UPS questions

[Clasp]

I've run into the point where UPS is finally starting to be an issue. I've dropped my graphics, turned off smoke, etc. I'm trying to figure out other methods that might help.

Mining

I've read that conveyors are not as UPS efficient as chests and bots. Most of my conveyor belts are at my mining outposts.
Would switching to this kind of chest based mining be more UPS efficient?



I know I won't have the same electric drill density, but I'm ok with that trade.

This is the basic building block.



Aliens

What's the interaction between aliens and pollution? Do I understand it correctly that as long as there's no pollution over the aliens then they're treated as inactive and don't eat any UPS?
Is it ok if they're revealed by a radar as long as there's no pollution?

F6

How do I read the information from the data that shows up when you hit F6.

My Game Update is 14, Entity Update is 12, Script Update is 0.6, and Trains is 0.4. Are those numbers the % processing load?

Thanks for the help!

[Acarin]

I can't answer most of your questions apart from the initial one:

The Updates Per Second (UPS) is a measure of how many times the program checks and updates all of the entities. Given that every chunk of ore and every circuit (in fact, every visible item) is classed as a separate entity, the usual reason for UPS slow-down is the sheer number of items floating around on belts. Using underground belts reduces the load on the system, and is the usual-recommended 'fix' for the first signs of UPS-lag.

Hope this helps!

[Mehve]

A lack of pollution won't make aliens truly inert - each spawner nest still has a chance of trying to expand to a new nest. But a lack of pollution over the nest DOES mean they won't actually launch deliberate attacks towards you. There might be very small gains to be had by not revealing more of the map then you actually need, but this will also make it more likely that one of the fewer revealed nests tries to expand, probably making things a wash.

I don't know if costs are still an issue for you, but I'd at least change most of the chests to wooden chests - that's a lot of steel going into those chests. And if you have at least one stack size upgrade researched, you might also get away with using long-arm inserters to half the number of chests needed.

[Deadly-Bagel]

Belt optimisations are planned for 0.15 (just in case anyone is not aware).

After waiting for next version, bots are probably your next best bet, you should have roboport coverage anyway to repair your defences in the event of biter attacks and you can very tightly tile miners.

[daniel34]

Belt optimisations are planned for 0.15 (just in case anyone is not aware).

AFAIK the belt optimisations mentioned splitting belts into segments which are treated as only one entity (no input/output of items possible), but in the case of mining fields the algorithm probably wouldn't even generate belt segments since every 3 tiles a miner would lay down ore and therefore the new segment code doesn't come into effect. It's strictly for longer (uninterrupted 10+ tiles) belts.

I would recommend you switch to mining with bots as most ore fields can be covered with one roboport and it's really easy to setup (blueprints). I mostly do provider chests in front of the miners and requester chests at the train station but i've also seen active provider/storage chest setups.

I don't have comparative numbers but I think that it performs better performance-wise than using belt-based mining and it's easier to setup too. (Although I'm using the LateUpgrades mod and my robots can currently carry 10 of every item and have more speed.)

[bobucles]

Can mining drills deposit directly into cargo cars? That would reduce the number of moving parts, but it would be less space efficient.

[daniel34]

Can mining drills deposit directly into cargo cars? That would reduce the number of moving parts, but it would be less space efficient.

Yes, they can. See this for an example:
https://imgur.com/r/factorio/UP6FGdi