Peripheral Upgrades for Pocket Computers

We have them for turtles, why not add them for pocket computers?

Allow addon authors to specify peripherals that can be crafted with a pocket computer to add peripheral functionality to them, similar to how this can be done for turtles. This would be done separately to keep the game balanced (no tool peripherals on pocket computers for example) and would allow more uses for pocket computers, as mentioned here, using an OpenPeripherals sensor peripheral to sense monsters nearby and warn you, by blinking a rednet modem perhaps. (or maybe even playing an alarm through a new pocket computer peripheral)

Ideas:
- One peripheral per pocket computer, in addition to a wireless modem
- Custom peripheral can be removed by crafting the pocket computer by itself (the wireless modem cannot be removed)
- Pocket computer peripherals are defined separately from turtle peripherals (some turtle peripherals wouldn't make sense on a pocket computer, such as a chunkloader peripheral)

I support this 110%. I believe it should have the restriction of 1 peripheral. I wish that I could add my blocks from MoarP to pocket computers, imagine a Note Block on them, you'd be able to make notification sounds.

About idea of restriction. One is kinda low limit. Per example you add Note Block and get notifications. What would they notify you about? You don't have wireless modem to connect to anything? Unless you are not counting wireless modem for the restriction.

wojbie, on 07 April 2015 - 02:08 AM said:

About idea of restriction. One is kinda low limit. Per example you add Note Block and get notifications. What would they notify you about? You don't have wireless modem to connect to anything? Unless you are not counting wireless modem for the restriction.

I agree. Maybe one slot for any peripheral, and one for limited peripherals such as note blocks and/or modems? That would allow it to still be very useful without making it unbalanced.

For example, I'd love to be able to use a terminal glasses bridge and wireless modem with my pocket computer (although that might take a bit of work on Open Peripherals to make it work) so I don't have to relay data from the pocket computer to a computer with a terminal glasses bridge.

wojbie, on 07 April 2015 - 02:08 AM said:

-snip-

I'm not counting modem in the restriction, since modem is in the crafting recipe and I assume that the peripherals would provide some way to add/remove them at will.

It makes sense that the turtle can move its own peripherals around - it's a magic flying box, after all - but I imagine the pocket computer wouldn't have the necessary parts for that sort of thing.

Using the crafting table to add and remove peripherals probably makes the most sense, though I've always thought it'd be interesting to have it be able to interact with any peripherals which are actually placed next to it within your inventory. That is to say, if you want to use a pocket computer with an attachment, then you actually have to dedicate two inventory slots.

Bomb Bloke, on 07 April 2015 - 09:55 AM said:

Using the crafting table to add and remove peripherals probably makes the most sense, though I've always thought it'd be interesting to have it be able to interact with any peripherals which are actually placed next to it within your inventory. That is to say, if you want to use a pocket computer with an attachment, then you actually have to dedicate two inventory slots.

Yea but that would make it cumbersome to manipulate. You move your computer to other slot and forget to move peripheral and bam - it stops working. Accessing peripheral that is anywhere in inventory thought sounds like interesting alternative.

I like the crafting idea, maybe have it's position in the crafting grid decide which peripheral is removed.

Turtles can have custom peripherals added to their equippable list so why not expand the peripheral API to support additions to pocket computers as well? I would definitely support having something like a sensor pocket computer.

Lupus590, on 07 April 2015 - 12:20 PM said:

I like the crafting idea, maybe have it's position in the crafting grid decide which peripheral is removed.

Well it sounds like this thread is leaning towards one peripheral plus a wireless modem max, and as you cannot remove the wireless modem, crafting the pocket computer in any slot should remove the custom peripheral.

Additionally, maybe peripherals could add a (small) graphic to the side of the pocket computer they are attached too? For example attaching an Open Peripherals Sensor peripheral would add a small antenna to the top/side of the pocket computer.

A cool peripheral would be headsets… You equip then and do

h = peripheral.find("headset")
while true do
  os.pullEvent("rednet_message")
  h.playsound("note.pling")
end

(Just a example :P/>)

Here's a crazy idea - how about whatever block you're targeting when you open the display, becomes available as a peripheral until you close it again?

That at the very least could make for some interesting power-monitoring scripts. Right-click your reactor with your pocket computer, get a readout. Right-click your MFSU, you get the figures for that. etc…

Bomb Bloke, on 05 May 2015 - 07:07 AM said:

Here's a crazy idea - how about whatever block you're targeting when you open the display, becomes available as a peripheral until you close it again?

That at the very least could make for some interesting power-monitoring scripts. Right-click your reactor with your pocket computer, get a readout. Right-click your MFSU, you get the figures for that. etc…

Hmm… It's an interesting idea, but I don't see any real applications for it without other addons.