These terms govern the use of the Android app GeoCrystal, the app for mineral and rock collectors and for geology enthusiasts developed by Starlyware. Please read them carefully: by installing or using the app you accept them. If you do not accept them, do not use the app.
Who We Are and Definitions. GeoCrystal (the “App”) is provided by Starlyware di Gianluca Grasso, Chieti (CH), Italy (“Starlyware” or “we” or “us”). “You” or the “User” means the person who uses the App. These terms (the “Terms”) are a contract between you and Starlyware and also apply when you sign in with Google or Facebook. Your personal data are processed according to the GeoCrystal privacy policy available at https://www.starlyware.com/products/geocrystal/privacy (the “Privacy Policy”). These Terms do not limit the rights you have under the Privacy Policy or under data protection law.
GeoCrystal is a guide for collectors, students and enthusiasts of minerals, rocks and geology: it offers a catalogue of minerals and mineral localities, a personal collection with a community showcase, the identification of minerals from a photo and geology tools such as the compass-clinometer, the field notebook and the list of recent earthquakes.
Account and age. The catalogue and the tools can be used without an account. An account can be created by users aged 14 or over. Users under 14 (or under the age of digital consent of their country, if different) may create an account only with the consent of a parent or guardian.
Minors. If you are a minor, a parent or guardian is responsible for your use of the App and should accompany you on field trips and visits to mines, quarries and outcrops.
License. We grant you a personal, limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable and revocable license to install and use the App on your devices, for personal and non-commercial purposes, in accordance with these Terms and with the terms of Google Play. Any commercial use, including the reuse of the catalogue of minerals and places, requires our written permission.
The account is optional: it is used to catalogue your minerals, publish them in the community showcase, keep your wishlist and explored places, identify minerals from a photo, send suggestions and make the supporter purchase.
Your information. The information you give us must be true and up to date. Choose a profile name and photo that do not offend anyone and do not impersonate other people. Keep your password confidential: you are responsible for what happens with your account. If you think someone else is using it, write to us immediately.
Deletion. You can delete your account at any time, from the App or as explained on the account deletion page: https://www.starlyware.com/products/geocrystal/delete-account.
Your collection. The photos, descriptions and localities of the minerals you catalogue belong to you. They are private by default: they are stored on our servers to show them to you in the App and are not visible to other users. To protect the community, our team can view them to check that they respect these Terms (see point d). You grant us only the license strictly necessary to store, process, check and display them for these purposes. You can delete single minerals at any time, and everything is deleted with your account.
Showcase. If you tick “Show in the community showcase” and our team approves the mineral, its first photo, the mineral, the locality, your profile name and your profile photo become visible to all users of the App. For this purpose only, you grant us a free, non-exclusive, worldwide license to host, reproduce, adapt (for example resize) and display this content in the App for as long as it stays in the showcase. You can withdraw your consent at any time: the mineral leaves the showcase immediately. We will not use your content in advertising or outside the App without asking for your permission. Publication in the showcase is not guaranteed and we may decide not to publish a mineral.
What you upload. Upload only photos and texts that you have the right to use, preferably photos you took yourself. Do not upload content that is illegal, offensive, violent, sexual, discriminatory, defamatory or that infringes the rights of others, advertising or spam, photos of recognisable people without their consent, or personal data of other people. Do not write the precise location of private properties or protected sites if this could lead others to enter them illegally or to damage them. You are responsible for the content you upload.
Moderation. Every mineral you catalogue or edit is reviewed by our team. We may approve it, keep it private (with a note) or remove it, and we may remove content already published, when it breaches these Terms or the law. When we remove or restrict your content we will tell you the reason, in the App or by email, unless the law prevents it; you can contest the decision by replying or writing to us, and we will review it. A copy of removed content may be kept for a limited time to handle disputes, as described in the Privacy Policy.
Reporting illegal content. If you find content in the App that you believe is illegal or infringes your rights, write to info@starlyware.com indicating where it is in the App, why you believe it is illegal and your name and email address (unless the report concerns content involving child sexual abuse). We will examine the report promptly and let you know our decision.
