Mining: Using the option to Jettison unwanted Ore in both Refinery and Cargo bay

[XCaliber]

Hey Everyone,

I have tried out Mining again with 1.4 update. A few things have been improved upon (Thanks FD). I have one more Suggestion improve it even more.

When I am mining chunks from an asteroid, I use collector Limpets to gather these chunks. Sometimes These collectors waste their prescious life span gathering things that I do not want them to gather.

For example,

I have a goal to mine only Painite and Platinum metallic Ore (If you have mined before you know that Asteroids very rarely are of one Ore Type). Let's say I am mining an asteroid that is made of both Platinum and Silver. Obviously because of my goal, I want to keep the Platinum and remove the silver rather than waste time refining and storing the silver. I can remove the silver by ejecting it from the bins, if I am fast enough to do so. If I am not fast enough, then the silver gets refined and now takes up cargo space that I could use for Platinum.

So my only option is to Jettison Silver. The problem is after I jettison the silver, the collector limpets head straight for it !!

Move away from the silver you say this will solve that problem? yeah but what a hassle.

Idea : How about adding one or more option(s) to the "Jettison Menu". What option would that be you say?

Well here is where things get interesting....

Option 1: Mark the cargo "unwanted" this way my collectors will not pick it up for me.
Option 2: Trash the cargo. this way a collector or another pilot can not gather it, because it has been destroyed.
Option 3: anything else you might think of...

This would solve one of a few frustrations i have while mining.

Thanks for listening.

 

[Rascon]

I do agree that it can be a pain, especially when you are playing with limited cargo space here is my solution.

1. close hatch.
2. eject rubbish and wait for the collectors to come knocking.
3. Thrust down and make them all explode, its very satisfying and surprising how much punishment those little collectors will take.

 

[Thetele]

Or when just make it so that if you abandon cargo limpets won´t pick them up.

 

[Thomas Jefferson Jones]

Yes yes and yes, it has been said before a few times, but some programming options for collector limpets, as well as some refinery auto-vent settings would be massively appreciated.

Had my first collector dust up last night, brought too many to a mining site and wanted to eject some cargo to make room, you know the rest.

The solution of killing the collectors, then moving out of their active range is backward and inconvenient.

As is the method of manually venting all minerals you don't want to refine constantly, that's what I'll do from now on - but wow that's needless busy work that interrupts my doodling faces on asteroids.

 

[CMDR Gerakis]

I don't think that's a relevant demand... but adding a third option in the jettison cargo menu that propose you to select a "collector ignore this" option would be great and solve all of your problems at once.

 

[Jordan Cobalt]

Agree, it's a problem for pirates as well. You can't drop your excess limpets or low value cargo make room for more cargo. ATM what I have to do is disable my limpets, drive 2km away drop the cargo, drive back and then relaunch the limpets. Which is very time consuming but since cargo expires and the cops are on their way, its not always an option.

 

[Deleted member 38366]

Or when just make it so that if you abandon cargo limpets won´t pick them up.

That would be my preferred Option.

Additionally, I find it sometimes annoying (but funny) when the active Collector Limpets happily swoop ores from NPC Miners - heck, they even go snatch them right from other NPC Limpets (the ensuing "battle of the limpets" is plain epic to watch... little thieves ).
In RES, anything dropped by other NPCs (Pirates or other NPC Miners) will also be happily scooped in by the Collector Limpets.
Once Security Ships move in to scan, I more than once found at least one of my limpets frantically attempting to bring in that stolen ton of {anything} that another Ship lost.

I always end up talking to that Limpet like to an untrained, hyperactive Jack Russell...
No Limpet. No! Leave! NO! Stay! Sit! Limpet SIT! *arg*
(oh well, these things just love to play fetch. You jettison/abandon - they fetch. Again and again - and they never grow tired of it )

 

[Thetele]

That would be my preferred Option.

Additionally, I find it sometimes annoying (but funny) when the active Collector Limpets happily swoop ores from NPC Miners - heck, they even go snatch them right from other NPC Limpets (the ensuing "battle of the limpets" is plain epic to watch... little thieves ).
In RES, anything dropped by other NPCs (Pirates or other NPC Miners) will also be happily scooped in by the Collector Limpets.
Once Security Ships move in to scan, I more than once found at least one of my limpets frantically attempting to bring in that stolen ton of {anything} that another Ship lost.

I always end up talking to that Limpet like to an untrained, hyperactive Jack Russell...
No Limpet. No! Leave! NO! Stay! Sit! Limpet SIT! *arg*
(oh well, these things just love to play fetch. You jettison/abandon - they fetch. Again and again - and they never grow tired of it )

Haven´t tested in 1.4 but i used collector limpets to smuggle small amount of stuff to stations. after i jump to station i dropped the illegal cargo (4 tons) then picked them up with limpets while cargo hatch was closed (limpets will carry cargo under your ship) then i flew towards stations entrance, authority scanned me, no fine. Then just before letter box open cargo hatch let limpets in (limpets get destroyed when you go inside the station).

 

[Limoncello Lizard]

Agree, it's a problem for pirates as well. You can't drop your excess limpets or low value cargo make room for more cargo. ATM what I have to do is disable my limpets, drive 2km away drop the cargo, drive back and then relaunch the limpets. Which is very time consuming but since cargo expires and the cops are on their way, its not always an option.

