1. Posts are to be made in the relevant forum. Users are asked to read the forum descriptions before posting. Users consistently posting to the wrong forum may be given a warning (see policing below).
2. Members should post in a way that is respectful of other users. Flaming or abusing users in any way will not be tolerated and will lead to a warning.
3. Members are asked to not act as “back seat moderators”. If members note an issue which contravenes something in this policy document they are welcome to bring it to the attention of a member of the Moderator Team. Please use the “post report” feature to report posts. Do not respond to such topics yourself. Members who constantly “act” as moderators may be warned.
4. Members should remember this board is aimed at a general audience. Posting pornographic or generally offensive text, images, links, etc. will not be tolerated and will lead to a warning.
5. Members should respect the bandwidth of other users and sites. The use of inline ([IMG][/IMG]) image tags pointing to data stored on third party systems for which the user has not received permission to link to may be removed.
6. Members should post in a way which is consistent with "normal writing". That is users should not post excessive numbers of emoticons, large, small or coloured text, etc.
7. Similarly users should not SHOUT or use excessive punctuation (e. g.! and ?) in topic titles or posts. Users consistently abusing this will be warned.
8. The moderating, support and other teams reserve the right to edit, remove or put on moderation queue any post at any time. Please note that currently any very first post is automatically placed in the moderation queue and will be approved/disapproved according to the present Rules. The determination of what is construed as indecent, vulgar, spam, etc. as noted in these points is up to Team Members and not users.
9. The above forum rules where applicable also apply to private messaging. Abuse of the private messaging system may lead to warnings (as above) and/or the revocation of private messaging.

Avatars

10. Users are permitted to utilise a gallery avatar or to link to one of their own (subject to previous points on misuse of bandwidth). User defined avatars are to be no larger than 120 pixels square, contain no animation, contain no image which attempts to portray the user as having an official status here (e. g. mimicking ranks or copying avatars of team members), may not exceed 12KiB (12288 Bytes) in filesize and have a consistently high availability (i. e. links to images on slow servers or those prone to failure may be removed).
11. Avatars are subject to the same conditions as posts with respect decency, and so forth. Users abusing these rules will be warned and/or may lose their avatar privileges

Policing

12. Apple Tree Directory operates a three strike policy. Users will be warned a maximum of three times for any and all offences in a three month period. If the need arises for a fourth warning a temporary ban will be put in place of between 1 to 7 days. Arguing with team members after having received a warning will lead to an immediate additional warning. Should this exceed three strikes a temporary ban will be put in place as above.
13. Users who feel they have been unfairly warned are welcome to contact the relevant team leader, e.g. if warned by a moderator you should contact the Moderator team leader. If they feel you were treated badly they remove a warning.
14. Any attempt to circumvent a temporary ban will lead to that ban being made permanent.
15. Circumvention includes re-registering under a non-banned username, changing IP addresses to evade an IP ban, registering a new email account of evade an email ban.
16. Circumvention includes posting as an anonymous user.
17. An exception to the three strike rule applies when users contact team members personally (via any method) and post insulting, indecent or vulgar material. Such users may be subject to an immediate permanent ban.
18. Permanent bans are a last resort and thought is given before implementing them. While Apple Tree Directory may consider lifting permanent bans from time to time this is a rare occurrence.

Terms and Conditions

THE INFORMATION AND SERVICES PROVIDED BY OR ON Apple Tree Directory (INCLUDING BY APPLE TREE DIRECTORY OR BY ANY THIRD PARTY ON ALL ARAS OF THE SITE INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO “ASK AN EXPERT”," ASK A MOM") ARE INTENDED FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. NO PARTY PROVIDING INFORMATION OR SERVICES ON Apple Tree Directory IS PROVIDING ANY OTHER PROFESSIONAL ADVICE OR SERVICE, ONLY EDUCATION. Reliance on any information provided by Apple Tree Directory, Apple Tree Directory employees, others appearing on the Site at the invitation of Apple Tree Directory, or other visitors to the Site is solely at your own risk.

By using the Apple Tree Directory Site, you acknowledge and agree that the information contained therein, including responses from medical professionals, is intended solely for general educational purposes. The information contained on the website is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice relative to your specific medical condition. Apple Tree Directory does not guarantee monitoring or authentication of the information contained in forums and chat groups for accuracy, safety, or reliability.

Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider for any questions you may have regarding your medical condition, or prior to starting any new treatment. Specifically, Apple Tree Directory, its licensors, and its suppliers make no representations or warranties about the following: the accuracy, completeness or correctness, timeliness, or usefulness of any opinions, advice, services, or other information provided through the Apple Tree Directory Site.