“Clutter” Comes to Outlook 2016, And It’s a Good Thing

I can already feel the confusion welling up inside you as you read the headline. How could clutter coming to Outlook 2016 be a good thing? Many of us already have clutter in our inboxes, certainly we don’t need anything that adds to the pandemonium that is our inbox.

Well rest assured, while the headline leaves much open to interpretation, the reality is that “Clutter” is actually a brand new feature being introduced to Outlook both online and via desktop applications. It’s a machine based learning feature that dynamically moves messages you are most likely to ignore from your primary inbox, to a new folder aptly named “Clutter”. Thing of the Clutter folder as a second-tier inbox, allowing your main inbox to remain clean and distraction free so you can focus on the emails that really count.

But how does it work?

It identifies these emails using machine based content analysis and studying behavioral patterns focused on subject lines, who the sender is, and several other factors Microsoft is keeping secret to prevent marketers from gaming it.

What if it guesses wrong? In the event that Clutter guesses wrong, you can acceleration training and even reteach it by right clicking on an email that was wrongfully bounced and select “Not Clutter”. Conversely you can also help it along by right clicking on emails that you consider to be deserving of that second tier status and shipping it to the Clutter folder. Microsoft says the feature gets better as it processes more and more emails, and early reviews are giving it a thumbs up as one of the biggest improvements in Outlook since Rules.

Outlook 2016 was release along with the rest of the Microsoft Office Productivity Suite on September 22nd and is available for purchase or subscription through Office 365.

“Sean Bugler is an Instructor at Learn iT! specializing in desktop class application usage. When he’s not teaching you can often find him reading up on the latest news in software and technology. Connect with him on Twitter @sbglr.”