Factorio Forums

How do non-smart inserters know which items to pick up off a belt when they point at an assembler or a filtered inventory?

Automatically reprogramming themselves to match their target seems *smarter* than smart inserters.

What if dumb inserters didn't have this feature? Require the use of smart inserters where the smart behavior is desired, and require players to use single-item-type belts/chests as sources for dumb inserters pointed at picky targets.

But smart inserters are zombies right now. The dead that just don't know it. In 0.13 they go poooof.

It doesn't have to be the smart inserter entity. We will still have research for smarter inserters, including the new "rapid inserter" and "filter inserter" and who knows what else.

Sorry, but that is no suggestion.
Please read about the changes to v0.13 with the inserters in the FFFs.
There will be no smart inserters in 0.13. There will be filter inserters. All inserters will have smart functionality.
The "filter cleverness" of the inserters is coming from the device that it is pointing to, so I don't see an issue here to change that.

ssilk wrote:All inserters will have smart functionality.

That's amazing news! Thanks for clearing it up.

ssilk wrote:The "filter cleverness" of the inserters is coming from the device that it is pointing to, so I don't see an issue here to change that.

That doesn't really make sense in the context of the current tech tree, where we have to research the ability to make inserters smarter. But, as you said, that's going away in 0.13.

Can we make it so that the burner inserter doesn't require less materials to make than the regular inserter? Considering that it's basically a regular inserter with an integrated powerplant?

Or make the burner inserter "dumb"?

It has no electronics in it. It shouldn't be smart.

sparr wrote:Or make the burner inserter "dumb"?

It has no electronics in it. It shouldn't be smart.

True, but then it will become mostly worthless. For one, it won't be able to refuel itself. I'd much prefer a setup where the burner inserter is an upgrade to the basic inserter, and enjoys all the same benefits plus the ability to power itself. Coupled with a small "burner powerplant", like a freestanding Stirling engine-based generator (something like this) that can be made with some metal plates, a set of mechanisms and a spool of copper wire, this would kickstart the electrification of things, and make the huge steam engine powerplants only required for large-scale power generation.

sparr wrote:Or make the burner inserter "dumb"?

It has no electronics in it. It shouldn't be smart.

Maby burner insert just burns coal to make energy