--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If our field is \"to advance\", we must…" description: "\"If our field is \"to advance\", we must - without displacing creativity and aesthetics - make sure our terminology is clear.\" — Jef Raskin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/jef-raskin-26845_aesthetics_if-our-field-is-to-advance-we-must-witho_882433.jpg" --- # If our field is "to advance", we must - without displacing… ![“If our field is "to advance", we must - without displacing creativity and aesthetics - make sure our terminology is clear.” quote by Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/jef-raskin-26845_aesthetics_if-our-field-is-to-advance-we-must-witho_882433.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/jef-raskin-26845_aesthetics_if-our-field-is-to-advance-we-must-witho_882433.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/jef-raskin-26845_aesthetics_if-our-field-is-to-advance-we-must-witho_882433.jpg) > “If our field is "to advance", we must - without displacing creativity and aesthetics - make sure our terminology is clear.” [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Advancing a field requires clear terms without sacrificing creativity or beauty. **In simple terms:** Clear language helps progress while keeping art alive. Key Takeaway Prioritize clarity and imagination. Themes language creativity progress Mood thoughtful inspirational Type guidance philosophical When to use this quote - product development - academic research - branding - artistic projects Key Concepts design semantics aesthetics Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance precision with artistic freedom? - What vocabularies hinder creativity? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on clarity can limit innovative expression. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aesthetics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aesthetics/) [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/) [Graphic design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/graphic-design/) ## Related quotes > [I assume my stance, and take back the club, low, slowly; at the top, my eyes fog over, and my joints dip and swirl…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-assume-my-stance-and-take-back-the-club-low-slowly-at-the-top-my/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Things need to be properly named. Political confusion starts with terminology confusion. Islamism implies some sort of political and social plan for Muslim people.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/things-need-to-be-properly-named-political-confusion-starts-with/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [“Human language can only work in broad categories. We create words for things, even though words have a danger of confining things. People will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-damian/human-language-can-only-work-in-broad-categories-we-create-words-for/) Chris Damian > [I typically don't use the distinction 'positive' and 'negative' liberty, because negative sounds bad and positive sounds good, and I don't think that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-barnett/i-typically-don-t-use-the-distinction-positive-and-negative-liberty/) Randy Barnett > [Whether the person should then be called "an intellectual" seems to reduce the issue to a question of terminology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/whether-the-person-should-then-be-called-an-intellectual-seems-to/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Political confusion starts with terminology confusion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/political-confusion-starts-with-terminology-confusion/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [Some of my favorite songs--and I don't know if this is the right terminology--are white-boy classics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaquille-o-neal/some-of-my-favorite-songs-and-i-don-t-know-if-this-is-the-right/) [Shaquille O'Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaquille-o-neal/) > [The usual terminology of political language is stupid. What is 'left' and what is 'right'? Why should Hitler be 'right' and Stalin, his temporary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/the-usual-terminology-of-political-language-is-stupid-what-is-left/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [The history of acceptance of new theories frequently shows the following steps: At first the new idea is treated as pure nonsense, not worth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-lewin/the-history-of-acceptance-of-new-theories-frequently-shows-the/) [Kurt Lewin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-lewin/) > [When I get interested in a new topic I teach a class on it. There's a graduate seminar I teach in which the students…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/when-i-get-interested-in-a-new-topic-i-teach-a-class-on-it-there-s-a/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [The use of anthropomorphic terminology forces you linguistically to adopt an operational view. And it makes it practically impossible to argue about programs independently…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edsger-dijkstra/the-use-of-anthropomorphic-terminology-forces-you-linguistically-to/) [Edsger Dijkstra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edsger-dijkstra/) > [Being an artist is like being an athlete. You have to be in there every day, keeping in shape. You have to be fearless.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-jordan/being-an-artist-is-like-being-an-athlete-you-have-to-be-in-there/) [Lawrence Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-jordan/) > [I never studied film theory, so I don't know the terminology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-moyle/i-never-studied-film-theory-so-i-don-t-know-the-terminology/) Allan Moyle > [This labour of the artist to discover a means of apprehending beneath matter and experience, beneath words, something different from their appearance, is of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/this-labour-of-the-artist-to-discover-a-means-of-apprehending-beneath/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [All this terminology of rankings - forcing rankings along some distribution curve or whatever - we're done with that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-nanterme/all-this-terminology-of-rankings-forcing-rankings-along-some/) [Pierre Nanterme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-nanterme/) ## More by Jef Raskin > [An interface is humane if it is responsive to human needs and considerate of human frailties.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/an-interface-is-humane-if-it-is-responsive-to-human-needs-and/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [Right now, computers, which are supposed to be our servant, are oppressing us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/right-now-computers-which-are-supposed-to-be-our-servant-are/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [Users do not care about what is inside the box, as long as the box does what they need done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/users-do-not-care-about-what-is-inside-the-box-as-long-as-the-box/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [The system should treat all user input as sacred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/the-system-should-treat-all-user-input-as-sacred/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [What I proposed was a computer that would be easy to use, mix text and graphics, and sell for about $1,000. Steve Jobs said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/what-i-proposed-was-a-computer-that-would-be-easy-to-use-mix-text-and/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [I am confident that we can do better than GUIs because the basic problem with them (and with the Linux and Unix interfaces) is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/i-am-confident-that-we-can-do-better-than-guis-because-the-basic/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [What users want is convenience and results.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/what-users-want-is-convenience-and-results/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [As far as the customer is concerned, the interface is the product.