The mission of Fort Bend County Libraries is to provide an environment for lifelong learning and enrichment for the entire, diverse community, through responsive service and access to timely and accurate resources. Within this context, we offer access to the Internet. Public use of the Internet in the library provides both expanded access to global resources and an opportunity to become familiar with state-of-the-art information technology.

Internet use in the library shall be consistent with our mission, policies, and procedure, and with applicable local, state, federal, and international laws. Web sites that present material of a questionable or unethical nature exist; Fort Bend County, its officials and employees are not responsible for material displayed on the Web. Inappropriate or illegal use, including but not limited to infringement of copyright laws, is prohibited and can result in loss of library privileges.

Guidelines for Responsible Internet Use

The Internet offers a wealth of information that is enriching to individuals of all ages. Because it is an unregulated medium that changes rapidly and unpredictable, information may not always be accurate, complete, or current. In accordance with our materials selection guidelines, we provide pointers to selected sites. Library users must accept responsibility for determining the validity and suitability of content.

Our goal is to help the public make the best use of the new world of electronic information. Accordingly, full graphical access to the World Wide Web (WWW) is available in the adult service areas of our libraries. Filtering software has been installed on computers located in our your services departments. We urge parents and legal guardians to accept responsibility for deciding what resources are appropriate for their children.

Child Safety on the Information Highway

The library staff is prepared to offer assistance in locating resources on and/or about the Internet, and training will be provided on a scheduled basis.

Fort Bend County Libraries provides access to GUI (Web) and text (gopher or Lynx) interfaces. Email accounts, chat rooms, Usenet groups (except where WWW searches to pull up a Usenet site) and file transfer (FTP) capabilities are not supported. We have no control over speed of access during times of peak Internet usage.

This policy reflects the: American Library Association's Library Bill of Rights, Freedom to Read, statement, and Statement on Access to Electronic Information, Services, and Networks, and the American Film and Video Association's Freedom to View statement.

Fort Bend County Libraries expects patrons to use the resources available at the library in a responsible manner. Failure to do so will result in the loss of Internet or library privileges. Guidelines for responsible Internet use include, but are not limited to, the following:

Responsible users:

• DO respect the privacy and sensibilities of other users;
• DO respect the legal protection provided by copyright and licenses to programs and data;
• DO respect and protect the integrity of computing systems;
• DO act in accordance with local, state, and federal laws;
• DO respect time limits on the use of library materials, understanding that time limits exist to maximize availability of these resources and to ensure fair accessibility for all;
• DO know that software downloaded from the Internet may contain a virus and using virus-checking software on their home computers is very important;
• DO close applications when finished.

Responsible users:

• DO NOT damage or destroy equipment, software data;
• DO NOT attach and/or connect any device, other than headphones, to any Fort Bend County Libraries computer;
• DO NOT load any program or executable file onto any Fort Bend County Libraries computer;
• DO NOT intentionally develop or use programs that infiltrate computers or computer systems and/or damage or alter software components;
• DO NOT make unauthorized copies of copyrighted material;
• DO NOT violate software license agreements;
• DO NOT use the Internet for any illegal activities;
• DO NOT waste finite resources such as paper;
• DO NOT harass others.

If you experience problems while using the Internet, ask a Reference Librarian for assistance.

CHILD SAFETY ON THE INFORMATION HIGHWAY http://www.missingkids.org/html/ncmec default child safety.html

AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION'S LIBRARY BILL OF RIGHTS
http://www.ala.org/work/freedom/lbr.html

AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION'S FREEDOM TO READ STATEMENT
http://www.ala.org/ICONN/ftreed.html

AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION'S STATEMENT ON ACCESS TO ELECTRONIC INFORMATION, SERVICES AND NETWORKS
http://www.ala.org/alaorg/oif/oif q&a.html

FREEDOM TO VIEW STATEMENT
http://www.tol.lib.ca.us/1view.html