Terms of Use

We often hear laments from the educational community about how the Internet has made plagiarism easier to commit. Sadly we find that we must agree: Educators have plagiarised Purplemath lessons any number of times, frequently for profit, such as appears to be the case with many instructors at CourseHero.com, Weebly.com, and Quizlet.com, as well as users at Scribd.com, among so many others. This "Terms of Use" page has been created in hopes of clarifying the issues involved.

The content of the lessons posted to the Purplemath.com website, including the contained images, is the copyrighted property of Elizabeth Stapel. While the lessons have been created as a labor of love and are designed to help struggling students find success in algebra, Purplemath is not "in the public domain", and is subject to the following terms and conditions.

• Students are welcome to print out Purplemath content for their own private use.

• All are welcome and encouraged to link to Purplemath's pages, including directly to lesson pages. However, Purplemath content may not be "framed" within any other site, nor may links in any other manner imply an affiliation with, connection to, or endorsement of the linking site by Purplemath or Elizabeth Stapel.

• Users may quote short portions of Purplemath content, where said quotation falls under the "Fair Use" guidelines (such as quoting a representative paragraph or the purpose of editorial review). Users may not quote extensive portions of Purplemath content; in particular, users may not present Purplemath content as their own work. Note that "Fair Use" requires that one's use of the content be "limited" (for example, not world-viewable), "brief" (not the entire lesson), "immediate" (for example, not a long-term or permanent part of one's course materials), and "transformative" (one may not use Purplemath lesson as one's own lessons, as this does not "transform" the original work). Also, the use must include attribution (for example, don't strip out the copyright notices or authorship information) and must not affect marketability (for example, one should not use bootleg copies of Purplemath as a computer-room learning resource to avoid paying a school license fee).

• Users are welcome to download and distribute the "Homework Guidelines" freely. However, such distribution is to be free of charge to the recipient. In particular, users are not to sell the "Homework Guidelines".

• Users may link directly either to the lessons index and also to specific lessons. If one links directly to a lesson, this linking is to be supplemental to, rather than a replacement of, one's own teaching. For instance, one may not present Purplemath content as one's own online lectures.

• Purplemath may not be incorporated into any other product. In particular, users may not sell the content of Purplemath, or in any other manner lay claim to the name or content of "Purplemath", nor to the company Purplemath, Inc.

• Users are authorized to retain copies of the content of this web site only for their personal, non-commercial use, provided that they retain all copyright and other proprietary notices contained in the original materials on any copies of the materials. They may not modify the materials at this site in any way, nor reproduce or publicly display, perform, or distribute or otherwise use them for any public or commercial purpose. Any use of these materials on any other website or networked computer environment for any purpose is prohibited, unless prior written permission has been obtained from Elizabeth Stapel, her agent, heirs, or assigns. (One method of obtaining permission would be to purchase a site license, whose terms would supercede these Terms.)

• Purplemath is not to be downloaded/uploaded, "imported" via editors (such as FrontPage) or snaggers (such as SiteSnagger or WebCopier), mirrored, burned, framed, or otherwise installed electronically on any server other than that contracted with Elizabeth Stapel without the purchase of a site license. For example, one may not use Purplemath lessons as one's lessons when teaching online course, one may not present Purplemath lessons as one's own lecture notes, and one may not present Purplemath content as evidence of one's own claimed ability as an online instructor while pursuing a degree or employment.

• Users may not "hotlink" (that is, have direct links on their own webpages calling) graphics from Purplemath. Users may not present Purplemath graphics as their own.

• Users may not present Purplemath graphics as part of their own websites without express prior written permission from Elizabeth Stapel or Purplemath, Inc. If permission is granted, it will be with the understanding that appropriate credit will be given, including a copyright notice, and that a link will be provided back to Purplemath.

• The content on Purplemath is copyrighted and any unauthorized use of any Purplemath content may violate copyright, trademark, and other laws. If one breaches any of these Terms, that person's authorization to use Purplemath automatically terminates and said user must immediately destroy any downloaded, electronic, or printed materials.

• The following explicit exception to the above is made in the case of the "Homework Guidelines": Users may post and/or revise the "Homework Guidelines" to suit their needs, as long as they include a reference to the original version residing at "http://www.purplemath.com/guidline.htm". The reference shall include the preceding URL.

• The information presented on Purplemath is "as-is", and one's use of the lessons is without guarantee or warranty. Specifically, neither Purplemath nor Elizabeth Stapel accepts any liability regarding users' course progress, grades, degree fulfillment, or employability.

By accessing any page on Purplemath other than this one and http://www.purplemath.com/index.htm, users acknowledge that they have read, understood, and agreed to these Terms of Use.

Please note that the copyrigh on Purplemath has been registered with the Copyright Office of the United States of America. All Rights Reserved. Violators have been and will be prosecuted according to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, the Berne Convention, and other applicable statutes.

If you have questions regarding these Terms of Use, please contact the owner, or write to "Elizabeth Stapel, POB 493, Addison IL 60101-3729, USA". Thank you.