[MOD 0.13.0] DesertSun

[maggi321]

Details

• Type: Mod
• Name: DesertSun
• Author: maggi321
• Category: Power
• Description: This mod makes your solar panels more effective when placed in the desert (+15 %) and less effective when placed on any other terrain (-15%). This gives you motivation to build large solar farms out in the desert rather than anywhere in your base, which contributes to the exploration part of the game.
• License: Creative Commons 3.0 - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
• Factorio Version: 0.12
• Locale: en, de
• Released: June 24, 2016

This is my first mod. If you have any suggestions how to improve it, just let me know. I'll see what I can do.

Edit #1:
Added support for solar panels from mod packs (tested for Bobs mod). Thanks goes to Adil for the help with the code.

Edit #2:
Changed the mod definition to make it 0.13 compatible

Known Issues:
Solar panels from mods other than Bobs mod may show the wrong name, since I cannot add the missing string to the locale file.

[sporefreak]

This is brillant! Would it be possible to make it work for modded solar panels?

If yes I would suggest making it work off of percentages instead of flat amounts. (Im assuming you have flat amounts set)
15% better production in deserts -10% elsewhere or something.
That way you can just have the mod scan for solar panel types and change energy values (I have no idea how to make any of this happen)

[maggi321]

That way you can just have the mod scan for solar panel types and change energy values (I have no idea how to make any of this happen)

This was also my first idea. I already managed to loop through all the solar panel types available, but i wasn't able to change the energy production value within the lua code. My guess is, that this property is not yet available via the modding API. Instead I just created a "desert solar panel", which looks identical to the original one and replaces it, whenever you build one in the desert.

Long story short: At the moment this is not possible (for me). But I'm currently creating another, much bigger mod. So maybe in a few months when I'm more experienced I will figure a way out.

P.S.: If someone who reads this knows a way to change the energy production of a LuaEntity of type "solar-panel", please let me know.

[Adil]

Good idea. Definitely something that brings new ideas in gameplay.

If someone who reads this knows a way to change the energy production of a LuaEntity of type "solar-panel", please let me know.

You can't, in runtime most entity parameters are read-only.

The currently correct way is by procedurally generating the entities during the data-updates.lua stage.

for example

Code: Select all

new={}
for _,panel in pairs(data.raw['solar-panel']) do
    table.insert(new,generate(panel))
    panel.production=modify(panel.production, .8)
end
data.extend(data,new) -- :P

Where

Code: Select all

generate=function(panel)   
       local desert_pan=table.deepcopy(panel)
       desert_pan.name=panel.name.."-##dessert##"
       desert_pan.production=modify( panel.production, 1.2)
       return desert_pan
end

Code: Select all

modify = function(str, multiplier)
    local _,_,num,lett = str:find( '(%d+%.?%d*)(.*)' )
    return tostring(num * multiplier) .. lett
end

And then find all the generated prototypes during on init:

code

Code: Select all

init=function()
    global.panels={}
    for k,v in pairs(game.item_prototypes) do
        _,_,name= string.find(k,"(.*?)%-##dessert##")
        if name  then
             global.panels[name]=k
        end
    end
end
script.on_init(function() init() end)
script.on_configuration_changed(function() init() end)

And then use the table generated to determine what should be replaced with what.

idea

Code: Select all

on_built=function(event)
    local name=event.created_entity.name
    if global.panels[name] then
        --code to replace them here
    end
end

[Neotix]

Why do you think that solar panels are more efficient in desert? Because there is more sunlight? But do you know that solar panels have less efficient in higher temperatures? In RL solar panels have less efficient on desert lands. They lose more because of temperature then they get from more sunlight. Thats why they usually don't built photovoltaic farms but solar collectors like that
or that

[maggi321]

@Adil: Thank you very much for your very detailed explanation! I will definitly look into it.

@Neotix: Thank you too for your interesting remark. I wasn't really aware, that higher temperatures would make photovoltaik panels so much less effective. I knew although, that you would rather build solar collectors in the desert. I just didn't want to overcomplicate the game by adding even more types of solar panels (personally I play with Bobs mod very often and there are already plenty of them). In games like factorio you always have to simplify things. I'm also pretty sure, that in RL you can't build a solar panel from solely steel plates, copper plates and electronic circuits.

[sporefreak]

Why do you think that solar panels are more efficient in desert? Because there is more sunlight? But do you know that solar panels have less efficient in higher temperatures? In RL solar panels have less efficient on desert lands. They lose more because of temperature then they get from more sunlight. Thats why they usually don't built photovoltaic farms but solar collectors like that
or that

Ah but this is an alien planet. It could be cold, causing the temperature to not be as diminishing.