[Archived] Table of Contents • Agents Unpacked

Note: I have restarted this series using a different agent and a different format, which I think is more instructive and more interesting. I’m keeping the introduction and the first two chapters of the old version for the record, but I recommend you start reading the new series:

Stephen's Preface to Agents Unpacked

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Here’s the archived content:

Here’s the planned Table of Contents. This is likely to change as Priya and I work on this:

• Stephen’s Preface to Agents Unpacked

• Part I — The Mental Shift

  • Chapter 1 — From Answer to Outcome

  • Chapter 2 — Anatomy of an Agent

  • Chapter 3 — Skills, Tools, and the Action Loop

• Part II — Agents in Practice

  • Chapter 4 — Why One Agent Is Often Not Enough

  • Chapter 5 — Where Agents Are Actually Useful

  • Chapter 6 — Delegation Design

• Part III — Building and Trusting Agentic Work

  • Chapter 7 — Designing Your First Agentic Workflow

  • Chapter 8 — When Things Go Wrong: Evaluation, Guardrails, and Trust

  • Chapter 9 — What to Build Next