Listserv Usage & Guidelines

How To Use The Listserv

All members will automatically be subscribed to the FISPA listserv. Members can post topics, respond and join conversations. Below are instructions on how to manage your listserv groups, topics and conversations.

• Log into your Google account using your membership email
• On your account page, in the upper right corner, click on Apps
• Choose more at the bottom of the Apps list, choose Groups
• On the Groups page, the right side of your screen should show the groups that you belong
• Click on the group to view topics and conversations.

To unsubscribe from the listserv, click here for instructions. If you need to change your email or have any issues unsubscribing, please contact FISPA.

Listserv Guidelines

Introduction

The following are the rules and conditions of participation in the Federation of Internet Service Providers of the Americas (FISPA) listserv and/or bulletin boards. These services are provided as a privilege and not as a right. By subscribing to and participating in these services, users hereby agree to be bound by and warrant their full compliance with the following terms of participation:

These services are provided by FISPA in furtherance of its nonprofit and tax-exempt purposes. They may be used only by FISPA members and only for the purpose of discussing matters related to or arising out of the business and professions represented by FISPA. Your continued access is conditioned on your continuing to abide by these policies and procedures, by the terms and rules of membership of FISPA, and by the FISPA Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct.

If you have any questions, please contact FISPA.

Disclaimer

This is provided as a service of the Federation of Internet Service Providers of the Americas (FISPA). FISPA accepts no responsibility for the opinions and information posted by others. FISPA disclaims all warranties with regard to information posted, whether by FISPA or any third party; this disclaimer includes all implied warranties of merchantability and fitness or fitness for a particular purpose. In no event shall FISPA 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. FISPA administrators nor the administrators of the host site can verify the content of postings for accuracy or be held accountable for message content.

Parties submitting messages bear sole responsibility and liability for the content of their postings. This includes any information or other material protected by copyright without the permission of the copyright owner. By posting such material, the posting party warrants and represents that it owns the copyright with respect to such material or has received permission from the copyright owner. In addition, the posting party grants FISPA and users of these services the non-exclusive right and license to display, copy, publish, distribute, transmit, print and use such information or other material.

FISPA does not actively monitor these services 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 FISPA’s attention, FISPA will take appropriate action as described below. FISPA reserves the right to terminate the access of any user who does not abide by these guidelines and rules.

Sanctions

Subscribers who violate any of the FISPA rules or guidelines will be subject to the following disciplinary actions, in the following order:

• 1st violation- notify in writing email that an offense has occurred, documentation has been made by the Executive Director of the notification and advise that a second offense will result in having posting privileges suspended.
• 2nd violation- notify in writing that the members posting privileges have been suspended for ninety (90) days.
• 3rd violation- notify in writing that members posting privileges have been permanently removed.

All notifications will be copied to the Board of Directors of FISPA at the same time they are sent to the offender.

Note that the penalties do not relate to the e-mail address of the poster, but rather to the individual poster. While freedom of speech is a right in the United States, participation in FISPA’s lists or boards is not. By subscribing, you specifically agree to the rules and guidelines and to the terms for removal. Non-subscribers who post inappropriate messages will receive an e-mailed warning of violation and a copy of these rules and guidelines. A second inappropriate message from the same non-subscriber will result in the blocking of all future messages from that individual.

Postings about substantive issues relevant to at least a significant subset of the FISPA membership are generally appropriate, except as described below in the Inappropriate Submissions Section.

Appropriate Submissions

• Please respect other subscribers. Please feel free to express yourself, but do not do anything to injure or harm other individuals, organizations, or corporations. Subscribers are expected to exercise both common sense and courtesy in the messages they transmit over the listserv or board.
• When posting a message, let us know who you are. Include your name, affiliation and e-mail address. In the subject line, be specific in describing the subject matter of what you are positing.
• When replying to a message, include only the relevant information to which you are responding. This will make others who read your message understand the context of the conversation. Economize space by including only the relevant portion of the original message. Also delete the header information from the previous message. The minimum that is asked of subscribers is to put your response at the top of the original posting.
• Note that all FISPA exchanges are in the public domain. This means that any messages may be reproduced in whole or in part in any way whatsoever.
• Messages will be saved in publicly accessible archive files for future use by subscribers, FISPA members and the general public. Messages posted must be civil and professional in tone and sensitive to issues of diversity. Communication via the listserv or boards cannot provide the same freedom of expression as would be possible in a private conversation among confidants.
• All postings shall be of an informational nature and for informational purposes only. Commercial use or any other unauthorized use of this information is prohibited.

