Site Rules

1. By submitting an idea to the Creativity Pool, you dedicate it to the public domain. This means that anyone is free to use it in any way he or she wishes without asking your permission, including commercialization.

2. IF YOU PLAN TO EARN MONEY WITH YOUR IDEA OR INVENTION, OR WISH TO MARKET IT ON YOUR OWN, DO NOT SUBMIT IT TO THE CREATIVITY POOL! THE CREATIVITY POOL IS AN INSTITUTION FOR DONATING UNUSED IDEAS FOR OTHER PEOPLE TO EXPLOIT AND ENJOY. ALSO, PLEASE NOTE THAT BY DISCLOSING AN IDEA IN A PUBLIC PLACE LIKE THIS SITE, YOU AUTOMATICALLY LOSE THE RIGHT TO PATENT IT!

3. The Creativity Pool tries to support a give & take mentality in times where most people enviously hold on to what they already have. In the light of this mission, the Creativity Pool is designed for entertainment purposes: be happy to show your creativity to the world, and submit your ideas with a smile. If anybody really decides to realize your idea, that should be the gravy. By submitting your idea to the Creativity Pool, you allow anyone in the world to make something out of it. Think about it for a second. If your idea was great and they do a great job, they may earn a fortune with it. Feel happy for them!

4. When submitting an idea, please name a reward you would like from anyone who makes use of your idea. Rewards are only of a symbolic nature and do not represent any kind of payment. If your idea was for an as yet uninvented product, getting this product for free could be a good choice. As a rule of the thumb, your reward should never influence the decision whether your idea should be realized at all - in other words: it shouldn't be too high. NO MONEY FEES OR PERCENTAGES! And please don't misuse the reward by trying to restrict the other party's creativity (like dictating the specific use or certain features, or by reserving naming rights). - Please also remember that there should be some kind of connection between your reward and the idea you had (i.e. "wash my dishes" will not apply in most cases). If you can't think of an adequate reward, it might help to take a look at the rewards already posted on the website. If you don't care for a reward, you don't have to name one.

5. Please note that there is no legal right for any kind of compensation. The Creativity Pool is designed to work to everybody's advantage, and its basic cornerstones are gratitude and fairness (in other words, the Creativity Pool is based on a big gentlemen's agreement with the world :-). However, it's up to the people visiting this site to employ this fairness. Also, please remember that there are more than 6 billion people out there and it is entirely possible that someone had an idea before you did. If you want to reduce the likelihood of submitting something that already exists, use the internet and do some research. Under no circumstances does the fact that an idea you have submitted gets posted on this site confirm that your submission was actually new.

6. If you use an idea from this site, please show your gratitude and fairness to the inventor (hey, you got a fabulous idea for free, didn't you?). Don't forget where that idea came from, and, if possible, kindly notify the webmaster@creativitypool.com of any progress. Usually, the rewards for good ideas are not so high that rewarding the authors should be a matter of serious consideration. Sticking to your part of the deal will earn you good fortune and a little bit of publicity on this site. If for some reason the award mentioned does not seem adequate, consider giving something else. If the idea you got from the Creativity Pool makes you a billionaire, well, good for you, too. Nobody will prevent you from showing more generosity - but you don't have to.

7. Be sensible when applying these rules: naturally, a kid using an idea as a stimulus for a school science project will not have to give a costly reward (unless of course the project turns into something commercially successful). Just the same, someone who has been inspired to build a prototype of an invention in his own garage will not be required to build a second one for the person who had the idea (although everyone is welcome to do so :-). Remember that the main purpose of this site is the realization of ideas - after all, that's what ideas are for. Any feedback about efforts in this direction will be welcome.

8. It is CreativityPool.com's sole responsibility and right to decide which ideas to add to the database and which ideas not to include. Minor changes may be made to your submissions in order to enhance readability. Nevertheless, it's the submitters (and nobody else) who are responsible for the contents of the ideas published in the Creativity Pool. The Creativity Pool is in no way responsible for the consequences of views expressed or ideas submitted by its users, including but not limited to copyright infringement.

9. Please submit your own ideas only. Submitting the ideas of others can only make our lives complicated and unpleasant. Don't do it.

10. Should you encounter anything annoying on this website, please contact the webmaster@creativitypool.com. CreativityPool.com is trying to do the best job possible, but if you think it could still be better, we might as well find a solution together. Also, if for any specific reason you believe that "this" - or maybe even "that" - won't work, feel free to use the contact form and suggest an alternative.

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