ErrorPrevention [fact] v1.0.0

Nielsen Heuristic 5 — Error Prevention: Even better than good error messages is a careful design which prevents a problem from occurring in the first place. Either eliminate error-prone conditions or check for them and present users with a confirmation option before they commit to the action.

Confidence

proven

Evidence

@nielsen/source-nielsen-1994

Heuristic Number

5

Violations

• Destructive action (delete, archive) placed adjacent to common non-destructive actions without visual separation.
• Submit button active even when required fields are empty — error only revealed after submit.
• No warning before navigating away from an unsaved form.

ErrorPrevention [fact] v1.0.0

Nielsen Heuristic 5 — Error Prevention: Even better than good error messages is a careful design which prevents a problem from occurring in the first place. Either eliminate error-prone conditions or check for them and present users with a confirmation option before they commit to the action.

Confidence

proven

Evidence

@nielsen/source-nielsen-1994

Heuristic Number

5

Violations

• Destructive action (delete, archive) placed adjacent to common non-destructive actions without visual separation.
• Submit button active even when required fields are empty — error only revealed after submit.
• No warning before navigating away from an unsaved form.

Examples

• Disabling the submit button until required form fields pass inline validation.
• 'Are you sure?' confirmation dialog before deleting data that cannot be recovered.
• Date picker widget that prevents selecting past dates for future-only bookings.
• Autocorrect and spellcheck that catch typos before form submission.

Confidence

proven

Evidence

@nielsen/source-nielsen-1994

Heuristic Number

5

Violations

• Destructive action (delete, archive) placed adjacent to common non-destructive actions without visual separation.
• Submit button active even when required fields are empty — error only revealed after submit.
• No warning before navigating away from an unsaved form.

Supplies To

• @community/principle-error-prevention-and-recovery