Inappropriate Submissions

• All defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, or illegal materials are strictly prohibited. Proper etiquette applies for all postings and you should not say anything in a message that you would not want the world to see and to know came from you.
• Do not misrepresent yourself, or in any other way conceal your identity, or post anonymous messages.
• Do not alter the content, or source of a message that has originated from another person’s computer with the intent to deceive.
• Please do not challenge or attack the opinions or information presented by others by “flaming”. If you have a differing opinion, please express yourself in a professional manner. Please maintain a civil tone at all times.
• Please ensure that the messages you post are appropriate for transmission to the entire subscriber base. Please do not engage in discussions on whether a topic is appropriate or inappropriate. Such discussions take up valuable space, and distract subscribers away from more meaningful discussions. If inappropriate postings or violations are noticed, subscribers should not inform the entire group, but should bring this information to the attention of the administrator.
• Commercial advertisements (SPAMs) or solicitations generally irrelevant to the technology community should not be submitted. Do not post commercial messages that do not relate specifically to the topics of the list. The Cyberspace term for this is “spamming.” It is considered very bad etiquette. Contact people directly with products and services that you believe would help them. Feel free to discuss products and services, with the understanding that the listserv and boards are a public forum and your comments may be subject to libel and slander laws. As such, you are responsible for your comments just as if this were a live discussion or a printed publication.
• Job announcements for positions are prohibited.
• Do not post anything that is not original unless it meets the “fair use” guidelines of copyright law, or unless you have permission from the original source. Gain permission to reprint copyrighted material before posting it. If you send information that is not your original work or ideas, please specify to readers the original source of your information. When posting materials, the poster voluntarily presents him/herself as the copyright owner or as having received permission to reprint copyrighted materials. FISPA reserves the right to reject any postings containing material that may be in violation of copyright.
• Other than FISPA Vendor Members listed as Vendors, do not use the listserv to solicit or conduct business, including the direct or indirect marketing of users’ products or services, in any manner. The listserv may not be used to provide information, materials, products, or services in exchange for compensation of any kind.
• Do not use any words, logos or other marks that would infringe upon the trademark, service mark, certification mark, or other intellectual property rights of the owners of such marks without the permission of such owners.
• Do not post any confidential information or any information that would infringe upon the proprietary, privacy or personal rights of others.
• The listserv and/or boards shall not be utilized in any manner that violates federal or state antitrust laws or other laws prohibiting anticompetitive practices. The antitrust laws generally prohibit any agreement or understanding inconsistent with the right and obligation of competitors to exercise independent business judgment in pricing their products or services, dealing with their customers and suppliers, and selecting the markets in which to compete. No express agreement or understanding is required; one can be inferred from statements or conduct.
• Do not post any information regarding specific prices or fees charged or paid, and do not post any information concerning prices, pricing practices, discounts, or other terms or conditions of sale either obtained by or offered to another entity.
• Do not post any information concerning market shares, salaries, costs, sales territories, profit margins, or encouraging the selection or rejection of customers or suppliers.
• Replies to individuals’ requests for information that are obviously not of significant interest to the membership or subscribers at large should not be sent to the entire list.
• Personal or confidential information about others, or personal communications between individuals are not appropriate. Personal criticism of, or attacks on, individuals will not be accepted. The discussions put forward on the listserv are meant to stimulate conversation using acceptable rules of etiquette, and should not create a contentious environment or defame, disparage or intentionally hurt another individual.
• Messages whose content, were it posted, might present legal problems for FISPA or subscribers are not acceptable.
• Messages of inconsequential or non-substantive content should not be posted on the listserv. This includes messages devoted solely to humor, jokes, or light conversation that are off topic. If you are replying with a message that just says, “thanks for the information,” a request to receive a copy of what someone has offered to share, or simply to agree with someone by saying, “me, too,” then please do not reply to the entire group. Instead, send your response directly to the e-mail address of the person who posted the message.
• Attachments and Long Messages: Exceptionally long messages in the body of the e-mail, or as an attachment, are discouraged because they cause problems for some subscribers with limited e-mail storage. Persons wishing to share large documents such as term lists or catalogs should instead announce that interested individuals may request the material directly from the person making the offer, and the document(s) should then be sent directly to the interested parties’ e-mail addresses, not via the listserv or boards. Attachments also can carry potentially harmful viruses. You should not send anything that existed as a word processing document unless you first convert it to plain ASCII text. In most cases, you can simply cut and paste from your original document to your e-mail message. If you have any questions, please contact your local network administrator.
• Replies to Requests for Specific Information: Replies to online surveys or to requests for an isolated bit of information for one’s own need should be sent directly to the inquirer, not the entire listserv. When appropriate, the inquirer can later post a single summary of multiple responses to the list.
• Postings which violate the FISPA Code of Ethics are to be considered inappropriate and violations of these listserv rules.
• Posting challenging another person’s personal integrity or the integrity of information provided by them should not be posted on the list serve or the boards. Such inquiries with respect to the integrity of information posted should be directed to the poster first to determine if a mistake has been made.

