Friday Facts #74 - The brainstorming

[slpwnd]

The news have arrived: http://www.factorio.com/blog/post/fff-74

[_aD]

OH COME ON! That is just not fair.

[SuperSandro2000]

The platform look epic!!! Release it now!

[keyboardhack]

logistic trash area in player's inventory - get rid of things you don't need by sending them to the logistic system
personal construction robots - speedup of later game stages
automatic railway building - don't micro manage the railways building, just draw the plan and let the robots build it

These 3 things by themselfs will make 0.12 AWESOME.
And the platform looks really good. Hopefully the platforms texture will not just be the same everywhere, but actually have variety when expanded.

[Gandalf]

inb4 science snob: That doesn't make sense, there wouldn't be enough gravity on that orbiting platform to keep items on the transport belts
gameplay enthusiast: who cares, AWESOME SPACE PLATFORMS!!1!

[kel]

things in space is automaticly awesome!

[deef0000dragon1]

As a suggestion, I recommend that you add a large number of High tech level power systems for the ship as a steam powered space ship, while cool, is not exactally feasible in space, where coal/oil doesn't as far as we are aware, exist.

[dee-]

I don't quite get what those three points are needed for.

logistic trash area in player's inventory - get rid of things you don't need by sending them to the logistic system

Place an active provider chest, put stuff inside, pick it up after empty.

personal construction robots - speedup of later game stages

Yes, nice, already available as a mod. But how does the pocket integrate with the logistics network's ranges?
You'd still have to place a trail of robostations so the bots can get the stuff from the storage to where you placed the blueprint.
And if the bots should feed from your inventory - just place a roboport and a storage chest and dump the same items inside and the construction bots, you probably have to carry along either way, can get it from right there.

automatic railway building - don't micro manage the railways building, just draw the plan and let the robots build it

Isn't this the same as placing a blueprint with railroads on it? And if not - why have a separate logic for railroads, but not for belts or even production sites?


I'm obviously missing something here

[Kim Jong Ugly]

Dat tile set doh

[torham]

As a suggestion, I recommend that you add a large number of High tech level power systems for the ship as a steam powered space ship, while cool, is not exactally feasible in space, where coal/oil doesn't as far as we are aware, exist.

Solar power plants would have higher output in space, as there is no atmosphere. Also they would produce power continuously, as there is no day/night cycle.

[katyal]

@dee-
I'll concede your first point. For point two I'm giving the devs the benefit of the doubt and assuming they can do it better in C than how it works in lua not to mention it could lead to some interesting api hooks for future mods. As for point number three... scale you need it for rails because of the scale at which rails are built and becaue this might just be the missing link to building a von neumann factory.

[Molay]

I'm very happy with the new direction the endgame has gone. The "get filthy rich" ending really didn't feel good to me, and I was very very disappointed when you announced that. I'm looking forward to this!
Question though: We go rescue civilians, but then what? Will we build them a city on the planet? That would be super awesome

[dee-]

Question though: We go rescue civilians, but then what?

Then we mine them for resources and build cyborgs and zombies and muahaha

[Xterminator]

As a suggestion, I recommend that you add a large number of High tech level power systems for the ship as a steam powered space ship, while cool, is not exactally feasible in space, where coal/oil doesn't as far as we are aware, exist.

Solar power plants would have higher output in space, as there is no atmosphere. Also they would produce power continuously, as there is no day/night cycle.

I am not scientist, but if the platform orbits the planet, there would be a "night" cycle of sorts, when the platform orbits around to the opposite side of the planet from where the sun is. I could just be stupid though and have no clue what I am talking about. xD
A new power source would be pretty awesome though!

Man that station platform prototype looks epic. So pumped for the endgame stuffs. Especially looking forward to the part where you have to ship resources up in large quantities.

[torham]

As a suggestion, I recommend that you add a large number of High tech level power systems for the ship as a steam powered space ship, while cool, is not exactally feasible in space, where coal/oil doesn't as far as we are aware, exist.

Solar power plants would have higher output in space, as there is no atmosphere. Also they would produce power continuously, as there is no day/night cycle.

I am not scientist, but if the platform orbits the planet, there would be a "night" cycle of sorts, when the platform orbits around to the opposite side of the planet from where the sun is. I could just be stupid though and have no clue what I am talking about. xD
A new power source would be pretty awesome though!

Man that station platform prototype looks epic. So pumped for the endgame stuffs. Especially looking forward to the part where you have to ship resources up in large quantities.

If you established the platform in near equatorial orbit, yes. As soon as you would leave orbit (relatively, taking into account the distances involved) the planet's shadow would stop being an issue. Also, If you launched your platform into a polar orbit, you would never have to pass the planets shadow. The solar panels would however loose their efficiency the further you would travel from the central star. If the colony ship is parked at the edge of the solar system, the solar power plants would stop working at the far end of the journey. But you can rejoice, since on the white board there is clearly mentions of hydrogen resource gathering and hydrogen reactors.

[onebit]

logistic trash area in player's inventory - get rid of things you don't need by sending them to the logistic system

Place an active provider chest, put stuff inside, pick it up after empty.

And end up with random, forgotten chests chests throughout the base. Bots can deliver things, why not let them pick it up? This idea appeals to me.

[Blackraz0r]

Keep up!

PLEASE add PreSignals in Factorio! this would make Train-Stuff sooo much easier!
You talked about it in some FidayFacts, when will you implement something like that?

[hoho]

Solar power plants would have higher output in space, as there is no atmosphere. Also they would produce power continuously, as there is no day/night cycle.

That depends on where they travel. If they plan to go anywhere further from the local star than the Factorio planet is, solar panels are as good as useless. Double the distance -> 1/4'th the power.

What is more of an issue in space is getting rid of the extra heat. As there is literally nothing to give the energy to it has to be radiated away and that's not all that easy when you intend to melt steel

[BrinCaspian]

As you aren't going to sit in orbit during the Mission, the day/night solar discussion is irrelevant. More importantly, while the solar panels would be much more efficient in orbit, due to refraction of the atmosphere, as you get further from the star, heading out on the mission, you would get diminishing returns. Every good long range spaceship is going to need a nuclear power source. Either as a reactor, or thermal power generation from the decay of a nuclear material.

[dee-]

logistic trash area in player's inventory - get rid of things you don't need by sending them to the logistic system

Place an active provider chest, put stuff inside, pick it up after empty.

And end up with random, forgotten chests chests throughout the base. Bots can deliver things, why not let them pick it up? This idea appeals to me.

You won't end up with forgotten chests if you pick them up for reuse afterwards.

Even easier: don't rely on the logistics network (small orange area) but on the construction "network" (larger green area): place a chest, stuff it, then order deconstruction. The bots will come along and take the contents and the chest itself with them.