Are you sure you want to exit? delete this document? close the application without backing up?
With dialog-box messages like these, our computers show they are worried for us. They fear that in haste we'll do something that we'll live to regret.
What if our computers began cautioning us about the reckless decisions we make in the rest of our lives?
Are you sure you want to ingest a muffin containing 1.7 grams of partially hydrogenated cottonseed oil?
Are you sure you want to marry someone without asking for references?
Are you sure you want to vote for a candidate whose wealth exceeds that of Nova Scotia?
Readers are invited to submit up to five "Are You Sure ...?" messages, each no more than 40 words. You may choose to include the name of the person on whose screen the message is popping up.
R U L E S
Send your submissions via e-mail only to salon21st@salon.com. Please include your full name and an accurate e-mail address so we can contact you if you're a winner. By submitting your entry you give Salon Technology permission to publish it. Deadline for entries is May 1.
P R I Z E S
The winning response will receive a copy of Salon Technology senior correspondent Andrew Leonard's book, "Bots: The Origin of New Species."
In two weeks we'll publish a winner and some selected entries -- then start over a couple weeks after that with a whole new challenge.
