General Hints for Those New to Spacechem.

[Bashy McFetus]

So there have been a bunch of new threads from people presumably getting the humble indie bundle, so I thought I'd hel exaplain some things that aren't so well explained, as well as some of the wierder quirks.

General Help
Changing input and output symbols

The red waldo can input beta molecules and output omega molecules. Similarly, the blue waldo can input alpha molecules and output psi molecules. By right-clicking on the input or output symbols, you can change which input or output is used.

Bonder usage

Bonders can be moved around to where ever you need them. Further, waldos don't have to be over them to activate bond +/- commands, and molecules don't have to be held to form bonds. There are also no consequences for firing the bonders when doing so doesn't accomplish anything.

Input placement

The picture that shows the input also shows exactly where it will show up in the input area. When you have multiple reactors, products from one reactor will show up in the exact same place as they were output when used as an input. You can actually make output notes by right-clicking on the black area to the right of the output, and these notes will show up next to the inputs in reactors that use them.

General Optimization Hints
Use as few syncs as possible

Syncs help prevent collisions and make timing a lot easier, but also mean that a waldo is sitting around doing nothing. It can be difficult to get the timing to get rid of them, but your solution will almost always be faster. If you do have to use syncs, play around with their positioning. A "go" sync (where the other waldo is waiting) should be placed as early as possibly, while a "stop" sync (where the waldo will wait) should be place as late as possible.

Move as few molecules as necessary

If you can perform the operation you need to without moving one of the inputs, you should do so. For example, in "An Introduction to Bonding", you can keep the silver right where it is after inputting it, and move the fluorine to bond with it. There's no reason to move both before bonding.

Repeated commands

If you always need bond+ firing, or if you always need one output outputting, you can have a waldo run into a wall with the necessary symbol at the wall. The command will continue to activate.

Switchbacks

It's possible to send a waldo right back through the path it just came by placing an arrow pointing that direction. The waldo will activate every command again along the way. The command at the switchback, if there is one, will only be activated once.

Gameplay quirks
These have more to do with how the game is programmed than anything, but should still be kept in mind.

Order of Operations

The red waldo will always activate its command before blue does, even though they appear simultaneous. This means, for example, it's possible to have the red waldo input a molecule and the blue to grab it in the same cycle, but red can't grab something the same cycle that blue inputs it.

Bonder priority

Bonders have a hidden preference for where they try to form bonds first. Each bonder has a hidden number, and number 1 will try to for a bond with what's in bonder 2, then in bonder 3, and so on. Bonder 2 then repeats that process, then 3, etc., until all possible bonds have been tried. The earliest this is likely to be noticed is in "Split before bonding". If you put an oxygen directly belows the hydrogen, split a bond, and the form a bond, you can reform your starting molecules, or form hydrogen peroxide by switching which specific bonder is where. Unfortunately, there's no good way to figure out which bonder is which without experimenting.

There's some tips to get you started. In all likelyhood, I've forgotten a couple things, but there're always people here to help, you just need to ask.

[Poopdude]

Thanks!

[Me2nice]

Thank ye.

[Ladicuis]

Output
The output doesn't have to be in the same shape or position as shown in the output window. Only thing that matters are the number of bonds and the atoms they bind to.

This took me a while before I noticed it didn't matter. :)

[G.Lecter]

Fantastic thread, it should be sticky'd IMO. :)
I wouldn't call it a guide for begginers, though: these tips are definitely useful to those who are trying to find the most effective solutions, too.

[PieceOfMind]

Bonder priority

Bonders have a hidden preference for where they try to form bonds first. Each bonder has a hidden number, and number 1 will try to for a bond with what's in bonder 2, then in bonder 3, and so on. Bonder 2 then repeats that process, then 3, etc., until all possible bonds have been tried. The earliest this is likely to be noticed is in "Split before bonding". If you put an oxygen directly belows the hydrogen, split a bond, and the form a bond, you can reform your starting molecules, or form hydrogen peroxide by switching which specific bonder is where. Unfortunately, there's no good way to figure out which bonder is which without experimenting.
Wow, I've been playing for a long time and didn't know that!

Here's a couple more suggestions for newbie advice, if you'd like to add them.

1) Where you place an atom or molecule in the output zone doesn't matter. Often you want to drop completed molecules along the left edge of the output zone for the best speed.