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/as-far-as-the-customer-is-concerned-the-interface-is-the-product/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [When you have to choose among methods, your locus of attention is drawn from the task and temporarily becomes the decision itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/when-you-have-to-choose-among-methods-your-locus-of-attention-is/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [A well-designed and humane interface does not need to be split into beginner and expert subsystems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/a-well-designed-and-humane-interface-does-not-need-to-be-split-into/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [A computer shall not waste your time or require you to do more work than is strictly necessary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/a-computer-shall-not-waste-your-time-or-require-you-to-do-more-work/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [If I am correct, the use of a product based on modelessness and monoty would soon become so habitual as to be nearly addictive,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/if-i-am-correct-the-use-of-a-product-based-on-modelessness-and-monoty/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [An unlimited-length file name is a file. The content of a file is its own best name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/an-unlimited-length-file-name-is-a-file-the-content-of-a-file-is-its/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [Once the product's task is known, design the interface first; then implement to the interface design.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/once-the-product-s-task-is-known-design-the-interface-first-then/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) > [I am only a footnote, but proud of the footnote I have become. My subsequent work on eliciting principles and developing the theory of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/i-am-only-a-footnote-but-proud-of-the-footnote-i-have-become-my/) [Jef Raskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) [Explore all 21 Jef Raskin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/) ## More Advance quotes > [I don't think we should tell them what we're going to do in advance. Let them think. Worry. Wonder. Uncertainty is the most chilling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernon-a-walters/i-don-t-think-we-should-tell-them-what-we-re-going-to-do-in-advance/) [Vernon A. Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernon-a-walters/) > [It's more common than not that bipolar illness will start in the teens. One of the reasons I spend a lot of time on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/it-s-more-common-than-not-that-bipolar-illness-will-start-in-the/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [The advance of science spares us from irrational dread.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/the-advance-of-science-spares-us-from-irrational-dread/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [Some companies out there quote a start of production that is substantially in advance of when customers get their cars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elon-musk/some-companies-out-there-quote-a-start-of-production-that-is/) [Elon Musk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elon-musk/) > [My priority in life is my whanau, followed by my work as an artist, which has blessed me with the ability to provide opportunities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cliff-curtis/my-priority-in-life-is-my-whanau-followed-by-my-work-as-an-artist/) [Cliff Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cliff-curtis/) > [Others have said it before me. If you don't have a seat at the table, you're probably on the menu. And so it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/others-have-said-it-before-me-if-you-don-t-have-a-seat-at-the-table/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [What I have in advance are people I want to write about and a problem or problems that I see those people encountering and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/what-i-have-in-advance-are-people-i-want-to-write-about-and-a-problem/) [Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/) > [Error is discipline through which we advance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/error-is-discipline-through-which-we-advance/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [I think it's important to earn your fan base and not just try to immediately advance to the top. If you ride to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-mraz/i-think-it-s-important-to-earn-your-fan-base-and-not-just-try-to/) [Jason Mraz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-mraz/) > [The Chinese public is deeply nationalist, which matters to China's unelected political leadership as much as U.S. nationalism does to American politicians. As China…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-feldman/the-chinese-public-is-deeply-nationalist-which-matters-to-china-s/) [Noah Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-feldman/) > [Some might complain that nuclear disarmament is little more than a dream. But that ignores the very tangible benefits disarmament would bring for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ban-ki-moon/some-might-complain-that-nuclear-disarmament-is-little-more-than-a/) [Ban Ki-moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ban-ki-moon/) > [Let our advance worrying become advance thinking and planning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/let-our-advance-worrying-become-advance-thinking-and-planning/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [Let us not bankrupt our todays by paying interest on the regrets of yesterday and by borrowing in advance the troubles of tomorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-w-sockman-2/let-us-not-bankrupt-our-todays-by-paying-interest-on-the-regrets-of/) Ralph W. Sockman > [In times of failing health, don't hopelessly pray for the intervention of a mythical god; wish hopefully for an advance in medical science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-fowler/in-times-of-failing-health-don-t-hopelessly-pray-for-the-intervention/) [Steve Fowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-fowler/) > [Clearly, unless thinking beings inevitably wipe themselves out soon after developing technology, extraterrestrial intelligence could often be millions or billions of years in advance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/clearly-unless-thinking-beings-inevitably-wipe-themselves-out-soon/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) Browse all 263 Advance quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If our field is \"to advance\", we must - without displacing creativity and aesthetics - make sure our terminology is clear.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jef Raskin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/if-our-field-is-to-advance-we-must-without-displacing-creativity-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Advance" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/if-our-field-is-to-advance-we-must-without-displacing-creativity-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/jef-raskin-26845_aesthetics_if-our-field-is-to-advance-we-must-witho_882433.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/jef-raskin-26845_aesthetics_if-our-field-is-to-advance-we-must-witho_882433.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9a/jef-raskin-26845_aesthetics_if-our-field-is-to-advance-we-must-witho_882433.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If our field is \"to advance\", we must - without displacing creativity and aesthetics - make sure our…” — Jef Raskin", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jef Raskin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jef-raskin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If our field is \"to advance\",...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/if-our-field-is-to-advance-we-must-without-displacing-creativity-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jef-raskin/if-our-field-is-to-advance-we-must-without-displacing-creativity-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```