Acceptable Use Policy

Last Updated: December 8, 2004

This agreement represents the complete agreement and understanding between Dixie-Net, (hereinafter called Dixie-Net) and the account holder and supersedes any other written or oral agreement. Upon notice published on-line, Dixie-Net may modify these terms and conditions, amplify them, and/or modify the prices, as well as discontinue or change the services offered.

If you do not agree to these terms and conditions, please notify our accounting department so we may initiate a closure of your account.

1. Provision of services

   1. Dixie-Net will provide services on its computing and network systems to individual account holders in exchange for payment of fees and compliance with the terms and conditions of this document.

   2. Dixie-Net services are defined as the provision to the account holder of computing, telecommunications, network software, and information services provided by Dixie-Net. These services also include, but are not limited to, the provision of access to computing, telecommunications, software, and information services provided by others via the global Internet.

   3. Because of the nature of the Internet, it is not possible for Dixie-net to block access to sites which may contain material which some might find objectionable. As a result, Dixie-Net services include access to all publicly available resources on the Internet. Some of the information available may contain language or pictures about subjects intended for Adult audiences. Some information available over the Internet may even be illegal to transmit or posses. Account holders less than 18 years old must have a parent or legal guardian agree to these conditions to indicate acceptance and knowledge of this.

   4. Dixie-Net will publish a notice of fee increases 30 days before such increases take effect.

2. Use of Material

   1. Public Domain materials (e.g., images, text, and programs) may be downloaded or uploaded using Dixie-Net services. Account holders may also re-distribute materials in the public domain. The account holder assumes all risks regarding the determination of whether the material is in the public domain.

   2. As provided by United States federal law and by International treaties, copyrighted materials (e.g., images, text, programs, or other data) may not be uploaded using Dixie-Net services without the permission of the copyright holder. Copyrighted materials may be downloaded as long as this act does not violate any licenses or applicable laws. Except as expressly permitted, materials under copyright may not be distributed to others. Copyrighted material may not be modified nor can the author attribution notices nor the copyright notices be modified.

   3. Note that some materials available on the global Internet are called "SHAREWARE." These materials may be downloaded and used, but they are copyrighted materials. The copyright holder usually gives permission to use the materials for examination. If you choose to continue using the materials, the copyright holder requests that you register your usage and may ask that you pay a license fee.

   4. Copying, uploading, downloading, or distribution through Dixie-Net resources of commercially licensed software may be a violation of the software's license, and if so, is forbidden. Dixie-Net will cooperate fully with law enforcement agencies in prosecuting software piracy offenders.

3. Use of Services

   1. Dixie-Net network accounts are for account holder and the account holder therefore agrees to neither share the account, nor use the account to share Dixie-Net sensitive information with others. The account holder acknowledges that Dixie-Net will terminate the account without notice if the account holder does not comply. The account holder is defined to be the person, persons, or entity who established the contract for services.

   2. The account holder agrees to maintain a secure password to the account. Secure passwords are those that are between 6 and 8 characters long, and contain a mix of upper and lower case letters, numbers or other characters, and can not be found in direct or reverse order in any dictionary, regardless of the language of the dictionary.

   3. The account holder agrees not to use any process, program, or tool for attempting to guess or obtain the passwords of account holders on Dixie-Net or other systems. The account holder agrees not to make unauthorized attempts to access Dixie-Net systems or the systems and networks of others, or to deny authorized users access to any systems. The account holder agrees not to use any process, program, or tool for the purpose of gaining any level of access to systems to which they are not entitled.

   4. The account holder agrees to use Dixie-Net dial-up services only in an interactive mode. The account holder further agrees not to use any process, program, or tool for the purpose of maintaining a dial-up connection in a non-interactive mode, or to defeat any system which Dixie-Net may have in place to assure interactive-only access, or to start any process which may remain active after the user has disconnected from Dixie-Net's services. The account holder also agrees not to start any "background" process whose intent or primary purpose is to share Dixie-Net's resources with users who are not Dixie-Net subscribers. In addition, Dixie-Net stipulates that software uploads and downloads will be defined as interactive sessions. Dixie-Net reserves the right to terminate any connection it deems to be a non-interactive session.

