Terms of Service

1. Operator and Scope of the Terms

Norticus Software is a software studio operated commercially by Luvia Everyday Joy ("we", "us", or "our"). These draft terms set forth the preliminary basis on which visitors and users may access the website at norticussoftware.com and utilize software utilities provided under the Norticus Software brand.

By accessing this website or using our software tools, you agree to these terms to the extent permitted by applicable law. If you do not agree, please discontinue using our website and software.

Formal business registration details, governing jurisdiction, official registered address, and dispute resolution mechanisms will be determined and confirmed following professional legal review prior to commercial launch.

2. What KERF Does and Does Not Guarantee

Our flagship utility, KERF, is an automated preflight assessment tool currently in development. It is designed to help independent authors, self-publishers, and book creators evaluate print-ready PDF files by checking defined document geometry and properties against specific, documented criteria (such as trim dimensions, bleed margins, spine calculations, and box consistency).

When utilizing KERF, you acknowledge and agree that:

• Defined Rule Evaluation: KERF evaluates files solely against explicit, supported preflight rules implemented in its diagnostic engine. It does not check every conceivable print defect and does not implement every current, unannounced, or future requirement of third-party platforms.
• No Guarantee of Platform Acceptance: A clean diagnostic report indicates that no issues were detected under KERF's specific implemented rules. It does not constitute a warranty, certification, or guarantee that any third-party printer, digital distributor, or publishing platform (including Amazon KDP or IngramSpark) will accept, approve, or successfully manufacture your file.
• Independent Platform Authority: Publishing platforms maintain proprietary, evolving validation pipelines, raster image processors (RIPs), and physical printing constraints that operate independently of our software. Final acceptance decisions and manufacturing determinations rest entirely with the respective publishing platform.

3. User Responsibilities and Backups

Users retain primary responsibility for their publication files and overall production workflow:

• Evaluating Findings: Diagnostic output is provided to assist your preflight preparation. You are responsible for reviewing reported warnings, errors, and informational messages, and for deciding whether and how to make adjustments in your design or typesetting software.
• Independent Backups: You should maintain complete, independent backup copies of all original manuscripts, artwork, and layout files. KERF is an inspection utility designed for analysis, not a cloud storage, archival, or file recovery service.
• Physical Proofing: Automated software preflight cannot replace visual and physical inspection. We strongly recommend ordering and carefully reviewing a physical proof copy from your chosen printing platform to verify typography, margins, color representation, and binding before authorizing full print distribution runs.

4. Intellectual Property and User Content

Your Creative Content: You retain complete ownership and all intellectual property rights in your manuscripts, book covers, illustrations, and PDF files. Norticus Software and Luvia Everyday Joy claim no ownership, license, or rights in your creative work.

In-Browser Processing Design: Based on code inspection of the diagnostic architecture, KERF is designed to execute file parsing, geometry extraction, and preflight rule evaluation locally within browser memory on your device, without uploading manuscript files to studio servers for analysis. While static website assets (HTML, stylesheets, and scripts) are fetched from hosting infrastructure during page load, the inspection engine is architected to process document bytes entirely in local memory. Live end-to-end network telemetry across all production browser environments will be formally verified during staging deployment; we do not make absolute, unqualified warranties regarding network boundaries across modified or third-party client environments.

Studio Intellectual Property & Third-Party Components: The Norticus Software name, brand trademarks, website design, original documentation, and proprietary preflight rule configurations are the intellectual property of Luvia Everyday Joy or its contributors, as applicable. Open-source libraries, web fonts, and third-party software components incorporated into the website or diagnostic engine are used under their respective licenses (such as the SIL Open Font License or MIT license) and remain the property of their respective copyright holders.

5. Third-Party Trademarks and Non-Affiliation

6. Availability, Changes, Warranties, and Liability

We endeavor to deliver reliable, carefully crafted digital tools. Because our software utilities remain in active development, we may modify, refine, or suspend features or portions of our website and applications as development progresses.

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law:

• Our website and preflight utilities are made available on an "as is" and "as available" basis, without express warranties or guarantees of uninterrupted operation.
• To the extent permitted under applicable law in your jurisdiction, Luvia Everyday Joy and its operators shall not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages, including third-party printing costs, production delays, manufacturing rejects, or lost publishing revenue arising from the use of our preflight assessments.

Mandatory Consumer Rights Safeguard: Nothing in these terms excludes, restricts, or modifies any statutory consumer rights, non-excludable guarantees, or legal remedies that you may hold under applicable mandatory consumer protection laws in your jurisdiction. These clauses apply only to the extent permitted by law and are not presented as universally enforceable across all jurisdictions.

7. Contact and Updates

For questions regarding these draft Terms of Service or our software utilities, contact us by email:

Updates to These Terms: We may revise these terms as software utilities launch, operational infrastructure evolves, or formal legal advice is incorporated. Any revisions will be published on this page with an updated draft version and date.