Caution and Warning alerts are backwards from generally accepted practice

[cdwilson]

The colors and icons used for Caution and Warning in GitHub alerts imply that Caution (red) is more serious than Warning (yellow).

From https://docs.github.com/en/get-started/writing-on-github/getting-started-with-writing-and-formatting-on-github/basic-writing-and-formatting-syntax#alerts:

This is backwards from generally accepted practice for precautionary statements in technical documentation, where a "warning" statement is considered more serious than a "caution" statement (and "danger" is considered most serious).

ANSI Z535.5

OSHA 1910.145

From https://docs.asciidoctor.org/asciidoc/latest/blocks/admonitions/:

When choosing the admonition type, you may find yourself getting confused between "caution" and "warning" as these words are often used interchangeably. Here’s a simple rule to help you differentiate the two:

• Use CAUTION to advise the reader to act carefully (i.e., exercise care).
• Use WARNING to inform the reader of danger, harm, or consequences that exist.

Some other examples:

• https://developers.google.com/style/notices
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Precautionary_statement
• https://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-caution-and-vs-warning/
• https://technicalcommunicationcenter.com/2016/11/04/notes-cautions-and-warnings-in-technical-writing/
• https://www.muirgraphics.com/difference-life-death-choosing-right-safety-signal-words/
• https://www.mysafetylabels.com/Danger_Caution_Warning_Safety_Labels_Headers.aspx

[github-actions[bot]]

Stale issue message