Welcome to our website. We maintain this website as a service to our members. By using qsum.org you agree to be bound by the following terms of use, which shall take effect immediately on your first use of qsum.org. If you do not agree to be bound by all of the following terms please do not access, use and/or contribute to qsum.org.

1. Acceptance of Agreement
   You agree to the terms outlined in this Terms of Use Agreement (the "Agreement") with respect to our site (the "Site"). This Agreement constitutes the entire and only agreement between us and you, and supersedes all prior or contemporaneous agreements, representations, warranties and understandings with respect to the Site, the content or services provided by or through the Site, and the subject matter of this Agreement. This Agreement may be amended at any time by us from time to time without specific notice to you. The latest Agreement will be posted on the Site on this page, and you should review the Agreement prior to using the Site. If you do not agree to the changes, you should cease using the Site.


2. Use of the Site
   You agree to use the Site only for lawful purposes and in a way that does not infringe the rights of, restrict or inhibit anyone else's use of the Site. Prohibited behaviour includes but not limited to harassing or causing distress or inconvenience to any person, transmitting obscene or offensive content or disrupting the normal flow of dialogue within the Site.


3. Intellectual Property
   The content, graphics, design, compilation, digital conversion and other matters in and on the Site are protected under applicable copyrights, trademarks and other proprietary including but not limited to intellectual property rights. The copying, redistribution, use or publication by you of any such matters or any part of the Site, except for your own personal and non-commercial use as provided below, is strictly prohibited. You do not acquire ownership rights to any content, document or other materials viewed through the Site. The posting of information or materials on the Site does not constitute a waiver of any right in such information and materials.


4. Trademarks
   Any of the trademarks, service marks, design rights, personality rights or similar rights that are mentioned, used or cited in and on the site are the property of their respective owners. Unless otherwise stated, the Site is neither endorsed by nor affiliated with any of the holders of such rights, nor can the QSUM grant rights to use otherwise protected materials. Your use of any such property is at your own risk.


5. Copyrights
   We respect the intellectual property of others, and we ask you to do the same. If you believe that your work has been copied in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please contact us through our website or write to us at QSUM, Department of Building Economics, University of Moratuwa, Moratuwa, Sri Lanka.


6. The Website Community
   The Website Community is restricted to members only. The resources, articles and discussions in the Website Community are created by the members. The views expressed are theirs and unless specifically stated are not those of the QSUM. The QSUM is not responsible for any content posted by its members.
   
   You agree to use the Website Community including the discussion forum in accordance with the following Community Rules:
   
   Be welcoming!
   When newcomers arrive, welcome them to our growing community. All of our community's members are a wealth of knowledge and have much to share. Help new members learn about how to find information and resources, save time, and how to get involved in the Community.
   
   Be appropriate!
   Contributions must be civil and tasteful. Contributions must be constructive and polite, not mean-spirited or contributed with the intention of causing trouble. Unlawful, harassing, defamatory, abusive, threatening, harmful, obscene, profane, sexually oriented, racially offensive or otherwise objectionable language, graphics or behaviour or anything which is not work safe is not acceptable.
   
   Be courteous!
   Do not attack others. Personal attacks on others will not be tolerated. Challenge others' points of view and opinions, but do so respectfully and thoughtfully without insult and personal attack.
   
   Be cautious!
   Think before you post or speak: Do you really want to put your credit card information on our forum? We encourage you to keep such personal information personal. In the same vein, do not ask for such personal information from others. If you must give such information for any reason, please do so privately.
   
   Be vigilant!
   We do not allow submissions of the same or similar nature many times. Please do not re-submit your contribution to more than one discussion, or contribute off-topic material in subject-specific areas. Duplicate submissions are frustrating and counterproductive for other members, especially for those whose time and energy is limited.
   
   Be ethical!
   The resources, articles and discussions are based on basic, appropriate professional ethical behaviour.
   
   If you fail to abide by these Community Rules when you take part in the Website Community, you will be sent an email informing you the matter. This email will serve as a warning and a member will be served a maximum of three warnings. Thereafter, if you still fail to abide by these Community Rules, a temporary suspension from the Website Community will be imposed on you. A member will be served a maximum of two temporary suspensions. If there arises a need for a third suspension, a permanent suspension from the Website Community will be imposed on the member after due consideration.