Suggestions and reports. If you send us suggestions or report an answer of the mineral identification, we may use them, without any obligation of compensation, to improve the App. We will not publish your name or your personal data in connection with them.
Backups. We take reasonable care of your data, but we cannot guarantee that it will never be lost. Keep a copy of the photos and texts that are important to you.
General information. The descriptions, chemical formulas, physical properties, photos, coordinates, localities and the other data of the catalogue are provided for general information and education. They are prepared with care, also with the help of public sources (for example Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons) and of artificial intelligence tools, but they may be incomplete, approximate or out of date. They are not a scientific or professional reference.
Localities and access. The presence of a mine, quarry, cave, outcrop or other locality in the App does not mean that it is accessible, open to visitors, safe, or that collecting is allowed there. Many localities are private property, closed, abandoned, dangerous or protected. Before going, always check access, permits and rules with the owners, the municipalities, the park authorities and the other competent bodies.
No endorsement. The presence of a place, a mineral, a photo or a link in the App does not mean that we recommend, organise or guarantee it.
Field trips, visits to localities and the collecting, handling and testing of minerals and rocks are carried out at your own risk and under your responsibility (or of the adult who accompanies you). In particular:
never enter abandoned mines, tunnels or caves without authorisation, expert guidance and suitable equipment: they can collapse, flood or contain dangerous air; stay away from quarry faces, cliffs, unstable slopes and active work areas;
use suitable protective equipment when you hammer or split rocks (for example safety glasses, gloves and, where needed, a helmet), check the weather and the tides before leaving, tell someone where you are going and bring water and a charged phone;
respect private property, closed areas, protected areas and the laws and regulations on the collecting of minerals, rocks and fossils, which in Italy and in other countries can forbid or limit collecting, require permits or limit the quantities; do not damage sites and leave them as you found them;
some minerals are toxic, radioactive or release dangerous fibres or dust (for example minerals of mercury, arsenic, lead or uranium, and asbestos minerals): never lick, taste or inhale them, do not heat or grind them, wash your hands after handling them and keep them away from children, food and animals; use acids and the other identification tests with care and according to the instructions of their producers;
never use the App while driving, cycling or in any situation that requires your full attention;
in an emergency call the European emergency number 112.
Starlyware is not responsible for accidents, injuries or damage to people, animals or things that occur during field trips, visits, collecting or tests, within the limits allowed by law (see Section 15).
Automatic answers. The identification of minerals and rocks from a photo is generated automatically by an artificial intelligence model (Google Gemini). The answers may be wrong, incomplete or not suitable for your specimen: they are suggestions for curiosity and learning, not a certain identification. Many minerals can only be identified with laboratory tests.
Not an appraisal. The identification is not an expert opinion, a certification or an appraisal. Do not rely on it to establish the authenticity, origin, quality or value of a mineral, gemstone or meteorite, or to buy, sell or exchange specimens: ask a qualified expert or laboratory.
Not safety or medical advice. An answer of the App does not tell you that a specimen is safe to handle. Treat unknown specimens with the care described in Section 7. In case of contact with dangerous substances or possible poisoning, call 112 or a poison control centre immediately.
What you send. Send only photos of minerals, rocks and fossils. Do not send photos of people, documents or other personal data. The photo is used only to answer you and is not stored by us.
Limits and reports. The number of daily identifications is limited. Extra identifications may be available by watching optional ads. We may change the limits or suspend the service at any time. You can report an inappropriate or wrong answer with the “Report” button in the App or by writing to us: we review the reports.
Approximate measurements. The compass-clinometer, the coordinates and the other measurements depend on the sensors of your phone, can be disturbed by metal objects and magnetic fields and are approximate. They are not a professional surveying or navigation instrument: in the field carry a map and the skills to use it.
Field notebook. The samples, notes, photos and positions of the field notebook are stored only on your phone. We cannot recover them if you lose the phone, delete them or uninstall the App: export them regularly if they are important to you.
Earthquakes. The list of earthquakes comes from the public data of the Italian National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) and of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). It is shown for information and education, may be delayed, incomplete or later revised, and is not an alert or civil protection system. For alerts and safety instructions follow the civil protection authorities of your country.
