.com may be found here [http://vimeo.com/terms] and here [http://vimeo.com/privacy], respectively, and the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy of Flickr.com may be found here [http://www.flickr.com/terms.gne] and here [http://www.flickr.com/privacy_policy.gne], respectively. The Website is not affiliated with and/or endorsed by any of the third-party hosting sites that host Uploaders' content, including but not limited to Vimeo.com and Flickr.com

Users acknowledge that material presented on the Website is the product of a collaborative effort by contributors, and does not represent the views of Mapping Main Street. Content is not hosted by Mapping Main Street, and Mapping Main Street may include links back to third-party host websites. Mapping Main Street cannot review, does not endorse, and is not responsible for, all content hosted on such websites.

By posting a comment on the Mapping Main Street blog or by sending a comment using the Website's "Contact" page, users agree to grant Mapping Main Street a perpetual, irrevocable, world-wide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to use the comments, including but not limited to the license to reproduce, copy, distribute, transmit, publicly display, publicly perform, reproduce, edit, translate and reformat the content, and/or to incorporate into a collective work the aforementioned comments.

Users must not sell, rent, or otherwise use for commercial benefit any content hosted or displayed on or via the Website. The design of the Website is the property of Mapping Main Street. Individual submissions are the property of the Uploaders. Such submissions may be subject to the terms of certain license agreements (e.g., Creative Commons licenses). Please determine whether such a license applies before using any Uploader's content.

Users must not use the Website in any way that is unlawful, fraudulent or harmful. Users must not use the Website or upload any material that violates any laws, statutes, or regulations. Users must not use the Website to copy, publish or send material that is illegal or unlawful, or material that could give rise to legal action under applicable law. Users must also not use the Website or upload content in any way that creates liability for Mapping Main Street and its representatives. Users represent that, with respect to all material uploaded to the Website, the user either owns the copyright or has permission from the copyright owner to upload the material. Users further warrant that all submitted content have the necessary licenses, intellectual property rights, and permissions, including any consent for individuals' likenesses present in the Content, that are necessary for authorizing Mapping Main Street to use the content as indicated in the Terms of Use. All material that the Users copy, publish, or send via the Website must not be defamatory, obscene, indecent, hateful, discriminatory or inflammatory; such material must not infringe any person's intellectual property rights or rights of confidence, impinge upon any person's privacy, or constitute incitement to commit a crime; further, material must not be misleading, deceptive, fraudulent, sexually explicit, threatening, abusive, harassing or menacing. Users shall also check or update their submitted Content for accuracy as it becomes necessary.

Users are prohibited from hacking, cracking, or in any other way attempting to violate the security of the Website. Furthermore, Users are prohibited from attempting to interfere with the operation of the Website, or to interfere with service to any user, host or network.

Content that is presented on the Website is hosted on third-party websites. Mapping Main Street is not responsible for and has no control over the Terms of Service, Privacy Policy, or any other aspect of the operation of these third-party host websites.

Indemnities

Each User, at his or her own expense, shall indemnify, defend, save, and hold harmless Mapping Main Street, its creators, employees, affiliates, officers, directors, and contributors, and/or other representatives (collectively, the "Indemnified Parties") from and against any and all judgments, losses, damages, liabilities, costs, or expenses (including but not limited to reasonable attorneys' fees and legal expenses) associated with or arising from (a) that User's use of the Website; (b) the User's content submissions to the Website; (c) any breach or claimed breach by such User of any representations, warranties, and/or agreements set forth herein; and/or (d) any tortuous or grossly negligence act or omission by the User, its agents, and/or independent contractor, including but not limited to consequential damages, loss of profits, loss of business opportunities, and loss of income.

Parental Control Protections

Pursuant to 47 U.S.C. Section 230 (d) as amended, Mapping Main Street hereby notifies you that parental control protections (such as computer hardware, software, or filtering services) are commercially available that may assist you in limiting access to material that is harmful to minors. Information identifying current providers of such protections is available on the internet (e.g., http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_content-control_software).

Intellectual Property

Subject to the terms set forth herein, users retain all intellectual property rights associated with the submitted materials to the extent that Users have the rights under the applicable law. In other words, the rights that are granted to Mapping Main Street do not prevent the Users from exercising the rights that they already have in the Content. If Users have licensed the Content under a Creative Commons license, Mapping Main Street will act in accordance with the terms of that license. If Users have not licensed the Content under a Creative Commons license, they hereby grant and assign to Mapping Main Street, its representatives and agents a non-exclusive, perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free license to use, reuse, publish, modify, reproduce, index, display, distribute, transmit, parse, perform, translate into any language, convert into speech, make derivative works, make compilations, and/or sell the Content in connection with any and all goods and/or services offered by Mapping Main Street. Mapping Main Street reserves the right to retain archived copies of all Content, including but not limited to, Content Users remove from third-party sites.

Aside from any user-submitted materials, Mapping Main Street owns the intellectual property rights that are associated with the content and operation of the Website, including its name and logo. Mapping Main Street and its Website may not be used with other services or organizations not affiliated with or authorized by Mapping Main Street. Users must seek permission from Mapping Main Street if they desire to use Mapping Main Street and its Website in a way that is not outlined in the Terms of Use. Mapping Main Street also owns a copyright in the Website design. Users shall be prohibited from using, modifying, replicating, selling, or otherwise interfering with the Website's content, design, or operation unless expressly authorized by Mapping Main Street.

Mapping Main Street respects the intellectual property rights of others and asks its Users to do the same. With respect to any copyright complaints about content (including blog comments) posted by Users to Mapping Main Street and hosted by the Website, please follow Mapping Main Street's DMCA Policy [http://www.mappingmainstreet.org/terms.html]. With respect to any content presented on Mapping Main Street but hosted on third-party sites, Mapping Main Street is unable to effectuate takedowns of such content. However, if Mapping Main Street is notified of a possible DMCA violation, it reserves the right to break the link to the said Content on its Website. If you are a copyright owner and believe that your rights have been violated in connection such content, please notify the third-party website that is hosting the content and/or follow their DMCA notice and takedown procedures.

Severability

If for any reason any portion of these Terms are held to be invalid, void, or otherwise unenforceable, that portion will be deemed severable from the remainder of the terms, which shall remain in effect.

Choice of Law Provision/Venue

These Terms of Use and any referenced Policies or Guidelines shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the state of Massachusetts. In the event that a user desires to bring suit against Mapping Main Street, user hereby consents to the exclusive jurisdiction of state and federal courts in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, and further hereby consents to the personal jurisdiction of said courts. Users also waive any right users may have to trial by jury in any dispute, action, proceeding that arise from or relate to the Terms of Use and any incorporated rules, Policies, or Guidelines.

Amendments

These Terms of Use may be updated from time to time. The most recent version will be available at [http://www.mappingmainstreet.org/terms.html]. Please check back to ensure that you are informed of any important updates.