Automating Player Logistics and Auto Trash Slot Settings

[NegativeTwelfth]

I submit the idea of a construction that is some form of tile that can be walked on by the player, takes up space as a building (like train tracks, but without the gate bit), requires power, and can be connected to a circuit network. When suitably powered and walked on by the player, it sets the player's logistics request and auto trash slots to whatever it reads on the circuit networks attached to it. Furthermore you could potentially have the building set what gets locked to which toolbelt slot. The building itself wouldn't provide the player with any items, but if changing the player's toolbelt slot locks would effectively emulate the player ctrl + clicking to clear and then fill the toolbelt. In the event that the player doesn't have enough inventory space while changing toolbelt slot locks, the extra items that don't fit in the player's inventory would obviously be dumped on the ground.

This would have to be a research-unlocked construction, ideally requiring both the complete set of logistics requestor slots and logistics auto trash slots (and maybe the full toolbelt) research to be completed first.

I imagine it similar to how a handy(wo)man has many different toolbelts and toolboxes of different configurations and with different tools to be used for different general tasks (plumbing, carpentry, painting, etc). With this buildin, a player working on the main factory would set their requestor slots for what that area requires and their toolbelt for assemblers, poles, belts, etc.. Someone knowing that they are going to work on outposts might trash things like assemblers and circuit network cable, and set their logistics request slots for more walls and turrets. The player would obviously have to wait for these items to be taken away and delivered via logistics bots but it would be using automation to make one more thing in the player's life, well, automatic.

EDIT: I looked through the "Read this OR Be Ignored" thread and found this "Switching between building fluid networks, rail networks, factory & belts as well as a set of combat related things I just don't quite have enough room. Compared with everything else in Factorio being so awesomely short-cut friendly, the player logistics slot and toolbelt feels like a bottleneck at the moment." This building would make the requirement for more logistics and auto trash slots be a moot point: if you want to complain about something then you have enough energy to automate the tasks!

[ssilk]

I really like such suggestions. It points the finger to something, which is obviously needed to play fluidly.

But I don't know if it is really such a good idea to use the circuit network to configure that. But this suggestions brought me to another idea and I made a "counter suggestion".
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=29676

[Harkonnen604]

I like the part about buttons in the floor that are pushed by player (or biters or tank). They can send something to circuit network... and activate artillery turret in the temple of bu

[NegativeTwelfth]

I really like such suggestions. It points the finger to something, which is obviously needed to play fluidly.

But I don't know if it is really such a good idea to use the circuit network to configure that. But this suggestions brought me to another idea and I made a "counter suggestion".
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=29676

I thought about it more and realized that yeah, circuit network shouldn't be used for that because there's no way to differentiate between a Logistics Slot and an Auto Trash slot; you just get the one signal with the relevant items. Worse still if you also use the toolbar settings bit. My next thought on how to configure it would be an interface, similar in view to the current player's interface, but also with slots for the toolbelt. With this method you could have the building be shift + clickable to copy the config from one to a different one, and circuit network connectivity could simply just output the total number of items requested. (You could then connect that to a requestor chest nearby so that, when you change your slot settings you have immediate access to the requested new items and have to wait only if there are auto trashed items.)

Ultimately the implementation of exactly HOW the building has the settings configured is pretty fluid. I initially included it mostly because I was concerned people might not understand what I was trying to convey and figured describing my vision might help reduce confusion.

[Harkonnen604]

there's no way to differentiate between a Logistics Slot and an Auto Trash slot

There is. by giving negative numbers on trash slots.

[NegativeTwelfth]

There is. by giving negative numbers on trash slots.

Simple solution to a simple problem! I like it!

[bobucles]

There is. by giving negative numbers on trash slots.

Pretty simple! So a -50 might mean "Remove everything except 50", a 0 means "remove all", and a +20 means "Fill me up to 20".

The UI probably shouldn't show the negative numbers, it would be easily confusing. Perhaps it could invert the item color or have a checkbox when setting it to say "unload".

[Harkonnen604]

There is. by giving negative numbers on trash slots.

Pretty simple! So a -50 might mean "Remove everything except 50", a 0 means "remove all", and a +20 means "Fill me up to 20".

The UI probably shouldn't show the negative numbers, it would be easily confusing. Perhaps it could invert the item color or have a checkbox when setting it to say "unload".

Zero is default value for every untrasmitted signal, so it's not an option I'd say that any negative value (be it -1 or -123) means trash slot - remove everything. Any positive value is logistic slot item. Case of staying with exactly 100 items is interesting, but logistic slots do not allow such functionality at the moment.

[ssilk]

Bringing in meaning by distinction between positive and negative values of an integer datatype is always (*) an anti-pattern in software development.

(*) There are of course good exceptions to this rule (for example if we measure the temperature of water, which becomes ice below zero degrees), but I don't see that here.

[Harkonnen604]

Bringing in meaning by distinction between positive and negative values of an integer datatype is always (*) an anti-pattern in software development.

Well, yes, but -1 is just a reserved value, it's frequent for like null pointer with zero-based indexes. Another thought - trash slots and logistic request slots cancel out each other, so it's logical to sum them up with trash request being negative.

Actually it would be perfect if red and green wires were treated separately at combinators, inserters, etc.. instead of being summed up at the input - would make possible many interesting designs, including this one if trash slots were sent through green wire.