   5. The account holder agrees not to use any process, program, or tool via Dixie-Net services for the purpose of annoying other users at Dixie-Net systems or any other systems on other portions of the Internet. This includes, but is not limited to, flash-bombing, mail-bombing, and subscribing other people to mailing lists.

   6. The account holder agrees to use the services provided by Dixie-Net as permitted by applicable local, state, and federal laws. The account holder agrees, therefore, not to use these services to conduct any business or activity or solicit the performance of any activity that is prohibited by law.

   7. The account holder agrees not to use Dixie-net services for the purpose of obtaining or disseminating pictures, images, data files, text files, or any other method of transporting information, which may be considered obscene, indecent, or profane. Additionally, the account holder agrees to refrain from the use of indecent or profane language on Dixie net systems.

   8. The account holder acknowledges that Dixie-Net is a commercial entity and may be used by account holders to conduct legal businesses, if the user has registered with Dixie-Net as a business or corporate entity. These businesses should, however, not impinge upon the use of Dixie-Net services by other account holders. Dixie-Net services should not be used to send unsolicited advertising or promotional materials to other network users. Electronic mail and appropriate USENET newsgroups may be used in the conduct of legitimate businesses.

   9. The account holder agrees to not, under any circumstances, post messages to newsgroups, mailing lists, or similar public forums if any of said forums pertain to subjects not directly related to the main topic of the posting or if the posting would be considered inappropriate for any other reason. This applies to both business and non-business oriented postings. Such postings will be considered abuse of Dixie-Net systems services. (See 7.0).

   10. The account holder agrees to not, under any circumstances, send unsolicited mass emailings from any Internet account (at Dixie-Net or elsewhere), nor to use Dixie-Net services for the collection or distribution of address lists to be used for such purposes. The account holder agrees to not, under any circumstances, associate Dixie-Net with any such mass mailings. The account holder acknowledges that any use of Dixie-Net's network for such unsolicited emails (also known as 'SPAM') may result in immediate termination of the user's account. Additionally, the account holder agrees to pay a $300 account clean-up fee per email for each instance of unsolicited mass emails, or for each instance of unsolicited commercial solicitations, which will be charged to the account holder's preferred method of payment when such instances are discovered. Additionally, the use of outside parties of Dixie-Net's email system to deliver unsolicited mass or commercial emails will result in the same $300 account clean-up fee to be charged to the originator of the email, if the originator can be determined.

   11. The account holder agrees not to use, without specific permission from Dixie-Net, any software program or suite of programs, who's purpose is to send mass-mailings of any type (i.e. a 'mailing list' program). Dixie-Net's system will allow the use of a limited number of 'Carbon Copies' from standard email programs, but any number of messages or copies of messages above that amount will be considered a 'mailing list'. Users wishing to operate a mailing list should contact the Sysop at Dixie-net.

   12. User accounts established as personal accounts may only use the systems facilities for personal or non-business enterprises. Failure to register as a commercial entity, may result in surcharges, interruption of service and/or termination of accounts. Users found to be operating commercial enterprises in violation of this agreement understand that they will be charged in accordance with our corporate fee schedule.

   13. All Dixie-Net services, both personal and commercial are not intended for resale. Resale of Dixie-Net services without making specific arrangements with Dixie-Net is not permitted and may result in surcharges, interruption of service and/or termination of accounts.

   14. Dixie-Net reserves the right to take actions it deems appropriate against users that violate the spirit and intent of its terms and conditions.

4. Indemnification

   1. The account holder acknowledges that Dixie-Net makes an honest effort to keep the information available on Dixie-Net's systems accurate. However, Dixie-Net can make no warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, regarding the quality, accuracy, or validity for the data and/or information available. Use of information obtained from or through Dixie-Net is at the risk of the account holder.

   2. The account holder also acknowledges that the information available through the interconnecting networks may not be accurate. Dixie-Net has no ability or authority over the material. Dixie-Net can make no warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, regarding the quality, accuracy, or validity of the data and/or information residing on or passing through these networks. Use of information obtained from or through Dixie-Net services is at the risk of the account holder.

