(Updated April 2008)

Thank you for your interest in Kinetic Books Company ("KBooks") and our Web site located at www.kbooks.com (or equivalently www.kineticbooks.com) (the "Site"). These terms will apply to any future sites operated or managed by KBooks and interactions you may have with products installed from a CD or installed by other means. We are pleased to provide this privacy policy to inform you of our practices with respect to how we collect and use personally identifiable information about visitors to the Site. By using this Web site, you consent to the following terms:

Information collection and use: KBooks is the sole owner of the information collected on this site. KBooks collects information from our users at several different points on our Web site. If you register with us, we would like to be able to send you information periodically or ask you questions about our product. We give you the right to opt out of this e-mail since we are well aware of the scourge of spam and we respect your privacy as well. If you install and/or use our products over the Web, server or CD, we may also need to contact you if we note any product flaws such as security risks and/or view upgrades as "mandatory." We will not sell, share, loan or rent any personal information you give to us without your express permission.

If you buy something from us, we need additional information since it is required by financial institutions and also to process your order in case of any errors or other issues.

What we collect: The data that we regularly collect about visitors who do not register to our Site (e.g., IP address, browser type, pages accessed, duration of visit, etc.) does not necessarily enable us to personally identify you, and even if we could, we would not. We do aggregate data about how visitors in general use our site. We use this information to gather statistics about how our site is being used so that we can improve it. We do not intentionally gather data about how you as an individual use our site. Like many sites, we use cookies as mentioned below in order to make your visits more efficient.

Customer information system software information: In order to allow the installation of products and supply technical support, our installer and other software collects information about the system it is being installed on. For instance, it helps us to know the operating system, browser type and version, and about other software or hardware our products rely on. Some of this information may be gathered by third-party software, since we like many other companies rely on installers from third parties. In addition, since firewalls or anti-virus software and similar software may prevent the installation or authentication of software, we gather information about this type of software as well. We will only share this information if needed to resolve technical issues.

During registration in order to qualify for certain products, services or information, you may be required to give your contact information (such as name and/or email address and academic institution). We may use the information for a variety of purposes; we will now list the most important. First, we may use it to verify that information is valid: verifying that instructors are in fact instructors is often vital to KBooks. Second, we may use it to inform you of potential product flaws. If our product were ever to pose a security, virus or other risk, we believe it essential we contact users of that product. Third, for evaluation or beta products, we may contact you in order to gain feedback. Fourth, we may need to use the information to fulfill the evaluation request. Fifth, we may want to contact you about new versions of the product, related products, or opportunities to learn more about our products and services.

We frequently offer the right to opt out of certain types of communication from the company, usually of the type considered "marketing" or "sales". We have practices in place to identify and segregate these users’ identities. If we ever errantly communicate with you, we apologize in advance. Please let us know if you see fit so we can identify any flaws in our process. It is also possible that we have identified your email identity or other contact information from another means and have contacted you because your email name has been made available to us. We do not promise that we will compare our "do not contact" database with our sources of people we choose to contact.

We would also note that we view certain forms of communication such as notifying users of product flaws, verifying that requested products have been received and are functioning or notifying beta users of new versions of later versions as "marketing" or "sales", but as valid attempts to insure that requested products and services have been received and that people are not using outdated versions of software.

Products that you have bought from us may also have update capabilities that require us to determine that you are a valid user, and also to determine what products and updates you have installed, so that we will offer updates as appropriate. We may also user similar functionality within the product to make you aware of new products and services.

Order form: We require information from you on our order form in order to fulfill the requirements of financial institutions. Here you must provide contact information (such as name and shipping address) and financial information (such as credit card number and expiration date). This information is used for billing purposes and to fill customer's orders. If we have trouble processing an order, contact information is used to get in touch with the user.