7. Submissions
   You understand and agree that all postings, comments, edits, feedback, suggestions, ideas, photographs, images, notes, drawings, concepts, documents and other information, content, or materials (collectively, the "Submissions") posted in and on the Site, either online or offline and whether or not solicited by the Site, are the sole responsibility of the person from whom such Submissions originated. The Site is and shall be under no obligation (a) to maintain any Submissions in confidence; (b) to store or maintain the Submissions, electronically or otherwise; (c) to pay any compensation for any Submissions or any use thereof; or (d) to respond to any user in connection with or to use any Submissions. The Site shall not be liable for any use or non-use of any Submissions. You represent that, regarding any Submissions contributed by you that: (a) Submissions will not violate any right of any third party, including copyright, trademark or other intellectual property, personal, or proprietary rights; and (b) you are the owner of and/or have the right to provide such Submissions to us in accordance with this Agreement. You further represent that no such Submissions will be or contain libellous or otherwise unlawful, abusive, or obscene material. You are and shall remain solely responsible for the content of any Submissions you make.


8. Use of Information
   By making Submissions to the Site, you agree to grant us, and represent and warrant that you have the right to grant, an irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, fully paid, royalty-free, worldwide license to use, copy, perform, modify, adapt, publish, display, translate, and distribute the Submissions and to prepare derivative works of the Submissions. You acknowledge that you are responsible for whatever material you submit, and you, not the QSUM, have full responsibility for the Submission, including its legality, reliability, appropriateness, originality and copyright.


9. Editing, Deleting and Modification
   We reserve the right in our sole discretion, but shall have no obligation, to pre-screen, review, flag, filter, edit, refuse or remove or delete any documents, information or other content appearing on the Site, at any time, for any reason.


10. Limited Right to Use
    The viewing, printing or downloading of any content, graphic, form or document from the Site grants you only a limited, non-exclusive license for use solely by you for your own personal use and not for republication, distribution, assignment, sublicense, sale, preparation of derivative works or other use. No part of any content, form or document may be reproduced in any form or incorporated into any information retrieval system, electronic or mechanical, other than for your own personal and non-commercial use.


11. Nontransferable
    Your right to use the Site is not transferable. Any password or right given to you to obtain information or documents is not transferable. You agree and understand that you are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of passwords associated with your account you use to access the Site. Accordingly, you agree that you will be solely responsible for all activities that occur under your account.


12. Indemnification
    You agree to indemnify, defend and hold us harmless from any liability, loss, claim and expense, including reasonable attorney's fees, related to your violation of this Agreement or use of the Site.


13. Privacy Policy
    Our Privacy Policy, as it may change from time to time, is a part of this Agreement.


14. Links to Other Websites
    The Site contains links to other websites. We are not responsible for the content, accuracy or opinions expressed in such websites, and such websites are not investigated, monitored or checked for accuracy or completeness by us. Inclusion of any linked website on our Site does not imply approval or endorsement of the linked website by us. If you decide to leave our Site and access these third-party sites, you do so at your own risk.


15. Disclaimers and Limitation of Liability
    The information and services from or through the site are provided "as-is," "as available," and all warranties, express or implied, are disclaimed including but not limited to the disclaimer of any implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. The information and services may contain bugs, errors, problems or other limitations. We have no liability whatsoever for your use of any information or service. In particular, but not as a limitation thereof, we are not liable for any indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages including damages for loss of business, loss of profits, litigation, or the like, whether based on breach of contract, breach of warranty, tort including negligence, product liability or otherwise, even if advised of the possibility of such damages. The negation of damages set forth above is fundamental elements of the basis of the bargain between us and you. This site and services, and information presented would not be provided without such limitations. No advice or information, whether oral or written, obtained by you through the site shall create any warranty, representation or guarantee not expressly stated in this agreement.
    
    All responsibility or liability for any damages caused by viruses contained within the electronic file containing the form or document is disclaimed. We will not be liable to you for any incidental, special or consequential damages of any kind that may result from use of or inability to use our site.


16. General
    If any of these terms are determined to be illegal, invalid or otherwise unenforceable by reason of the laws of any state or country in which these terms are intended to be effective, then to the extent and within the jurisdiction in which that term is illegal, invalid or unenforceable, it shall be severed and deleted from these terms and the remaining terms shall survive and continue to be binding and enforceable.
    
    These terms shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of Sri Lanka which shall have exclusive jurisdiction over any disputes.