Jenn is a new customer-service "virtual assistant" on AlaskaAir.com, personified by a female avatar.

My colleague John Cook details his experience testing her and explains a little about how she came to be.

Just for fun, I tossed a few questions her way as well. Jenn offered canned replies for questions that travelers might plausibly ask -- "Is it raining in Seattle?", "What are your current fare specials?" -- and automatically loaded related Web pages that gave all the details.

I managed to stump Jenn, however, on a couple of off-the-wall questions but not as many as you might expect.

She was clearly "coached" to deal with this sort of tomfoolery and can even handle some mildly personal questions:

You Asked: Tell me about yourself.

Jenn: I am a virtual assistant, here to help you navigate our Web site.

You Asked: Who is your creator?

Jenn: Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, along with a cutting edge company called Next IT, created me. I'm the first of my kind in the airline industry, here to help you quickly navigate our Web site, while answering your questions. What can I help you with?

You Asked: Do you have free will?

Jenn: Good question. I'm not sure how to answer that. Please try rewording your question. I understand simple questions best.

You Asked: How tall are you?

Jenn: Being virtual, I have no height or weight. How can I help you?

You Asked: Where did you go to school?

Jenn: Everyday is higher education at alaskaair.com. It sure beats the high tuition in the non-virtual world!

You Asked: What do you do for fun?

Jenn: We virtuals don't have too much time for hobbies, but Sergeant Star at goarmy.com is trying to get me into skydiving. I think I'll stick to helping people here.

(Sgt. Star is a similar virtual guide on the U.S. Army's site, also created by Next IT.)

Well, at least she doesn't insult you if you keep her waiting too long, like Ms. Dewey does.

I'm trying to decide what it says about our relationship with technology that Jenn's creators left her well-equipped to deal with inane questions that have nothing to do with her mission.