   3. The account holder agrees to indemnify and hold Dixie-Net harmless from any claims, including attorney's fees, resulting from the account holder receiving Dixie-Net services which cause direct or indirect damage to another party.

5. Payment of fees

   1. The Dixie-Net accounting cycle begins on the first day of the calendar month following the date the account holder's account is activated. Accounts will be billed monthly, semi-annually, or annually, based on the account's activation date and the payment option selected. There is a $10 processing fee for reconnecting accounts which have been terminated for non-payment. Additionally, accounts which are turned over for collection will be charged a collection fee.

   2. New accounts wishing to discontinue service within the first 30 days may do so, and will be charged only for the first month of service plus activation. Any accounts established longer than one month are responsible for fees as normal and will not be refunded. Refunds regarding special price rates are subject to revisions due to failure to meet contractual obligation. Refunds will be calculated according to regular rate prices.

   3. Service payments will be submitted in advance of receiving services.

   4. Delinquent accounts are those that remain unpaid at the beginning of the next accounting cycle.

   5. Accounts that are delinquent by fifteen (15) days are put on "accounting hold" and may not be used. Accounts that are unpaid for thirty (30) days automatically have their files archived. Accounts that are unpaid for more than forty-five (45) days are closed. Dixie-Net accounts continue to accrue charges while they are on hold.

   6. The account holder acknowledges responsibility for the account until payment in full is made.

   7. A $25.00 returned check fee will be assessed for any check returned for any reason. Accounts paid by a returned check may be suspended until their balance is paid in full, including returned check fees.

6. Account Cancelations

   1. Cancelation requests for Dixie-Net accounts must be received in writing via email, fax, or postal service at Dixie-Net's main office. Such requests must be received before the end of the 30 day accounting cycle.

   2. All Dixie-Net accounts must be paid in full before the transaction will be considered complete.

7. Abuse of Services

   1. Any use of Dixie-Net system resources that disrupts the normal use of the system for other Dixie-Net customers, or the use of other systems by their respective users is considered to be abuse of system resources and is grounds for administrative intervention. (See section 3.0).

   2. Modification, alteration, reverse engineering, decompilation, disassembly or creation of derived works based on Dixie-Net proprietary network protocols or software is an abuse of Dixie-Net services.

   3. Depending on the nature and the severity of the abuse, the user may receive an E-mail warning or have their account suspended by Dixie-Net Staff. If the misuse is unintentional, the suspension may be rescinded following discussion with Dixie-Net Staff. If the misuse is intentional, the suspension may be rescinded at the discretion of the Operations Manager. Occasionally, unintentional misuse is misclassified as intentional misuse. Customers who believe their activity has been misclassified may appeal to the Operations Manager.

   4. Violations of any of the Dixie-Net conditions of use are unethical and may be criminal offenses. You are expected to report to Dixie-Net any information you may have concerning instances in which the conditions of use have been or are being violated. When Dixie-Net becomes aware of possible violations, we will initiate an investigation. At the same time, in order to prevent further possible unauthorized activity, Dixie-Net may suspend access to services to the individual account in question. Confirmation of violations may result in cancelation of the individual account and/or criminal prosecution. The account suspension may be rescinded at the discretion of the Operations Manager, following payment of a reconnection charge.

   5. Dixie-Net accounts which are locked or terminated as a result of violations of this agreement or any applicable laws will not be eligible for any monetary refund, and may be subject to additional administrative charges.

8. Exceptions to this Policy

   Dixie-Net reserves the right to make agreements with individuals or groups on a case-by-case basis to suspend certain parts of this Policy. However, Dixie-Net will in no case suspend parts of this Policy which violate any law, or which would institute any condition which would be illegal, unethical, or immoral. Individuals wishing permission to utilize services or procedures which would otherwise violate the terms of this Policy should submit those requests in writing to:

   President
   ISP Associates, Inc.
   P.O. Box 28
   Ripley, MS 38663

   or email such request to: president@dixie-net.com for formal review. Such agreements may incur additional costs.