2) The direction of bonds on molecules does not matter. Having the correct atoms connected together with the right number of bonds is all that matters. Here is a pic with some examples of molecules that are treated identically for solutions.
http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/3078/examplesk.png

EDIT... Ah, cross post with Ladicuis. Oh well, feel free to use that image.

[Whiplashr]

Great thread. Just one thing I'd add:

1) Where you place an atom or molecule in the output zone doesn't matter. Often you want to drop completed molecules along the left edge of the output zone for the best speed.

In the same vein, when you are doing multi-reactor puzzles, a big part of overall efficiency is figuring out where to output so that your next reactor can make best use of the input.

For example, if you plan to do double pickup of an input with one waldo in the same loop (it's path crossing over itself) you can't have the input be on the edge, or in a corner. You can't cross the paths over those squares.

And generally you can also use positioning to help with those situations where two reactors are outputing to another, but one of them is producing more quickly than the other, throwing off the efficiency of the later reactor. You can for example slow down the quicker reactor by outputting to the far right (larger/longer loops). Then the next reactor gets the input much closer to the center, and can have more tightly contained, centralized loops.

I spend a lot of time on multi-reactor puzzles thinking out the whole gameplan, including positioning, before I design too far on any reactor. Because I may want to change it later to improve the overall efficiency of the entire solution. And it can become a pain to totally redo a reactor just to adjust for the fact that you moved an input or output by a square.

[PieceOfMind]

I spend a lot of time on multi-reactor puzzles thinking out the whole gameplan before I start designing and fixing exactly where I will input and output.

Yep, that's part of what makes this game so great. Really there's a lot of advice I would offer for players who are more advanced but most of it would just overwhelm newer players who will if they're willing learn it by themselves anyway.

For instance, avoiding using syncs when you have an odd and even path-time for the red and blue waldos can be achieved with carefully placed rotate symbols (which add 1 cycle), output symbols which remove more than 1 molecule (thus pausing for 1 or more cycles) or even flipflops against reactor walls instead of arrow symbols to add 1 cycle. Improving a cycle time from 12 to 11 in a bottleneck reactor in a tough production assignment could make all the difference!

I think the concept of crisscrossing (e.g. for grab symbols) being necessary especially before flipflops or sensors are introduced is something the player has to learn to progress anyway.

There's also some theory about process management (identifying bottlenecks, calculating cycle times, lead times, pipe lengths etc.) which you pretty much learn by playing this game.

[G.Lecter]

avoiding using syncs when you have an odd and even path-time for the red and blue waldos can be achieved with carefully placed rotate symbols (which add 1 cycle), output symbols which remove more than 1 molecule (thus pausing for 1 or more cycles) or even flipflops against reactor walls instead of arrow symbols to add 1 cycle. Improving a cycle time from 12 to 11 in a bottleneck reactor in a tough production assignment could make all the difference!Does this have any other benefit than saving one symbol? I usually end up adding a Sync after every Input symbol in most production-level reactors (except the first ones in the pipelines...).

[PieceOfMind]

Does this have any other benefit than saving one symbol? I usually end up adding a Sync after every Input symbol in most production-level reactors (except the first ones in the pipelines...).

Depends on the situation. Sometimes if you have very short or task-heavy paths for waldos (like 10 in many production assignments as it syncs up well with the release timing of reactants) you don't have enough room for syncs or you can only have room for a sync on one of the waldos and not the other, and using a rotate or output command might be something you needed to do anyway. But yeah, it's pretty situation-dependent.


EDIT... Here's (http://img593.imageshack.us/img593/6650/syncingexample.png) a recent example where I used it. I needed all paths to be of length 10. I also needed the nitrogens to be separated and dropped next to each other, and as far right as practical. As long as pipes from the outputs never get clogged up, this reactor is always perfectly synced. Using an output symbol that flushes two things (thus pausing for 1 cycle) and using a rotate symbol ensured the path length was an even number again. It allowed me to avoid using 3 syncs.

[WhipeeDip]

THANK YOU OH MY GOD I FINALLY SOLVED SPLIT BEFORE BONDING THANKS TO THE BONDER PRIORITY TIPS

[Bashy McFetus]

A bump might be helpful.

[just_dont_do_it]

This thread seems to be bashing syncs just like Dijkstra bashed "go to" operator :)

Syncs are NOT bad by themselves. They have a much needed role, and just by themselves, they aren't slowing your solution at all. There's NO difference between putting a sync for some idle time or adding a few useless steps and/or rotates to achieve the same goal.