In order to insure that products that are purchased are installed the appropriate machine or machines, we need to be able to uniquely identify specific machine. Software, often written by other companies, will identify components of the machine in order to create a unique identity for that computer. That information is then relayed to another computer’s database. It may contain information that would enable us or other parties to identify the machine, but we do not use such information for any sales or marketing purposes. We may use it for customer service. The information typically will be retained; one reason to retain it is so that if another copy of the product is requested because the initial copy has ceased to function, we can confirm it is being installed on the same machine.

Order forms may also provide another way for us to generate lists of users. You may be offered the option to opt out of certain forms of communication when ordering our product.

Grading: We intend to offer the service of grading homework. Of course, we will not reveal these results to people other than the student and his/her instructor. The instructor's policy on publishing test results is under his/her control, not ours. We will aggregate statistics on how students are performing on problems so we may learn how well our products are performing and how they are being used.

Supplementation of information: In order for this Web site to properly fulfill its obligation to our customers, it is sometimes necessary for us to supplement the information we receive with information from third-party sources. For instance, to process a credit card order, we may need to validate the credit card with a third-party source who will have additional information about the purchaser.

Cookies: To facilitate your use of the Site, KBooks may use "cookies." Cookies are small pieces of data on your computer used by our server to direct you to locations on our site, or configurations on our site, that are relevant to your interests. We may use cookies to make us aware that a computer has previously accessed the Site. A cookie could also be used to store registration information so that a user does not need to re-input it on return visits.

Usage of a cookie is in no way linked to any personally identifiable information while on our site. Once you close your browser, your use of the cookie simply terminates. One of the advantages of using cookies is the fact that you do not have to log in a password more than once. The use of cookies is now standard for most Web sites. If you are concerned about cookies, however, most browsers permit individuals to decline to accept cookies. Cookies can also be removed via a variety of software programs. In most cases, a visitor may refuse a cookie and still fully navigate the Site.

Site usage analysis: We collect information about how users in general are using our Web site for the purpose of improving it. We have no desire to know about your individual usage pattern, and we do not collect such data. In order to best manage the Site, we may anonymously log information on our operational system and identify categories of visitors by data type, such as domains and browser types, or collect non-personal information about your Web viewing habits while you navigate the Site, such as navigation trends, hits per page/per user, and time allocation. These statistics are reported in the aggregate to our Webmasters. This is to ensure that the Site presents the best Web experience for visitors and remains an effective information resource.

Log files: We may use IP addresses to analyze trends, administer the site, track user movement, and gather broad demographic information for aggregate use. IP addresses are not linked to personally identifiable information.

Security: When our registration/order form asks users to enter information that we deem is sensitive (such as a credit card number), that information is encrypted and protected with SSL encryption software. While on a secure page, such as our order form, the lock icon on the bottom of Web browsers such as Safari and Microsoft Internet Explorer typically is shown as activated or "closed".

We also take reasonable steps to protect user information off-line. All of our users' information, not just the sensitive information mentioned above, is restricted in our offices. We brief relevant employees on our privacy and security practices. We endeavor to work with reputable firms; but it is a fact that the security of even the most reputable firms has been breached, and it is impossible to warranty the security of any system, any more than one can build a boat that cannot sink.

If you have any questions about the security of our Web site, you can send an email to . We appreciate any and all suggestions.

Use of other information: You may choose to provide personal information to KBooks for a variety of reasons, including the following:

• Submitting resumes or work history information.
• Contacting us for further information or to request materials.
• Registering for events and conferences.
• Registering to join our mailing list.
• Submitting an inquiry.
• Creating, entering or submitting data to areas used for grading homework or labs
• Submitting error corrections.
  

And these may cause information to be retained about you, and for us to contact you.

Disclosure: KBooks uses certain third-party vendors (e.g., data storage and processing facilities) to assist us in providing our products and services. KBooks may transfer your personally identifiable information to such vendors who have entered into a contract with KBooks that protects the confidentiality of your information and permits the vendor to use it only as reasonably necessary to fulfill its contract with KBooks.

