Interest in an offline Factorio compendium/calculator?

[Jap2.0]

I've consider creating an offline repository of info for Factorio (ex. ratio calculator, tech tree, basic statistics for most items, maybe something to do with blueprints - I'm open to feedback) combining some information from the wiki, the (now defunct) guide, various ratio tools, etc., but I'm not sure if or how much interest there is. Please let me know if you're interested, and what you want to see in it. I'll probably work on some more details if/when I start, and feel free to ask me questions.

[Koub]

A calculator that reads data from your install+mods folder - and thus auto-adapts to you mods, that's something terrific. I'm talking something like this, with reading the recipes and machines from the game+mod files, and not hardcoded into the thing.

[eradicator]

A calculator that reads data from your install+mods folder - and thus auto-adapts to you mods, that's something terrific. I'm talking something like this, with reading the recipes and machines from the game+mod files, and not hardcoded into the thing.

Isn't that what helmod does? Haven't used it much.

As a modder i'd love an offline version of the wiki. Or a PDF version (with proper internal linking) of the API doc.

[Bilka]

Or a PDF version (with proper internal linking) of the API doc.

Why PDF? The html version included in the game works just fine.

[eradicator]

Or a PDF version (with proper internal linking) of the API doc.

Why PDF? The html version included in the game works just fine.

Personal preference (my browser tends to be sluggish due to open tab count), and better searching through the whole documentation at once instead of per-page.

[Jap2.0]

Okay, thanks for the advice! I'll start working on this soon (although I'm not sure how much time I'll have available). I'm thinking this is going to be a much bigger undertaking than I originally thought . Does anyone have any recommendations on programming languages?

[OBXandos]

Okay, thanks for the advice! I'll start working on this soon (although I'm not sure how much time I'll have available). I'm thinking this is going to be a much bigger undertaking than I originally thought . Does anyone have any recommendations on programming languages?

FORTRAN. Seriously though, I would say whatever you are comfortable with.

[Jap2.0]

Okay, thanks for the advice! I'll start working on this soon (although I'm not sure how much time I'll have available). I'm thinking this is going to be a much bigger undertaking than I originally thought . Does anyone have any recommendations on programming languages?

FORTRAN. Seriously though, I would say whatever you are comfortable with.

Okay, thanks. No matter what I use, it'll be a big learning experience for me. I'm probably most familiar with Visual Basic (yes, I know that's kind of a joke, but it's what was available for me at the time), but that's quite outdated (although I can get a newer version), isn't multi-platform, and doesn't have great support for newer or more complex features, meaning that some of it would be more complicated and require messing around deep in the Windows API. I've been also meaning to learn some more programming languages, so I might go more into Python. At the moment I'm planning on probably using Python for at least the final design (though I might do some initial/concept work in VB while I get more comfortable with Python. Who knows, maybe someday I'll even port it into Javascript . Of course, I feel like I'm underestimating how long this will all take.

[eradicator]

If you don't have any experience with your target programming language i wouldn't estimate below 6 month :p.
Also python is nice the last time i tried "compiling" it into a finished program was an adventure at best. So preparing the final product for "shipping" might not be the most pleasant experience out of all the languages. (Not that i have sufficient experience in enough languages to properly judge that ;p). But, i can guarantee that the learning experience will be worth it regardless of the language you chose. Best is probably to chose language based on how big/friendly the community is, so that you can get quick help when you get stuck. You should also probably get an IRC client if you don't have one yet ;).

[FrodoOf9Fingers]

If you are used to C languagrs, check out C# or Java. I work professionally with java, but I personally like programming in c# better: all the documents have examples built in, and the syntax is cleaner (with one minor exception, I like javas diamond operators)

[Jap2.0]

If you are used to C languagrs, check out C# or Java. I work professionally with java, but I personally like programming in c# better: all the documents have examples built in, and the syntax is cleaner (with one minor exception, I like javas diamond operators)

I've used Visual Basic most, followed by JavaScript (so not really C languages). I'll consider those - what are the differences between C++ and C#?

Also, will anyone need/want to use this on a computer without Factorio installed? I was thinking about including a list of recipes from the base game (and maybe some other stuff), but with talk of mod support I might as well generate it from the base game files.

[FrodoOf9Fingers]

C# (and java) manage memory for you, and they compile to a intermediate language. In c++, you have to make sure to delete pointers, close streams, etc... C# takes care of that (in most cases) automatically. The intermediate language let's you mostly compile a project that you then distribute to your users. On the computers of users, the intermediate language is them compiled to machine code at runtime. This makes distribution a little easier, so long as they have the JVM or the .net framework installed.

C# uses .net for its intermediate language framework. You can write in other .net languages and get many of the same benefits. So j#, c++ (I think), and most relevant to you, VB, though I've only used C#. Check it out, visual studio community is pretty nice too, though any editor works.

