Member Forum Rules and Etiquette

By joining and using The Obesity Society's Member Forum, you agree that you have read and will follow the rules and guidelines set for these discussion groups. You also agree to reserve Forum discussion for topics best suited to the medium. Basic Membership or Association questions should be directed to The Obesity Society's office.

Conditions of Use:
Please avoid the following behavior on The Obesity Society Member Forums. The Obesity Society reserves the right to suspend or terminate participation of members who violate these rules:

• Do not challenge or attack others (flaming). The discussions are meant to stimulate conversation, not create contention.
• Do not post commercial messages including advertisements for products/services, job postings, or conventions/meetings requiring a registration fee. Contact The Obesity Society's office for more information on product and recruitment advertising, or Calendar of Events postings.
• Use caution when discussing products. Although this is a Member-only forum, comments are subject to libel, slander, and antitrust laws.
• All defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, or illegal materials are strictly prohibited. Do not post anything in a Forum message that you would not want anyone to know came from you.
• Please note carefully all items listed in the disclaimer and legal rules below, particularly regarding the copyright ownership of information posted to the Forum.
• Post your message only to the most appropriate Forum.
• Do not forward any Forum information to non-Obesity Society members.

This Forum is a member service provided by The Obesity Society (TOS), with support from Aventis Pharmaceutical. The Obesity Society accepts no responsibility for the opinions and information posted on this Forum by others. The Obesity Society disclaims all warranties with regard to information posted on this site, whether posted by The Obesity Society or any third party; this disclaimer includes all implied warranties of merchantability and fitness. In no event shall The Obesity Society 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 on this site.

Do not post any defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, or illegal materials. Do not post any information or other material protected by copyright without the permission of the copyright owner. By posting material, the posting party warrants and represents that he or she owns the copyright with respect to such material or has received permission from the copyright owner. In addition, the posting party grants The Obesity Society the nonexclusive right and license to display, copy, publish, distribute, transmit, print and use such information or other material.

Messages should not be posted if they encourage or facilitate members to arrive at any agreement that either expressly or impliedly leads to price fixing, a boycott of another's business, or other conduct intended to illegally restrict free trade. Messages that encourage or facilitate an agreement about the following subjects are inappropriate: prices, discounts, or terms or conditions of sale; salaries; profits, profit margins, or cost data; market shares, sales territories, or markets; allocation of customers or territories; or selection, rejection, or termination of customers or suppliers.

In the event that any inappropriate posting is brought to The Obesity Society's attention, The Obesity Society will take all appropriate action. The Obesity Society reserves the right to terminate access to any user who does not abide by these guidelines.

• Always be courteous - observe ordinary standards of business communication.
• Announce your expectations up front:
  • If you don't expect or want a response please include "Do Not Respond to this Message" at the beginning of the posting.
  • If you need immediate assistance, include "Urgent Response Needed" at the beginning of your posting
  • If you are sharing information, include "For Information Only" at the beginning of your posting.
• State concisely and clearly the specific topic of your message in the subject line. This allows members to respond more appropriately to your posting and makes it easier for members to search the archives by subject.
• Do not post unnecessary messages to the Forum. Send messages such as "me, too" or "thanks for the information" directly to the individual.
• Do not post administrative questions on the Forum. If changing your e-mail address, simply update information in the member directory.
• Warn other Forum participants of lengthy messages in the subject line.