Scuba Diving is a dangerous sport which can only be performed in relative safety if you:

1. Get training
2. Pay attention to that training and apply it
3. Recognize that no matter who you are and how trained you are, there are dives which are beyond your personal ability, dives which cannot be safely done with your equipment, and dives that are beyond your training.

Finally, some dives are just simply dangerous. Your certification course should have trained you to recognize your limitations, or, conversely, to recognize the sorts of diving you were trained to do.

Various people post infomration, experiences, views, and ideas on Better Diver. This information is not meant to be a replacement for a certification course with an instructor, and it is not meant to be an encouragement to you to go out and engage in similar diving without evaluating your personal skills, or getting the appropriate training and equipment, as required. Specifically, Cave or Wreck or Deep diving requires advanced equipment, training, and a careful self examination.

Finally, it should be obvious that not everyone who posts their opinions is or can be an expert or correct. It is likely that your instructor, for example, would disagree with a number of the points of view expressed on Better Diver or other areas, and would probably disagree sections of this web site.

The fact that someone who identifies themselves as an instructor on Better Diver does not create an instructional situation. Better Diver Instructors are listed on the website in the Staff Section and will identify themselves as such if questioned.

Member/User Agreement

Copyright Notice and Terms and Conditions

BY USING THIS SERVICE, YOU INDICATE YOUR AGREEMENT WITH THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE WITH THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS, DO NOT USE THIS SERVICE.

Copyright Notice

Copyright © 2006 Better Diver. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any Better Diver material is prohibited. Permission to use all documents and related graphics and any other material from this World Wide Web site is subject to these Terms and Conditions.

Terms and Conditions

The documents and other materials (the "Materials") published by Better Diver may only be used as permitted by the right-of-use license in these terms and conditions.

Disclaimer of Liability

Warning: Scuba diving, in particular technical and public safety scuba diving, is an activity in which there exists the potential for serious injury or death. ALL Users must read and agree to these Terms of Service before using this site.

This web site is dedicated to Recreational, Technical, and Public Safety diving, an activity which is inherently dangerous. You should not depend on information obtained from this site for your personal safety. Your diving safety depends upon your own judgment based on competent instruction, experience, and a realistic assessment of your diving ability.

There is no substitute for professional instruction and certification in recreational, technical, or public safety diving and it is widely available. You should engage a certified diving instructor or school to learn diving safety techniques. If you misinterpret a concept expressed on this site, you may be killed or seriously injured as a result of the misunderstanding. Therefore, the information provided on this site may only be used to supplement competent personal instruction from a certifying technical diving agency. Even after you are certified and proficient in technical diving, occasional refresher or additional training under the instruction of a diving instructor is a safe way to raise your diving standards and learn new and more advanced techniques. All information is presented solely for educational and informational purposes and should not be considered as scuba diving instruction in any way.

There are no warranties, either expressed or implied, that the instructions and information on this website are accurate and reliable. There are no warranties as to fitness for a particular purpose or that this site is merchantable. Your use of this site indicates your assumption of the risk of death or serious injury as a result of diving’s risks and is an acknowledgement of your own sole responsibility for your diving safety.

The following terms and conditions are in reference to the Better Diver Website and Forums, here in referred to as "Better Diver". These terms and conditions apply to all sites, services, and resources within the Better Diver Website.

1. ACCEPTANCE OF TERMS

Better Diver provides its service to you, subject to the following Terms of Service, referred to as "TOS", which may be updated from time to time without notice. You may review the most current version of the TOS at any time at http://www.betterdiver.com/tos.html. In addition, when using particular Better Diver Website services, you shall be subject to any posted guidelines or rules applicable to such services.

2. DESCRIPTION OF SERVICE

Better Diver Website provides users with access to informational resources including communication and interactive resources pertaining to Recreational and Technical Scuba Diving and the Diving industry. Under no circumstances shall Better Diver be liable to any user due to the user's use or misuse of the site or reliance on the site. Such limitation of liability shall apply to prevent recovery of direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, special, punitive and exemplary damages, even if Better Diver has been advised of the possibility of such damages. Such limitation of liability shall apply whether the damages arise from use or misuse of the site or reliance on the site, from inability to use the site, or from the interruption, suspension, or termination of the site or services offered on the site, including such damages incurred by third parties.
Such limitation shall also apply with respect to damages incurred by reason of other services or goods received through or advertised on the site or received through any links provided on the site. Such limitation shall apply, without limitation, to the costs of procurement of substitute goods or services, lost profits, or lost data. These limitations shall apply notwithstanding any failure of essential purpose of any limited remedy. Better Diver makes no warranties as to the accuracy of its information and due to the volatile nature of the information contained within Better Diver. Better Diver can not screen or authenticate all articles, posts, listings or other information. Better Diver will not sell nor give away any member/user information.