Voluntary contribution. The App is free. The “Support the developer” purchase is a voluntary contribution to the development of GeoCrystal: it gives you a supporter recognition in the App and does not unlock additional features.
Payments. Payments are processed by Google Play under its own terms. Prices are shown in the App before the purchase.
Refunds. The contribution is digital content delivered immediately. Refunds are handled according to the Google Play refund policy and to the consumer laws that apply to you. If a purchase is refunded or cancelled, the supporter recognition is removed.
Donations outside the App. Donations made outside the App (for example on PayPal, through the link of earlier versions) are voluntary, do not give any right in the App and are governed by the terms of the payment service.
Independence. GeoCrystal is an independent app and is not affiliated with, sponsored or endorsed by INGV, USGS, Wikimedia, Google, the owners of the localities or the other bodies and companies mentioned in the App. Their names and trademarks belong to their owners and are used only to describe data, places and services.
Advertising. The App shows ads provided by Google AdMob, including optional rewarded videos. We are not responsible for the content of the ads or for the products and services of the advertisers.
Third-party data and links. The App uses data and services of third parties (for example INGV, USGS, Wikimedia Commons, Google Maps and Google Search) and contains links to external websites and apps: they are provided “as is” and are governed by their own terms.
You agree not to:
use the App for unlawful purposes or in violation of these Terms;
try to gain unauthorized access to the App, to our servers or to other users' accounts, or to bypass its limits and security measures;
overload our services, use bots, scripts or automated means to access them or to copy the catalogue or the showcase, or use modified versions of the App;
decompile, copy, modify, distribute or create derivative works of the App, except where the law expressly allows it;
collect the personal data of other users, impersonate other people, or use the showcase to advertise, sell specimens or send spam;
upload or send content that is offensive, illegal or that infringes the rights of others, or abuse the report and suggestion functions.
Intellectual Property. The App, its code, graphics, the texts of the catalogue and the GeoCrystal and Starlyware names and logos belong to Starlyware or to its licensors and are protected by the law. The photos of the catalogue belong to their authors and are used under free licenses (for example Creative Commons, as indicated in the credits of each photo) or with the permission of the owner. The content of the showcase belongs to the users who published it. If you believe that content in the App infringes your rights, write to us at the address below and we will examine your request promptly.
Suspension and Termination. You can stop using the App and delete your account at any time.
We may suspend or delete accounts that seriously or repeatedly breach these Terms or the law, upload illegal content, or put the security of the service or of other users at risk. Except in urgent cases or where the law prevents it, we will tell you the reason and you can contest the decision by writing to us. We may modify or discontinue the App, or some of its functions, at any time; when possible we will give notice in the App.
The App is provided free of charge, “as is” and “as available”. We do our best to keep it working and accurate, but we do not guarantee that it will be free of errors or interruptions, or that the information on minerals, places and earthquakes, the measurements of the tools and the answers of the identification will be accurate, complete or up to date.
To the extent permitted by law, Starlyware is not liable for indirect or consequential damages, loss of data, or damages resulting from the use of the information in the App, from field trips, collecting and tests on specimens, from the answers of the mineral identification, from content published by other users or from services and websites of third parties.
Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability that cannot be excluded or limited by law, such as liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, for fraud or gross negligence, or the mandatory rights you have as a consumer.
Changes to These Terms. We may update these Terms, for example for new functions of the App or changes in the law. The date of the last update is shown at the top. In case of important changes we will let you know in advance, before they take effect, by email (if you have an account) and in the notes of the App update on Google Play. If you continue to use the App after the changes, you accept the new Terms; if you do not accept them, you can stop using the App and delete your account.
Applicable Law and Disputes. These Terms are governed by Italian law. If you are a consumer, you keep the protection of the mandatory rules of the country where you live, and you can bring proceedings before the courts of your place of residence.
Before going to court, write to us: most problems can be solved quickly by email. If a clause of these Terms is invalid, the other clauses remain in force. These Terms are the complete agreement between you and Starlyware about GeoCrystal: the general Starlyware terms of use do not apply to the App.
Contact.
For questions, reports or complaints about GeoCrystal:
Developer: Starlyware di Gianluca Grasso, Chieti (CH), Italy
Email: info@starlyware.com