KBooks may also disclose your personally identifiable information as it believes is reasonably necessary to comply with laws, regulation or other governmental authority or to prevent harm to yourself or others. Finally, KBooks may disclose your personally identifiable information upon a transfer or sale to another entity of all or substantially all of KBooks' stock or assets, or other forms of transfer of control to another entity. The same fundamental terms of the privacy policy will still apply, but that entity will be able to contact you as it follows the same basic terms of this agreement. In short, the acquiring entity will not sell or license your name to unrelated third parties, but the entity and any affiliates/subsidiaries will be able to contact you about the products they produce, market or sell, as well as contact you for other purposes you have agreed to, as well as make you aware of the privacy policies they will apply to you.

Links: For your convenience, we may provide links to certain third-party Web sites or referrals to certain third parties' products or services. If you choose to visit a third party's Web site or use its products or services, please be aware that the third party's privacy policy, and not the KBooks privacy policy, will govern your activities and any information you disclose while interacting with the third party. We encourage our users to be aware when they leave our site and to read the privacy statements of each and every Web site that collects personally identifiable information. This privacy statement applies solely to information collected by this Web site.

Newsletters: If a user wishes to subscribe to our newsletter, we ask for contact information such as name and email address.

Surveys and contests: From time to time we may request information from users via surveys or contests. Participation in these surveys or contests is completely voluntary and the user therefore has a choice whether or not to disclose this information. Information requested may include contact information (such as name and shipping address), and demographic information (such as zip code, age level). Contact information will be used to notify the winners and award prizes. Survey information will be used for purposes of monitoring or improving the use and satisfaction of this site or Kinetic Books products.

Tell-A-Friend: If a user elects to use our referral service for informing a friend about our site, we ask them for the friend's name and email address. KBooks will automatically send the friend a one-time email inviting them to visit the site. KBooks stores this information for the sole purpose of sending this one-time email. The friend may send mail to KBooks at to cause the removal of this information from their database. No subject line is required.

Public forums: KBooks may make available chat rooms, forums, message boards and newsgroups for its users. Any information disclosed in these areas, or otherwise submitted to KBooks for publication, becomes public information and is no longer within the shield of this privacy statement. Use extreme caution when disclosing personal information through any of the above-mentioned communication mechanisms. In addition, KBooks may use comments posted in public areas about the Site or KBooks's services for editorial purposes or in promotional, advertising or marketing materials. Users who submit such comments in these public places on the Site grant a perpetual, royalty-free license to KBooks to use such public information.

Special offers: We may send new members a welcoming email to verify password and username. Established members will occasionally receive information on products, services, special deals and a newsletter. Out of respect for the privacy of our users we present the option to not receive these types of communications. Please see our choice and opt-out below.

Correction/Updating personal information: If a user's personally identifiable information changes (such as your zip code), or if a user no longer desires our service, we will endeavor to provide a way to correct, update or remove the user's personal data provided to us. This can usually be done at the member information page or by

Choice/Opt-out: Our users are given the opportunity to 'opt-out' of having their information used for purposes not directly related to our site at the point where we ask for the information. For example, our order form has an 'opt-out' mechanism so users who buy a product from us, but do not want any further contact from us unless it is related to the order, can keep their email address off of our lists. Send mail to to exit the database. No subject line is required.

Users who no longer wish to receive our newsletter or promotional materials from our partners may opt-out of receiving these communications by sending mail to . No subject line is required.

Notification of privacy policy changes. KBooks reserves the right to change this privacy policy, and will post any revisions on the Site. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy regularly for any changes. Your continued use of the Site will be subject to the then-current privacy policy.

If at any point we wish to use personally identifiable information in a manner different from that stated at the time it was collected, we will request permission of users by way of an email. Users will have a choice as to whether or not we use their information in this different manner.

Questions? If you have any questions about our privacy practices, please feel free to contact us at:

Kinetic Books Company
Privacy Policies
Kinetic Books
2003 Western Avenue Suite 100
Seattle, WA 98121

Phone: (206) 448-1141
Fax: (206) 374-2918