Terms
These are the terms for using Cooee, an SMS information service run by Michael Juric in Victoria, Australia. Texting COOEE to 0485 088 977 means you've read and accepted them.
Cooee is not an emergency service. In an emergency call 000. If you're lost or hurt in the bush, use the emergency features on your phone (Emergency+ app, satellite SOS) and contact police - not Cooee.
What Cooee is
Cooee answers questions by SMS - weather, roads, opening hours, closures, general questions and anything else you ask. Replies are generated by an AI model using web search, live weather data, closure notices published by state park authorities and the model's own knowledge. It's information to help you plan, offered as a convenience.
What it isn't
- It isn't advice from a ranger, the Bureau of Meteorology, a fire authority or anyone qualified. Always check official sources - bom.gov.au, your state's emergency and fire services, and the park authority - before you rely on anything.
- It can be wrong. Weather changes, closure notices lag, and an AI can misread a question or a source. Treat a Cooee reply the way you'd treat a tip from a helpful stranger: useful, worth checking.
- It can be late or missing. SMS delivery depends on your carrier and coverage, and the service can go down. Don't plan a trip that only works if a text arrives.
Your responsibility
You're responsible for your own safety and decisions. To the extent Australian law allows, Cooee and Michael Juric aren't liable for any loss, injury or damage arising from using the service, relying on a reply, or a reply not arriving. Nothing here limits rights you have under the Australian Consumer Law that can't be excluded.
Using the service
- Texting COOEE opts you in. Text STOP at any time to opt out; HELP for a reminder of what it does.
- Standard SMS rates from your carrier apply to what you send. Cooee doesn't charge you.
- There's a fair-use limit of around 40 messages per number per day so one phone can't run up the bill. If you hit it, you'll get a short reply saying so.
- Don't use it to harass anyone, to send unlawful content, or to try to make the AI do things unrelated to the service. We can block a number that does.
Data
What we store and who processes it is set out on the Privacy page.
Changes and ending the service
These terms may change; the date at the top will move. The service may be paused or shut down at any time - it's run by one person, not a company with an on-call team. If it closes, you'll get one text saying so.
Law
These terms are governed by the laws of Victoria, Australia.
Contact
The service has no email address; everything happens over the same number. Requests about your data are handled by text as set out on the Privacy page.