The default should be a full stack (with some exceptions), because that's likely to be the most common use case. However, the game should give you a chance to adjust the values before it starts requesting items. Just having a confirmation prompt would be enough.

Sorry, but watch inserters exactly: They are turning always in some unusual directions. For example: An inserter at an edge of an assembly is faster, than in the center. This is because he needs not to turn that far (perhaps only 160 instead of 180 degrees). There are many other such situations ...

I think they should work identical for loading/unloading. Either they work into the center of the wagon or not. Both makes sense in some way.
Since loading/unloading at the center leads to questions about why the inserters can extend and turn in ways they normally can't, I'm strongly in favor of ...

The power charge indicator for modular armor is apparently drawn last, so it can end up covering information boxes, like the one you see when mousing over a locomotive.

People who've played with trains for a while have likely noticed that, while inserters load objects into a train at its edges, inserters that are unloading it reach all the way to the center of the wagon. This seems very strange, for a number of reasons.

First, it's a marked asymmetry in how ...

Actually, Manufactoria and Factorio have a lot in common. While Factorio's objects don't have internal states like Manufactoria's robots do, smart inserters can respond to the state of the network. The only question is if you could make a queue that acts a lot like the one in Manufactoria, and with ...

When building trains with locomotives that face in both directions, the controls for turning are reversed if the player enters one of the locomotives, and it seems to be based on which train is connected first.

To replicate:

1. Build a train with two locomotives, one facing each direction.

2 ...

Zachtronics is pretty good with the games they develop, with SpaceChem being their previous game in this vein. I haven't tried it myself yet, but I'm confident that they'll do well. They also developed Codex of Alchemical Engineering, Bureau of Steam Engineering, and Manufactoid, all of which cater ...

I can see some situations where this would be useful. In general, the higher an inserter fills a structure to, the greater the buffer the structure has against shortages or heavy use.

Gun turrets are a nice example. They're needed for only brief periods at irregular intervals, and the more ammo ...