• Software developers have rights in regard to how other people may use and duplicate their products. 

• Along with these rights come responsibilities.  

• Developers of software products are accountable to their customers to provide solutions that are of high quality, ergonomic, inclusive, free of malware and above all perform their stated task correctly and efficiently. 
• Responsible developers will provide systems that allow them to respond to problems encountered by users. 
• Many developers voluntarily adhere to a professional code of conduct.

Students Learn About:

• Acknowledging the intellectual properties of others: 

• Software is intellectual property. 
• Intellectual property is property resulting from mental labour. 
• Therefore intellectual property is created by all types of authors, including software developers.
  
  
• It can often be ambiguous as to who is the ‘creator’ of the software – software developers need to acknowledge the contributions of third party libraries, graphic designers, etc.
  
  
  
  
  

• Producing quality software solutions: 

• Factors that affect the quality of software include 
• • Correctness: Does it do what it is supposed to do?
• • Reliability: Does it do it all of the time?
• • Efficiency: Does it do it the best way possible?
• • Integrity: Is it secure?
• • Useability: Is it designed for the end user?
• • Maintainability: Can it be understood?
• • Flexibility: Can it be modified?
• • Testability: Can it be tested?
• • Portability: Will it work with other hardware?
• • Re-useability: Can parts of it be used in another project?
• • Interoperability: Will it work with other software?

• External factors that affect software quality include 
• hardware, 
• operating system, 
• other software and runtime errors.

• Responding to user-identified problems: 

• Mechanisms are needed to assist in the identification of errors and their resolution, such as support departments and severity classifications.

• Adhereing to Code of Conduct: 

• Standards by which software developers agree to abide. 
• These standards increase the quality of developed software across the industry.
• Australian Computer Society - Code of Ethics 

• Generation and transmission of malware: 

• Developers have a responsibility to both not develop malware and to constantly check for malware in their workplace environments. 
• Users have the right to expect their software to be free of malware.

• Addressing ergonomic issues: 

• Software developers have the responsibility to ensure that their software is ergonomic and useable. 
• User interfaces should be consistent and clear – conventions should be explained. 
• Colour should be used appropriately. 
• Fonts should be consistent. 
• Data elements such as text boxes should be aligned.

• Insuring inclusivity issues are addressed: 

• Inclusive software is software that takes into account the different backgrounds of the users of the software. 
• The software should be accessible to individuals varying in culture, economics, gender and disability.

• Ensuring the individuals’ privacy is not compromised: 

• Software developers have the responsibility of protecting the data that the users of the software provide