---
name: email-topic-discovery
description: "Topic-scoped email discovery: define a scope (search term/domain/person), search/capture/reconcile/fetch/archive/describe pipeline nesting under FTR-39's retrieval mechanics; ships with a downloadable run-descriptor template. Use when a person asks to install or apply \"Email Topic Discovery\" (FTR-40) in a project, or when working in a project that has it installed."
---

# Email Topic Discovery (FTR-40, version 1.0)

> Generated from library record FTR-40 version 1.0, publish 20261102a. Review status: unreviewed. The complete specification is in references/spec.md and is the authority; this file is the operating procedure drawn from it.

## What this does

Topic-scoped email discovery: define a scope (search term/domain/person), search/capture/reconcile/fetch/archive/describe pipeline nesting under FTR-39's retrieval mechanics; ships with a downloadable run-descriptor template

## When to use this skill

- A person asks to install, apply or update "Email Topic Discovery" (FTR-40) in a project.
- A project's agent instructions list email-topic-discovery as installed and the task touches what it covers.
- Requires first: FTR-39 (skill eml-archiver).

## Install procedure

Steps run in order. Assess comes first, every question in the Ask step is answered by the person before anything is written, and every write merges additively into the existing project files (read the file first, update an existing section in place, never overwrite).

### Assess first
- Confirm FTR-39 (EML Archiver) is installed — this feature nests under it, not beside it.
- Get the scope written down in plain language before starting: search term, domain(s), person, and which source mailbox(es).
- Check for an existing archive to reconcile against, by Internet Message-ID, so re-running a scope never produces duplicates.

### Ask, only if needed
- If the scope isn't already stated precisely: "What's the scope — a search term, a domain, a specific person, or some combination? And which mailbox(es) should be searched?"
- If more than one mailbox is in play, confirm whether results should be merged into one archive or kept per-mailbox.

### Write

The full Write payload is in references/write-payload.md. It is applied exactly as written, with the merge rule above.

### Confirm
Confirm: Email Topic Discovery is installed, nested under FTR-39's section — scope definition, the search/capture/reconcile/fetch/archive/describe pipeline, and the run-descriptor template are all in place. Want to install another, or is that everything for now?
## Other sections in the specification

- What this doesn't cover

These are in references/spec.md.

## Files in this skill

- references/spec.md: the complete specification, unabridged.
- references/write-payload.md: the Write step on its own.