General. The LaGrange County Public Library system offers free Internet access for the purposes of education, information, recreation, and research.
Filtering. (Per CIPA- Children’s Internet Protection Act Requirements) The LaGrange County Public Library implements filtering software in an attempt to keep inappropriate materials from minors. However, no filtering technology exists that blocks all access to speech that is obscene, child pornography, or other materials deemed harmful to minors. Librarians cannot override this filtering process due to the library’s ongoing responsibility for the protection of minors.
Patrons may request that a webpage be unblocked for a ‘single sitting’. The library IT supervisor will review the request, and base a decision on current blocking methods.
The LaGrange County Public Library does not guarantee that public access computers will be available when the Library is open. All Public access computers are subject to down time and the library shall not be liable for any direct or indirect, incidental or consequential damages (including the loss of data or profits) sustained or incurred in connection with the use, operations, or inability to use the system.
A patron will be denied the use of public access computers in the following circumstances:
- If the patron, and/or the minors for whom the patron is responsible, have accumulated un-paid library fines of $10.00 or more.
- Library privileges have been revoked for any reason.
The internet and its available resources contain a wide variety of material and opinions from many points of view. Some sites accessible via the Internet may contain material that is inaccurate, defamatory, illegal, or potentially offensive to some people. Users are responsible for determining that information they access is acceptable, reliable, and suitable to their needs.
Staff and board members of the LaGrange County Public Library shall not be responsible for any user or patron’s use, or inability to use, the public access computers or resources located at the library. Any user or patron who uses a public access computer agrees to abide by all library computer use policies, guidelines, and procedures, and releases the library staff and board from any and all claims which may arise from the use of said computers.
All users are subject to applicable local, state, and federal statutes.
Damages. The user agrees to reimburse the library for any damage to library equipment or software caused by the user or any children in the user’s care.
Patron Usage. Patrons may use the public access computers two hours per day. Computers may be reserved in advance; otherwise, they will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis.
If there are no other patrons waiting to access a computer. additional time may be
requested. During periods of high demand for public access computers, the library reserves the right to decrease the amount of time from two hours to one hour. During these times a posting will be displayed at the check-out desks, stating that this rule is in effect.
Non-Patrons must sign in at the front desk before they will be logged onto a computer. Patrons with library cards can simply swipe their card and enter their pin number to access the public computers. All computer stations will automatically shut down fifteen (15) minutes before the library closes. Library staff cannot override this option; Patrons are responsible for saving any unfinished work prior to the public access computers shutting down. Patrons will only receive a three (3) minute on-screen warning.
Saving Files. Patrons may save files to USB flash or thumb drives. Saving to the hard drive is strictly prohibited.
Cost for printed material. Black-and-white printouts – 15 cents per page.
Color printouts – 30 cents per page. (A printout will be considered “color” if it contains any colors other than black and white or gray scale.) Users must pay for anything they print. If users are not sure how to print their intended materials, it is the users’ responsibility to seek help from a staff member.
Children. The responsible party of minor children is accountable for the internet use and activities of their children, whether or not the responsible party is with the child at the time. Minors aged seven (7) and under must be accompanied by responsible party while using the Internet. Adults who use the library’s computers services or activities must supervise any children in their care. The library staff will not be responsible for un-attended children. Adults may borrow books and puzzles from the Children’s Department to entertain children while the adult uses the computer. If the child’s behavior becomes disruptive, both the adult and the child will be asked to leave the library premises.
Security. Users are reminded that information transmitted over the Internet may not be secure, and may be readable by third parties. Users are strongly discouraged from sending personal or financial information over the internet and do so at their own risk. Users are also reminded that information they leave in the memory banks of the library’s computers can be accessed by other users and should be considered public. The library will not release information on the use of specific Internet resources accessed by members of the public except as required by law or necessary for the proper operation of the library.
Wireless Access. The library provides wireless access at all branches excluding the Bookmobile. In order to use the library’s wireless network, connections must be 802.1b, 802.1g, or 802. ln compatible. The library makes no guarantee that you will be able to make a wireless connection. If you need assistance, we recommend that you contact the manufacturers of your laptop hardware and software.
Unacceptable Use. The LaGrange County Public Library whole-heartedly supports the constitutional right to free speech; however, not all forms of speech can be appropriately or legally supplied by a taxpayer-supported entity such as a public library. By accepting this agreement, the user is responsible to abide by the library’s definitions of acceptable use. The LaGrange County Public Library considers the following (but not limited to) to be unacceptable use of public resources:
- Any illegal activity or the promotion thereof; this includes–but is not limited to–hacking, copyright infringement, creation or distribution of malicious programming, etc.
- Display, dissemination, or printing of nudity, obscenity, pornography, or otherwise sexually explicit or abusive graphics or text.
- Harassment, slander, libel, or otherwise abusive, malicious, or threatening behavior.
- Broadcasting or otherwise mass distributing unsolicited material.
- Gambling.
- Representing yourself as someone else or misrepresenting your age; this includes giving someone else’s e-mail address as your own.
Sanctions. Any user who violates this agreement will receive a warning and have their Internet privileges revoked for one week. Any user who violates this agreement a second time will have their Internet privileges revoked for thirty days. Any user who violates this agreement for a third time will have their Internet privileges permanently revoked. Any user who uses a library computer for illegal activities will have their Internet privileges permanently revoked. Evidence of illegal activities will be reported to the proper authorities.
[INDIANA CODE, 35-49-3-3 Dissemination of matter or conducting performance harmful to minors]
[INDIANA CODE, 35-50-2-7 Class D felony]