Why aren't you using the one shot limpet technique for pirating. Target wanted cargo and fire limpet. This way you swap limpets for cargo one for one, and you only get the stuff you want.
That mode, I think, is designed purely for pirates, as it isn't much use for mining.

 

[Jordan Cobalt]

Why aren't you using the one shot limpet technique for pirating. Target wanted cargo and fire limpet. This way you swap limpets for cargo one for one, and you only get the stuff you want.
That mode, I think, is designed purely for pirates, as it isn't much use for mining.

Because then I'd have to target every individual piece of cargo and carry a full load of limpets which slows me down.

 

[Terry Bruge-Hiplo]

Why aren't you using the one shot limpet technique for pirating. Target wanted cargo and fire limpet. This way you swap limpets for cargo one for one, and you only get the stuff you want.
That mode, I think, is designed purely for pirates, as it isn't much use for mining.

Could you clarify what you mean by that? I'm still not 100% with how collectors work. On one of the few occasions I went mining, i would target the ore, and fire a collector, which would result in the ore being collected and the limpet exploding afterward - but another time, the collectors would go and pick up multiple pieces before exploding and I don't know what I did to make that happen...

 

[Limoncello Lizard]

Could you clarify what you mean by that? I'm still not 100% with how collectors work. On one of the few occasions I went mining, i would target the ore, and fire a collector, which would result in the ore being collected and the limpet exploding afterward - but another time, the collectors would go and pick up multiple pieces before exploding and I don't know what I did to make that happen...

If you have a target selected, firing a collector limpet will make it single use, so it will destruct after collecting the item targeted.
If you have nothing collectable targeted, limtets are programmed multi use and will collect anything and everything within range.

 

[jacozilla]

I prefer solving the root of a problem rather than being given ways to help reduce the problem once it already exits.

More options at refinery level is simply closing barn door after horses escaped. I'd prefer simple programmable limpet UI - let us 'program' at the limpet level what we want them to pick up or not. Simple checkbox next to each resource type in options menu would be fine. Perhaps even add other general class types - salvage, stolen, etc

there would be no need to dump anything from the refinery if limpets never even picked up the ores you did not want in the first place.

 

[[VR] Deggial]

I neither think that we need a third option in the jetson menue. 'Abandon' seems to be a clear enough description of how you want to see the containers handled.

I find myself constantly venting the bins in order to keep my cargo space clean of unwated material. It is indeed quite tiresome. On the other hand, there isn't realy much to do, while your little helpers do their work. Every now and than, some unwanted rubble gets refined nevertheless.

In order to get rid of this ballast, I found the following helpful:
When your cargo space is full, just continue mining and fill your bins up to 100% with your desired material. If all/most of them are full, just jetson your unwanted stuff. The raw materials will be refined instantly and fill your cargo space again. The limpets simply don't have enough time to fetch the abandoned containers.

 

[Terry Bruge-Hiplo]

If you have a target selected, firing a collector limpet will make it single use, so it will destruct after collecting the item targeted.
If you have nothing collectable targeted, limtets are programmed multi use and will collect anything and everything within range.

Well, I'll be jiggered. Thanks for the info! Won't need to carry 300 limpets with me next time I go mining

 

[Berik]

I prefer solving the root of a problem rather than being given ways to help reduce the problem once it already exits.

More options at refinery level is simply closing barn door after horses escaped. I'd prefer simple programmable limpet UI - let us 'program' at the limpet level what we want them to pick up or not. Simple checkbox next to each resource type in options menu would be fine. Perhaps even add other general class types - salvage, stolen, etc

there would be no need to dump anything from the refinery if limpets never even picked up the ores you did not want in the first place.

I disagree I think it should be both then when you get fragments with multiple metal types the refinery will auto eject anything you don't want especially helpful when your hold is getting full, but I agree the limpets should be configurable to only pick up selected fragment types.

 

[Limoncello Lizard]

but I agree the limpets should be configurable to only pick up selected fragment types.

You'd think that with the time it takes for the limpets to be programmed after pressing the button to deploy them, that it would actually program the limpets. If all you ever get is the standard program of collect everything, deployment should be instant.

 

[Lestat]

I disagree I think it should be both then when you get fragments with multiple metal types the refinery will auto eject anything you don't want especially helpful when your hold is getting full, but I agree the limpets should be configurable to only pick up selected fragment types.

That why you need to manage your Bins. Think about it. Most Asteroids have up to 3 different ores. It not that hard to mange the 1 or 2 ores you do not need venting out. I running 6 Limpit collectors. at a time.

 

[Count]

Please please please what I want to see is two types pf collector limpets - mining limpets and collector limpets.

You jettison a ton of useless cargo you don't want, and the limpet goes straight for it instead of all those lovely chunks of rock, and when the refinery fills the cargo before it gets back, it will sit there holding the can and let all the rocks go to waste.

 

[Lestat]

Please please please what I want to see is two types pf collector limpets - mining limpets and collector limpets.

You jettison a ton of useless cargo you don't want, and the limpet goes straight for it instead of all those lovely chunks of rock, and when the refinery fills the cargo before it gets back, it will sit there holding the can and let all the rocks go to waste.

Thing is if you don't have Useless cargo if you manage your Refinery. It not that hard.