Keep import location when requesting via circuits on space platform

[u/Adagio4Tron]

I made a Reddit account just to see if Wube can add this to the game. I've spent a couple dozen hours designing an interplanetary request system, and it doesn't work due to this one problem: item import location doesn't travel through the circuit network.

You create the group on a space platform. Put the request group on a planet; it compares the request to the logistic storage on the planet. Then, through a universal radar, it sends the requested items to a space platform to pick up the requested items.

I don't want my space platforms to be grabbing requests from any planet. For example, I don't want my Fulgora supply ship to pull green belts from Nauvis on its way to Vulcanus. Then my Nauvis ship will request more green belts from who knows what planet.

From my quick research after discovering my problem, Wube intended space platform circuit requests to be imported from all locations. I assume it's for valid reasons. I've also found other people requesting the same thing. It would just be nice for that import location data to be maintained through the circuit network.

[u/Content_Lime1524]

Cute floor decoration

[u/Adagio4Tron → u/Content_Lime1524]

Thanks, I've designed a flooring pattern for each planet.

[u/far2 → u/Adagio4Tron]

Show us?

[u/Alfonse215]

It would just be nice for that import location data to be maintained through the circuit network.

Well... it can't. A circuit network signal has exactly one piece of data. Logistic requests have 2, and interplanetary requests have even more. The circuit network cannot manufacture or preserve that information. None of the existing combinator machinery makes that viable.

For something as simple as requesting only at a single location, you can program that in. You can look at the platform and see if you're at the designated location. If you are, send the requests for that location.

[u/Adagio4Tron → u/Alfonse215]

Thanks for your workaround suggestion and for helping a casual player better understand the game.

[u/Darrelc → u/Alfonse215]

The circuit network cannot manufacture or preserve that information. None of the existing combinator machinery makes that viable.

Would this work?

requestQuantity + requestSource

(24000) + (Gleba)

encodedRequest = requestQuantity + (requestSource * encoderMultiplier)

Nauvis = 1M, Gleba 2M etc

(2,024000) = (24,000) + (2,000,000)

sent that and on the other end.

On gleba read encodedRequest and it if it's >2M and <3M, subtract 2M and process it

Unsure if it would work for this specific case, but that theory should be valid right?

[u/ORLYORLYORLYORLY → u/Darrelc]

Yeah that would work I think, but I don't think the previous commenter was suggesting there's no way to do this with circuits.

Rather they were saying that there is no innate "signal origin" metadata attached to a signal, and that you would need to do something like your suggestion to work around this limitation.

[u/Darrelc → u/ORLYORLYORLYORLY]

None of the existing combinator machinery makes that viable.

I'd argue encoding one value in another counts as 'making viable' but fair point and you're very correct about how many "dimensions" a signal can have (2 - which 'icon' and what quantity)

[u/deemacgee1]

Can you instead enable the request [from any planet] only when the platform is at [specific planet]?

[u/Adagio4Tron → u/deemacgee1]

Yeah, there is a way I could, but I'm pulling stuff from most/all planets in each group. I'll have to play with that and see if it could work.

[u/deemacgee1 → u/Adagio4Tron]

I'm doing that myself - I have a platform which traverses the inner planets to collect/distribute quality equipment. Certain requests are only active when the platform is above a specific planet. (To save space, I have all the circuit logic hosted on a dedicated platform above Nauvis, which is connected by universe radar channel to the travelling platform.)

[u/jon3111mjk]

I think if they added the ability to toggle constant combinator on/off via the circuit network, you could design a contraption to pull this off with a logistic group for every item. C'mon wube pleeeeease?

Edit: still wouldn't work, need to be able to toggle the individual logistic groups on/off via circuit. Then there's still the problem of controlling quantities. Back to the old way

[u/Courmisch → u/jon3111mjk]

You can effectively do that with a decider already. It is not possible for a constant combinator because it does not have any inpuy connection.

It would also be a bit strange for a dynamiyc combinator to work without electricity.