However, if you're doing "split conveyor" reactor (both waldos do parts of a grand job), have in mind that you can achieve the best results if your whole operation would be split in perfect halves. That is, for an operation of X cycles, one waldo will be doing exactly X/2, and the other one the same. That way, no syncs will be necessary and the performance will be optimal.

[Bague]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHcDZZ977rQ

when they talk about saving a cycle by picking up with blue etc, is this a programming quirck that something with red/blue takes 1 cycle less or is this because they used red priorty over blue to make this design possible at all and saving cycles with the design itself?


anyone understands me? :D

[just_dont_do_it]

It's the usage of the "order of operations" quirk as explained by OP.
Look at the solution, it's executing "in alpha" with red waldo and grabbing it in the same cycle with the blue.

[Lepinkäinen]

I noticed one thing that makes sense from what I remember of chemistry, but still surprised me. Mirror images of molecules are considered the same by Spacechem. Not sure if that is actually useful anywhere, so it doesn´t qualify as any king of a hint, but still.

[just_dont_do_it]

Not only mirror images, but any variations as long as all connections are the same.

It's specifically described in tutorials, by the way.

[Doomfree]

Depends on the situation. Sometimes if you have very short or task-heavy paths for waldos (like 10 in many production assignments as it syncs up well with the release timing of reactants) you don't have enough room for syncs or you can only have room for a sync on one of the waldos and not the other, and using a rotate or output command might be something you needed to do anyway. But yeah, it's pretty situation-dependent.


EDIT... Here's (http://img593.imageshack.us/img593/6650/syncingexample.png) a recent example where I used it. I needed all paths to be of length 10. I also needed the nitrogens to be separated and dropped next to each other, and as far right as practical. As long as pipes from the outputs never get clogged up, this reactor is always perfectly synced. Using an output symbol that flushes two things (thus pausing for 1 cycle) and using a rotate symbol ensured the path length was an even number again. It allowed me to avoid using 3 syncs.
Please state which puzzle it is so people won't get spoilered

[h4ngedm4n]

Order of Operations & Bonder Priority are pretty much necessary to be aware of for the ResearchNet levels.

Not sure if this has already been posted elsewhere in the forums, but I found the charts on this page helpful in understanding flipflop arrays:
http://www.giantbomb.com/guides/spacechem-guide/2236/

[PieceOfMind]

Please state which puzzle it is so people won't get spoilered

I can't even remember, to be honest. I can tell you though it's only one reactor of multiple, for a production assignment.

It's not much of a spoiler, but I s'pose if you're doing a level and you want a reactor that splits the N2 it gets and doesn't split the O2 it gets, passing them each to separate outputs, then don't look at this.

[Ladicuis]

Bump for all the new players
hope you enjoy the game!

[ajs410]

For instance, avoiding using syncs when you have an odd and even path-time for the red and blue waldos can be achieved with carefully placed rotate symbols (which add 1 cycle)

I believe the rotate to add 1 cycle trick only works if the waldo executing the instruction is carrying something. An empty waldo cruises right past rotate instructions without waiting one cycle.

[Omnituens]

If there are multiple valid atoms/molecules in the output zone when the output is activated, they will be outputted in the order they were dropped UNLESS they were used in a bond+ or bond- AFTER being dropped in the zone. During these operations it pushes them to the back of the output order, and in the case of bond- they will be outputted in accordance to the hidden bonder order.

Example - you drop an Oxygen and then a Hydrogen into Y and out put. They output O then H.

If you were to drop a Water molecule in, then unbond them in Y output, they will output in a different order depending on which bonder goes where.

Might seem obscure, but on discovering I could manipulate this it helped me make a really nice reactor 1 on the optional mission on world 6.

[PieceOfMind]

If there are multiple valid atoms/molecules in the output zone when the output is activated, they will be outputted in the order they were dropped UNLESS they were used in a bond+ or bond- AFTER being dropped in the zone. During these operations it pushes them to the back of the output order, and in the case of bond- they will be outputted in accordance to the hidden bonder order.

Example - you drop an Oxygen and then a Hydrogen into Y and out put. They output O then H.

If you were to drop a Water molecule in, then unbond them in Y output, they will output in a different order depending on which bonder goes where.

Might seem obscure, but on discovering I could manipulate this it helped me make a really nice reactor 1 on the optional mission on world 6.
Did not know this, so thanks for posting it! +rep