It is worth trying out different ways of rendering the calculator output.
Factoriolab for example has List, Flow and Data views. The Flow is neat but well, an unreadable mess to be honest, might be worth implementing anyway and trying out different options, such as a more regular structured grid, tree, row or columnar flow layouts. Would be neat to try a Sankey Flow diagram.
DSP Ratios has something like a List view currently, although it doesn't feature the dotted lines. I did experiment with it early on, but might be worth bringing back as an alternative.
Work:
[X] Implement new architecture to separate out calculation phases out
SolverTree — Initial phase, create a tree graph of recipe with full possible production chain from unlocked recipes
RecipeTree — Filtered down SolverTree which picks from user preferred alternative recipes
CalcTree — Final step to create a usable tree graph for rendering visually. This phase calculates throughput w/ proliferation
[ ] Views — How to render the calculator, a simple compact segmented control to select the view
[ ] Density — How dense the UI should be, dense/compact/cosy. Like dark mode, instead of tweaking numbers, take into account the desired user experience. Give each view a different way of handling this.
Very neat and simple table for late game / high end production chains that focuses more towards aspect of huge amounts per minute. This is the phase were people might be just throwing down large blueprint modules, pizza slices or even of entire planets.
Aahh, a classic force direct graph, probably with D3. I like the tooltips as well. Yeah, I think this is cute and readable, although the zooming too extreme. Maybe some force directions to lineup/structure the graph.
There are some nice layout and designs on this site.
Speaking of blueprints, might be possible to generate basic blueprint layouts from the calculator as a rendering option. Like simple factory arrays generated by the calculator?
Minimalist visual blueprints by Reddit user /u/clayafterdark has been making these neat diagrams in Figma on a 64x64 grid:
I could try to figure out how to render these out myself and/or pop them into the quick reference sheets. The linework is very pleasant and easy to read. The minimalistic nature lends itself very well to comprehend complex factory layouts down to the core essentials. I think not having numbers involved but only the core essentials of the recipe flow but also minding factory arrays works together well on how things need to split and flow in terms of logistics/belts.
It is worth trying out different ways of rendering the calculator output.
Factoriolab for example has List, Flow and Data views. The Flow is neat but well, an unreadable mess to be honest, might be worth implementing anyway and trying out different options, such as a more regular structured grid, tree, row or columnar flow layouts. Would be neat to try a Sankey Flow diagram.
DSP Ratios has something like a List view currently, although it doesn't feature the dotted lines. I did experiment with it early on, but might be worth bringing back as an alternative.
Work:
Inspirations: