Outlook

For all your email needs in your automation

1. Introduction

Here’s a comprehensive guide on using Outlook with Kognitos, focusing on the integration and manipulation of email functionalities through natural language. It is designed for users who wish to automate their email-related tasks within Outlook using Kognitos.


2. Setting Up Your Environment

To effectively use Outlook with Kognitos, it's essential to properly set up your environment. This section guides you through the requirements, installation, and configuration steps necessary to get started.

2.1. Requirements

Before you begin, ensure you have the following:

  • An active Outlook account.
  • Access to the Kognitos platform.
  • Basic understanding of the KOG language.

2.2. Installation and Configuration

Setting up your environment involves obtaining necessary credentials from Outlook, installing the Kognitos platform, and configuring it to connect with your Outlook account.

  1. Obtaining Outlook Credentials: To connect Kognitos with your Outlook account, you need specific credentials, including the client ID, client secret, tenant ID, and user ID. These credentials are essential for authentication and authorization processes.
  2. Connecting to Your Outlook Account: Once you have your credentials, you can establish a connection between Kognitos and your Outlook account. This connection is crucial for performing email-related operations through Kognitos.

Example: Connecting to Outlook with Credentials

To connect to your Outlook account, use the following KOG language syntax, replacing placeholder values with your actual credentials:

connect to outlook with
    the outlook client id is "your_client_id"
    the outlook client secret is "your_client_secret"
    the outlook tenant id is "your_tenant_id"
    the outlook user id is "your_user_id"

This example demonstrates how to initiate a connection to Outlook using Kognitos. It's the first step in automating your email tasks and leveraging the full capabilities of the Kognitos platform.


Kognitos prompting you for connection details

Kognitos prompting you for connection details

Quick tip: If you don’t provide the last 4 lines, the system will prompt you to provide the required credentials. Just write connect to Outlook with and the follow along.

📘

Your Credentials You Use To Connect, Will Be the Credentials the Actions are Taken on Behalf Of

For example, if you send an email through Outlook, by default the sender will show as the account tied to the connection credentials we discussed in the above section.


By following these steps and using the provided example, you'll have your environment set up and ready for using Outlook with Kognitos. This setup allows you to move on to more advanced operations, such as managing emails, organizing your inbox, and automating tasks using the KOG language.



3. Managing Emails

Managing emails effectively is a crucial aspect of using Outlook with Kognitos. This section covers various operations you can perform on emails, such as sending, receiving, forwarding, replying to, and deleting emails. Each operation is illustrated with examples using the KOG language.

3.1. Sending Emails

Sending emails through Kognitos allows for customization of recipients, subject lines, message bodies, and even attachments.

  • Example: Sending an Email

    connect to outlook
    send an email with
        the recipients are "[email protected]"
        the subject is "Meeting Reminder"
        the message body is "Don't forget our meeting at 10 AM tomorrow."
    
    
  • Example: Sending an Email with CC and Attachments

    connect to outlook with
    send an email with
        the recipients are ["[email protected]", "[email protected]"]
        the cc addresses are "[email protected]"
        the subject is "Project Update"
        the message body is "Please find attached the latest project update."
        the attachments are "/path/to/project_update.pdf"
    
    

3.2. Receiving Emails

Kognitos can be used to retrieve emails based on specific criteria, such as the last few emails received or unread emails.

  • Example: Getting the Last 5 Emails

    get outlook's last 5 emails
    
    
  • Example: Getting Unread Emails

    get outlook's unread emails
    
    

3.3. Forwarding Emails

Forwarding emails to other recipients or groups can be easily automated using Kognitos.

  • Example 1: Forwarding an Email to a Team

    connect to outlook with
        the username is "[email protected]"
        the password is "password123"
    get the email where
        the subject is "Monthly Report"
    forward the email to the team with
        the recipients are "[email protected]"
        the subject is "Forwarded: Monthly Report"
    
    
  • Example 2: Forwarding an Email to the Manager with CC

    connect to outlook with
        the username is "[email protected]"
        the password is "securepassword"
    get the email where
        the subject contains "Project Update"
    forward the email to the manager with
        the recipients are "[email protected]"
        the cc addresses are "[email protected]"
        the subject is "FYI: Project Update"
    
    

3.4. Replying to Emails

Automating replies to emails can save a significant amount of time, especially for frequently asked questions or standard communications.

  • Example: Replying to an Email with Feedback

    get the email whose subject is "Project Update"
    reply the email with
        the subject is "Re: Project Update - Feedback"
        the comment is "Thanks for the update, please see my feedback below."
        the cc addresses are "[email protected]"
        the attachments are "feedback.docx"
    
    

3.5. Deleting Emails

Managing your inbox also involves deleting unnecessary or unwanted emails.

