You are here:
Home / Discussion Forum Rules
-A A +A

Discussion Forum Rules

The IAN Discussion Forum is a gathering place focused on autism spectrum disorder (ASD) research for those impacted by autism. The following information applies to posting on a forum on this website.

Do not post on the IAN Discussion Forum unless you are at least 18 years of age.

Only members of our research group the Autism Inpatient Community (AIC@IAN) are permitted to participate currently.

Please note: Information posted on the IAN Discussion Forum is not confidential. You should be aware that any personally identifiable information you submit here can be read, collected, or used by other users of this forum, and could be used to send you unsolicited messages. For your own protection, please do not post personal information such as addresses or phone numbers. We are not responsible for any personally identifiable information you choose to submit despite this notification.

By using the IAN Discussion Forum, you acknowledge and agree to abide by the following policies and rules:

  1. Users are solely responsible for the content of the messages they post. Information posted is the opinion of the author and does not represent the views of IAN or the Kennedy Krieger Institute. Discussion of any particular medication, educational program, treatment strategy, or provider of services in this forum does not indicate endorsement from IAN or the Kennedy Krieger Institute and does not constitute medical advice.
  2. Posted messages may contain links to other websites and files. IAN has no control over the content of these and cannot ensure it will not be offensive or objectionable to the user. The IAN Discussion Forum and Blogs administrators, however, may remove links to certain offensive or objectionable material as they become aware of them.
  3. Messages are the property of IAN and messages which do not include any personally identifiable information may be reused for other purposes without prior consent.
  4. Considering the nature of this forum, it is impossible for the IAN Community Discussion Forum administrators or moderators to review all messages or confirm the validity of information posted. IAN does not vouch for or warrant the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any message, and is not responsible for the contents of any message.
  5. Users may not post any material which is defamatory, abusive, vulgar, hateful, harassing, obscene, profane, sexually oriented, threatening, invasive of another person’s privacy, or otherwise in violation of any law, including copyright law.
  6. Users may not post argumentative messages or messages that are posted for the sole purpose of starting or maintaining arguments with other users. (There are many controversial topics in the world of autism. These may be discussed, but must be discussed civilly and only to the extent such discussions are focused on research; remain on topic; and do not disrupt the purpose of the IAN Discussion Forum and Blogs: to provide an informative on-line community for those coping with ASDs.)
  7. Spamming (posting the same message over and over again) and flaming (the act of posting messages that are deliberately hostile and insulting) are expressly forbidden.
  8. Messages used to conduct polls, research, or otherwise gather information from users, or that contain advertising, product promotion, promotion of professional services, chain letters, pyramid schemes, or other solicitations, or links to any of the above, are not permitted.
  9. Distribution of viruses, worms, Trojan horses or other harmful computer code via this forum and blogs is not permitted.
  10. Messages that appear to impersonate any person or entity, or falsely state or otherwise misrepresent a user’s affiliation with a person or entity, are not permitted.
  11. The administrators of the IAN Discussion Forum have the right to reject, remove, edit, or move to another thread or topic area any message without consent of the author.
  12. Any user who feels that a posted message is objectionable is encouraged to contact the IAN Discussion Forum and Blogs administrators. The administrators have the ability to remove objectionable posts and will make every effort to do so, within a reasonable time frame, if it is determined that removal is necessary. This is a manual process, however, so please realize that the message may not be removed or edited immediately, or at all. IAN is authorized by you to remove or modify any data submitted by you to these forums and blogs for any reason, including but not limited to cases when the IAN administrators believe they constitute a violation of the Discussion Forum and Blogs rules of use, whether stated, implied, or not.
  13. IAN maintains the right to permanently remove from our membership list any member who is deemed in violation of these rules.
  14. IAN reserves the right to reveal a user’s identity (or other information) in the event of a complaint or legal action arising from any message posted by the user, or as otherwise permitted by law.
  15. Cookies must be turned on in your internet browser to participate as a user in the IAN Discussion Forum and Blogs. Cookies are used to save your username and password and viewing options, allowing you to log in. For more information about our use of cookies, please see our Privacy Policy.
  16. IAN, the Kennedy Krieger Institute, and our partners shall not be held liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, or inability to use, the information posted on the IAN Discussion Forum and Blogs.
  17. IAN reserves the right to modify or change these rules of use without prior notification to current or new users.
  18. By using the IAN Discussion Forum and Blogs, you attest that you, the user, are 18 years of age or older, and that you agree to abide with all the terms, conditions, policies, and rules stated above.
  19. These Discussion Forum Rules of Use are part of the User Agreement of the IAN site.