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[Dekon]

Fairly straightforward.  As my metalsmiths were working, it occurred to me 'If there's a bin with multiple/filled with steel, why carry a single bar of steel to the forge if there are multiple steel jobs?  Why not just carry the whole damn bin to the forge, and then someone can take away the bin when it's done?'

This could happen for almost all jobs that require objects in bins.  If there are multiple jobs using the same material, and there's a bin available primarily filled with that material, just take the whole bin to the workshop.

Bumps/Comments appreciated.

[Bohandas]

This is an extremely good idea

[IT 000]

Good idea, but clutter might be a problem, it could slow down work to the point that taking single bars would go faster.

[Dekon]

Good idea, but clutter might be a problem, it could slow down work to the point that taking single bars would go faster.

Not really.  A bin of items is normally..what..8-12 objects?  Not enough to cause clutter, or very minor clutter if it is.  If objects are extending past that, then your problem is just not enough haulers and cutter in general - not the use of bins.

Don't misunderstand - I'm not saying that dwarves start quantum stockpiling bins at the workshop.  Reasonably, the best way to do this would be for each workshop to have a 'slot' for a bin.  That slot wouldn't count against clutter any more than a single object would, and only one bin could be there at a time.  If the dwarf cleans out that bin, it can either get hauled to a furniture stockpile of empty bins, or the dwarf could just kick the empty bin out of his shop.  Or Empty Bins could just ultimately cause clutter, which would make furniture stockpiles more of a priority than they currently are.

[NW_Kohaku]

Bins hold 10 items.  Most of the older objects held 10 specific items inside them, regardless of the size of each individual object. 

Newer objects now have "Container Capacity", which is working with a greater evolving notion that everything in the game has a defined volume and mass.

Anyway, the idea of carrying stacks of objects in a container instead of individual objects is just the simpler implementation of the Improved Hauling concept that was the #1 item on Eternal Suggestion Voting, and is on the Dev Page right now.

Hauling Improvements

• Being able to haul multiple small objects
• Having multiple dwarves involved with item hauling for a job
• Being able to move multiple objects with roughly the same destination at once
• Wheelbarrows to haul more objects than can be carried
• Minecarts
• Wooden, stone-carved and metal tracks
• Can be filled like stockpiles and moved between destinations
• Work animals to tow carts and haul objects

[Bohandas]

Good idea, but clutter might be a problem, it could slow down work to the point that taking single bars would go faster.

Not really.  A bin of items is normally..what..8-12 objects?  Not enough to cause clutter, or very minor clutter if it is.  If objects are extending past that, then your problem is just not enough haulers and cutter in general - not the use of bins.

Don't misunderstand - I'm not saying that dwarves start quantum stockpiling bins at the workshop.  Reasonably, the best way to do this would be for each workshop to have a 'slot' for a bin.  That slot wouldn't count against clutter any more than a single object would, and only one bin could be there at a time.  If the dwarf cleans out that bin, it can either get hauled to a furniture stockpile of empty bins, or the dwarf could just kick the empty bin out of his shop.  Or Empty Bins could just ultimately cause clutter, which would make furniture stockpiles more of a priority than they currently are.

That sounds like it would work well.

[Elone]

They can carry the whole bin there. The bin takes up one space. The crafter would pull items from the bin as they are needed. When the bin empties, it is taken away and returned to the pile. Another one is brought. This still doesnt cover the issue of bringing them back, but I'm sure that someone will think of a way. More importantly, we really need a better way to repeat jobs. We could queue them with /* or CV or something, to have something like:

wooden bins x20
wooden barrels x15

and be decremented until they are all finished.
Oh, and they could still cycle (be pushed to end of queue once each individual job is done).

As is, 10 total jobs is too little, and the eternal repeat is tempting, but not always a good option. I am mentioning this because this idea could determine the number of needed bins from the number of set jobs.

[Dekon]

@Elone

Your idea is what the dwarf manager is for.  You can already do that, but you need a manager in your fort.  Use 'j' 'm' 'q' and you'll create a work order to get it done.


Back to the original point - I think it'd also be good for a second bin to be settable at workshops for items to go into.  So each workshop would have two 'slots' - an 'in' bin and an 'out' bin, if applicable.  The in bin would be the resource, while the out bin would be for whatever is created.

[Elone]

I was going to propose that, however I realised what is wrong with it (so i just posted the other half of the intended post).

The output barrels could clutter up just by themselves, if the workshop in question has used unstackable items. I mean, you could have a shop that outputs different items, and then they all get put into the same output bin, but what if it fills, and the contents need to be taken to different stockpiles? Do dorfs bring a bin for every possibility? For every item in queue? Even the ones waiting empty? Because that sounds like clutter will be added and not removed. I dont see workshops getting a separate bin storage, AFAIK everything in a building takes up a space, even the resource from which the building is made.

PS Call me crazy, but I avoided using managers for the sole fact that they are said to be buggy. Like, when one dies while there are jobs queued and permissions set, you cant edit them again at all, or something. I'll go check that page again.