  • Example: Deleting Emails by Subject

    delete the outlook emails with
        the subject is "Weekly Report"
    
    
  • Example: Deleting Emails by Sender and Folder

    delete the outlook emails with
        the sender is "[email protected]"
        the folder is "Inbox"
    
    

3.6. Marking Emails as Read or Important

Marking emails as read or flagging them as important can help in prioritizing your tasks and managing your inbox more efficiently.

  • Example: Marking an Email as Read

    get the email where
        the subject is "Urgent: Meeting Rescheduled"
    mark the email as read
    
    
  • Example: Marking an Email as Important

    get the email where
        the sender is "[email protected]"
    mark the email as important
    
    

By utilizing these examples, users can automate a wide range of email management tasks using Kognitos and the KOG language, streamlining their workflow and enhancing productivity within the Outlook environment.


4. Working with Email Attributes

This section delves into how to extract specific attributes from emails using Kognitos and the KOG language. These operations are essential for tasks that require information processing or decision-making based on email content.

4.1. Extracting Email Sender

Understanding who sent an email is crucial for many automated processes, such as filtering or responding to messages.

  • Example: Getting the Email's Sender

    get the email
    get the email's sender # <----
    
    

4.2. Extracting Email Recipients

Knowing to whom an email was sent can help in understanding the communication flow and is useful in scenarios like auditing email communications.

  • Example 1: Getting the Email's Recipients

    get the email
    get the email's recipients # <----
    
    
  • Example 2: Getting the Recipients for a Specific Email

    the email's subject is "Meeting Schedule"
    get the email's recipients # <----
    
    

4.3. Extracting Email Date

The date and time when an email was sent or received can be critical for organizing, sorting, or archiving emails.

  • Example: Getting the Email's Date

    get the email
    get the email's date # <----
    
    

4.4. Extracting Email Subject

The subject of an email often contains key information summarizing the content or purpose of the email.

  • Example: Getting the Email's Subject

    get the email
    get the email's subject # <----
    
    

4.5. Extracting Email Attachments

Attachments are commonly used to share documents, images, and other files via email. Extracting these attachments is crucial for processing or storing these files outside the email system.

  • Example 1: Getting the Email's Attachments

    get the email where
        the subject is "Project Proposal"
    get the email's attachments # <----
    
    
  • Example 2: Getting Attachments from an Email by Sender

    get the email where
        the sender is "[email protected]"
    get the email's attachments # <----
    
    

4.6. Extracting Email Body

The body of an email contains the main message. Extracting this content is essential for reading, processing, or analyzing the information conveyed in the email.

  • Example 1: Getting the Email's Body

    get the email
    get the email's body # <----
    
    
  • Example 2: Getting the Body of an Email with a Specific Subject

    the email's subject is "Meeting Schedule"
    get the email's body # <----
    
    

These examples showcase how to utilize Kognitos and the KOG language to extract various attributes from emails, enabling users to automate and streamline their email processing tasks effectively.


5. Organizing Emails

Efficiently organizing emails is crucial for maintaining a clean and manageable inbox. This section covers how to automate the organization of emails into different folders and how to retrieve schedules for specific entities or resources using Kognitos and the KOG language.

5.1. Moving Emails to Different Folders

Automatically moving emails to designated folders based on criteria like subject, sender, or content can help keep your inbox organized and prioritize important messages.

  • Example 1: Moving Emails to the Archived Folder

    get the outlook emails
    the destination folder is "Archived"
    move the outlook emails # <----
    
    
  • Example 2: Moving Emails to the Important Folder Based on Subject

    get the outlook emails
    the destination folder is "Important"
    the subject is "Project Update"
    move the outlook emails # <----
    
    
  • Example 3: Moving Emails from a Specific Sender to the HR Folder

    get the outlook emails
    the destination folder is "HR"
    whose sender is "[email protected]"
    move the outlook emails # <----
    
    

These examples demonstrate how to use Kognitos to automate the process of moving emails into specific folders based on various criteria, helping users maintain an organized inbox.

5.2. Getting the Schedule of a person or an event

Retrieving the schedule for a specific entity, such as a person or a meeting room, is essential for planning and coordination purposes. This can include finding available time slots or understanding when a resource is booked.

  • Example 1: Getting the Schedule for a Person

    get the schedule for John Doe with
        the start time is "2023-05-01T09:00:00"
        the end time is "2023-05-01T17:00:00"
        the interval is "30 minutes"
        the timezone is "America/New_York" # <----
    
    
  • Example 2: Getting the Schedule for a Conference Room

    get the schedule for the conference room with
        the start time is "2023-06-15T10:00:00"
        the end time is "2023-06-15T12:00:00"
        the interval is "15 minutes"
        the timezone is "Europe/London" # <----
    
    

These examples illustrate how to query the schedule for various entities using Kognitos, enabling users to efficiently plan meetings, book resources, or simply understand the availability of individuals or assets.

By leveraging these functionalities, users can significantly enhance their email management and scheduling capabilities, leading to improved productivity and organization.