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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteJef Raskin’s well-known laws of interface design are two, not three: protect users’ work, and do not waste their time or make them do unnecessary work. They are useful prompts for software teams, too—but the extension from interface design to developers’ working conditions is an ethical argument, not a universal legal rule.
What are Raskin’s laws of software?
In The Humane Interface, Jef Raskin frames two laws for computer interaction:
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A computer should not harm a user’s work—or allow that work to come to harm through inaction.
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A computer should not waste a user’s time or require more work than is strictly necessary.
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These are practical design principles: preserve what people have made and remove needless effort from using software. They are not a three-law system. The publisher-hosted excerpt defines a humane interface as one that is “responsive to human needs and considerate of human frailties.” Read Raskin’s definition at O’Reilly.
How can software avoid harming users’ work?
Apply the first law wherever a user creates, edits, or relies on information. The key question is not only whether an error can happen, but whether the software prevents it, limits its impact, and helps the person recover.
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Protect changes. Save work reliably, make unsaved status visible, and avoid discarding edits without clear warning and a recoverable path.
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Make destructive actions deliberate. Explain what will be deleted or overwritten; where feasible, provide undo, version history, or a restore mechanism.
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Handle interruption safely. Consider crashes, network loss, expired sessions, and device shutdowns. Preserve drafts or explain what the user must do to avoid losing them.
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Test recovery, not just the happy path. Check whether people can restore work after foreseeable failures, and whether error messages make the next safe action clear.
This is a design lens, not a guarantee that every loss can be prevented. The useful standard is to identify foreseeable ways work could be harmed and reduce avoidable risk.
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The second law asks teams to scrutinize friction that does not serve a necessary user goal. A task may be technically possible yet still impose needless steps, repeated entry, confusing choices, or avoidable waiting.
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Remove repeated steps when the software can safely remember or reuse information.
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Make common tasks straightforward without hiding important consequences or controls.
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Use clear labels and feedback so people do not have to guess whether an action worked.
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Ask for information only when it is needed, and explain why a required step matters.
“Strictly necessary” depends on the task and its risks. Extra confirmation can be justified before an irreversible action; the same interruption may be wasteful for a reversible one. The aim is not fewer clicks at any cost, but less unnecessary effort without sacrificing safety or comprehension.
Why humane development work belongs in the conversation
Raskin also observes that programming environments have received too little benefit from human-factors research, making simple tasks unnecessarily difficult. That insight connects humane interfaces with the tools and workflows used to build them: avoidable friction affects developers as well as end users.
The ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct broadens the ethical frame. It calls on computing professionals to contribute to human well-being and avoid harm, with attention to people affected by computing decisions. Its leadership guidance also addresses workers’ quality of working life, including development, accessibility, physical safety, psychological well-being, and human dignity. Read the ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct.
For a software organization, that supports an ethical case for giving people workable tools and conditions in which they can build and maintain software responsibly. Protecting users’ work, reducing preventable friction, and making room for careful engineering are aligned concerns—not proof that better working conditions automatically produce a particular product outcome.
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Use the laws as prompts, not a compliance formula
Raskin’s laws concern the computer-user relationship; they do not themselves establish obligations toward employees. The ACM Code offers professional ethical guidance, not a universal legal determination. It also cautions that the Code is not an algorithm for resolving ethical problems. Laws, employment duties, and legal standards vary by jurisdiction and circumstance.
Teams can still use the two laws to structure design and organizational discussions:
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Work: What could cause a user’s work to be lost, damaged, or inaccessible, and how can the product prevent or mitigate it?
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Effort: Which steps consume time without helping users achieve their goal or manage a meaningful risk?
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Working conditions: Do the tools, resources, and team practices support people in doing responsible work while respecting their well-being?
These questions guide judgment; they do not replace testing, professional expertise, or applicable legal advice. Raskin’s book, The Humane Interface: New Directions for Designing Interactive Systems, was published in 2000; the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives catalog record describes the book and its subject context. See the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives catalog record.
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