[Jap2.0]

Okay, thanks!

[eradicator]

Also, will anyone need/want to use this on a computer without Factorio installed? I was thinking about including a list of recipes from the base game (and maybe some other stuff), but with talk of mod support I might as well generate it from the base game files.

People with tablets might want to use it on a system that can't run factorio. Though copying the files over should always be possible (unless you want to target smartphones :p). But licensing-wise distributing base-game files isn't an option for you anyway. Supplying a pre-compiled list of vanilla recipes should be no problem though, and getting there might be a good stepping stone before you think about mod support.

I personally don't like .net, and i'm not even on linux where support is *cough* "not so good" *cough*. Personally i just have bad memories of being forced to install a 100MB+ framework to run some tiny 2M tool that i'll only need once or twice a year, and the generally bad quality of .net programs in my experience. Not sure how much the latter is a sampling problem of my experience or actually a problem with the language encouraging bad practice. But i don't remember any .net program that wasn't ludicrously slow or constantly crashing. Which again, is only my personal experience... :p

[Jap2.0]

Also, will anyone need/want to use this on a computer without Factorio installed? I was thinking about including a list of recipes from the base game (and maybe some other stuff), but with talk of mod support I might as well generate it from the base game files.

People with tablets might want to use it on a system that can't run factorio. Though copying the files over should always be possible (unless you want to target smartphones :p). But licensing-wise distributing base-game files isn't an option for you anyway. Supplying a pre-compiled list of vanilla recipes should be no problem though, and getting there might be a good stepping stone before you think about mod support.

I personally don't like .net, and i'm not even on linux where support is *cough* "not so good" *cough*. Personally i just have bad memories of being forced to install a 100MB+ framework to run some tiny 2M tool that i'll only need once or twice a year, and the generally bad quality of .net programs in my experience. Not sure how much the latter is a sampling problem of my experience or actually a problem with the language encouraging bad practice. But i don't remember any .net program that wasn't ludicrously slow or constantly crashing. Which again, is only my personal experience... :p

Okay, thanks. What are your opinions on Python (or other languages)?
(Speaking of tablets... I have a jailbroken iPod 4 that I got Python support on. I don't think 1/4 GB RAM and iOS would work, though. Tablet support might be something that comes eventually - though I have no idea, as I don't have a tablet to test it on - although I do have an Android VM.) I was also thinking of a precompiled list, although it probably wouldn't be able to include icons (although I might consider asking Wube - there are quite a few online tools and applications that include them, and the only thing I've seen shot down was the Android app with ads, so I don't know if this would fly).

[eradicator]

I'm pretty sure the official stance on redistributing graphc assets is "nope", wasn't that even in the mentiond Android App thread? Websites that do it anyway are probably pretty gray and being ignored for now (why shut down something you benefit from?).

I like python a lot, but it's also the first language i ever did much in. I still write all my code with pythonian indentation because i find it easier to read. So. Can't get much more biased than that. And you shouldn't select it based on personal recommendations anyway. If you're going to use it for a long time you need to be comfortable with it yourself. Do your research, find out what the different languages are good at. Select the one that best fits your purpose. As said above, something with a large/friendly community for help and code snippets/modules is probably best.

[kinnom]

I'm pretty sure the official stance on redistributing graphc assets is "nope", wasn't that even in the mentiond Android App thread? Websites that do it anyway are probably pretty gray and being ignored for now (why shut down something you benefit from?).

I like python a lot, but it's also the first language i ever did much in. I still write all my code with pythonian indentation because i find it easier to read. So. Can't get much more biased than that. And you shouldn't select it based on personal recommendations anyway. If you're going to use it for a long time you need to be comfortable with it yourself. Do your research, find out what the different languages are good at. Select the one that best fits your purpose. As said above, something with a large/friendly community for help and code snippets/modules is probably best.

You don't have to copy any assets, just let the program import them from Program Files\Factorio. I also don't think the devs would make a big problem out of it if it is a free tool for Factorio.

[eradicator]

You don't have to copy any assets, just let the program import them from Program Files\Factorio.

The question was wheather or not it should run on systems that *don't* have an installation.

[kinnom]

You don't have to copy any assets, just let the program import them from Program Files\Factorio.

The question was wheather or not it should run on systems that *don't* have an installation.

Sorry, did not see that.

[Jap2.0]

As of right now I'm tentatively planning on going with Python - I've been meaning to learn it for a little while, I'm finding some good guides and documentation online, it has good multi-platform support, etc. Thanks for all your feedback - I'll put more updates here when I start getting some decent progress (and eventually I'll need to make a thread in the tools subforum, but this'll be good for discussion before then).