3. TERMS OF MEMBERSHIP & USAGE RESTRICTIONS

Site Membership
a) Membership is available to any person over the age of 18 who registers and accurately provides all the required information, provides a legitimate electronic mail address and obtains a unique Better Diver member/user name and password. Membership is non-transferable.
b) All membership information must be accurate and belong to the person registering. Invalid, incomplete, or falsified information can result in the immediate termination of all membership privileges for that user and, possibly a permanent ban, restricting the member/user from using any of the Better Diver services at any time.
c) Usage of this site is restricted to persons over the age of 18.
d) Better Diver is not responsible for the content of any member/user's posts, and the views expressed on the Better Diver Website are the responsibility of the posting member/user and not Better Diver. Better Diver does not preview member/user posts in any way before they appear on the site. Any link posted to a third-party internet address does not imply an endorsement of that site or its content by Better Diver.
e) Better Diver forums are for the discussion of recreational and technical diving and related topics. While the administrators and moderators of Better Diver will attempt to keep all off-topic messages off this forum, it is impossible for us to review all messages. All messages express the views of the author, and neither the owners of Better Diver nor the moderators will be held responsible for the content of any message.
f) Better Diver forums may contain profanity.
g) As a condition of buying and selling items listed in any forum of Better Diver, Buyer and Seller agree that Better Diver is not brokering or otherwise participating in any purchase or sale. Better Diver has no knowledge of the terms of sale, the condition of any items offered for sale, the accuracy of any aspect of the sale or the use to which any item shall be put. Buyer assumes all responsibility for proper use of any item so purchased. Buyer acknowledges that improper use of some or all of the items offered for sale on Better Diver may cause serious injury or death. Buyer further acknowledges that scuba diving, particularly technical scuba diving, carries with it a risk of serious injury or death that may not be avoided, even if the items purchased on Better Diver are used properly. Buyer shall seek qualified assistance and instruction in the use of all items purchased. Users may not post links to any off-site "for-sale" items or any auctions.
h) Pornography of any type is not allowed.
i) The owners, administrators, and moderators of Better Diver reserve both the right to remove, edit, move or close any thread for any reason, and the right to suspend or delete any user account for any reason, including circumstances that we feel is in violation of the TOS, both explicit and implied.
j) Membership in Better Diver is a privilege, not a right. We reserve the right to deny service to any person at any time without cause.

4. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

It is the policy of Better Diver to respond expeditiously to claims of intellectual property infringement. Better Diver will promptly process and investigate notices of alleged infringement and will take appropriate actions under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Should a violation of intellectual property be discovered, the document(s) or messages in such violation will be removed in a timely manner after any and all investigating has been completed to prove the authenticity of such a claim.

5. PUBLIC CONTENT ON BETTER DIVER

Any and all content posted for inclusion in publicly accessible areas of Better Diver are the responsibility of the creator. Better Diver makes no claims or warranties about such information or its authenticity. Upon posting any content on Better Diver, you grant Better Diver the non-exclusive right to publish, modify and use such content solely for the purpose of displaying such content.

No representations made or advice given by Better Diver member/users or Moderators should be in any way considered a diagnosis, treatment or cure for any illness or condition, either discussed or implied. Answers to questions are offered as information only and should always be used in conjunction with advice from your personal diving physician. No responsibility is taken by Better Diver, its member/users or Moderators, for any conceivable consequence which might be related to any answer that is freely given to questions on this site.

6. LIMITATION OF RE-USE

You agree not to reproduce, duplicate, copy, sell, resell or exploit for any commercial purposes or noncommercial purposes any portion of the services or content contained within the Better Diver Website and its subsidiary sites. In order to use any content, graphical art, photos or files owned by or published by Better Diver, direct, written authorization must be obtained from Better Diver with no exceptions at any time for any reason.

7. LEGAL RESTRICTIONS

This agreement shall be constructed and controlled by the laws of the State of Alabama, without regard to its conflict of law provisions. Any dispute arising hereunder will be governed by the laws of the State of Alabama. Each member/user agrees to personal jurisdiction by tile state and federal courts of the State of Alabama.

Better Diver reserves the right to change, modify or update this TOS agreement at any time without notification. Membership in and the use of resources contained within Better Diver and betterdiver.com constitutes full agreement and acknowledgement of the restrictions, limitations and terms set forth in this agreement.