Monitoring and Enforcement

The listserv must be used for business purposes only and in accordance with FISPA’s policies, procedures, and Code of Conduct. The listserv is subject to periodic audit and monitoring by FISPA staff members and authorized contractors for business and security purposes. FISPA may remove members from the listserv for violating this agreement. Such violations may also result in termination of FISPA membership.

Limitation of Liability and Indemnity

The great danger for us, and for all operators of online listservs and bulletin boards, is that we might be held accountable for the wrongful actions of our subscribers.

We did not start these services to take responsibility for others’ actions, and we cannot afford to operate it if we must take that responsibility. Accordingly, all subscribers must accept responsibility for their own acts, and to accept that an act by another subscriber that damages them must not be blamed on us, but on the other subscriber. Therefore, as a condition of participation, participants must agree as follows:

You agree that FISPA will not be responsible to you for any indirect, consequential, special or punitive damages or losses you may incur in connection with our listserv or boards or any of the data or other materials transmitted through or residing on our listserv or boards, even if FISPA has been advised of the possibility of such damage or loss. In addition, you agree to defend and indemnify FISPA, its officers, directors, employees, and agents and hold FISPA, its officers, directors, employees, and agents harmless from and against any and all claims, proceedings damages, injuries, liabilities losses, costs and expenses (including attorneys fees) relating to any acts or omissions by you or materials or information transmitted by you in connection with our listserv or boards leading wholly or partially to claims against FISPA, its officers, directors, employees, or agents or our listserv or boards by other users or third parties.

Choice of Law

Our listserv and boards can be reached by subscribers from all fifty states, and around the world. Each of these places has a different set of laws. Since we cannot keep track of all these laws and their requirements, you agree that the law of the State of Florida in the United States of America will apply to all matters relating to this Agreement and to our listserv and boards. In addition, you agree and consent that if there is ever any legal action against FISPA, the state and federal courts of Florida, USA, will have exclusive jurisdiction and be the exclusive venue for any such legal actions.

General

This agreement is the entire understanding between you and FISPA regarding your relationship to our listserv and boards. If either you or we fail to notify the other of any violations of this agreement, this will not mean that you or we cannot notify the other of future violations of any part of this agreement. User Acknowledgment and Acceptance

I have read and understand the listserv rules and agree to accept these rules and to use the listserv and boards only in compliance with them.