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[Silverionmox]

Instead of selecting the trade goods when the merchants arrive, you can designate goods for trade, like you can designate them for melting or dumping.
They would then be brought to the trade depot, and ignored thereafter until exported or undesignated. Also, they would be automatically selected as trade goods when a caravan arrives.
The trade depot shouldn't be able to preserve perishables (as it is now, I think) to avoid it being used as quantum storage. (In a later stage, there will probably be storerooms dedicated to trade, while the meeting takes place in the broker's office, but that's for later).

After all, the dwarves know a caravan will come, and they produce goods specifially for export, so let's avoid the logistic knot when the caravan arrives. Further goods can still be selected at that time.

[Granite26]

Nice....

[Silverionmox]

**Bump**

As an additional advantage, you can start trading as soon as the merchants arrive, instead of waiting for the dwarves to haul all the stuff to the depot and missing the merchants because you run DF in the background.

[Lightman]

As an additional advantage, you can start trading as soon as the merchants arrive, instead of waiting for the dwarves to haul all the stuff to the depot and missing the merchants because you run DF in the background.

You shouldn't be able to trade things that aren't at the depot. There is a similar suggestion out there ("mark for trade"). It's an interesting idea and the trading system could probably do with some work, but I'm not sure that making people go through their (sometimes massive) inventories to mark things for trading is easier than selecting a bunch of "finished goods" containers.

[penguinofhonor]

I like this idea. It could be done either way, though, for people who prefer the list. I would probably do the designation if I wanted everything in a stockpile traded and the list if I wanted a few containers in a stockpile traded.

[Silverionmox]

As an additional advantage, you can start trading as soon as the merchants arrive, instead of waiting for the dwarves to haul all the stuff to the depot and missing the merchants because you run DF in the background.

You shouldn't be able to trade things that aren't at the depot. There is a similar suggestion out there ("mark for trade"). It's an interesting idea and the trading system could probably do with some work, but I'm not sure that making people go through their (sometimes massive) inventories to mark things for trading is easier than selecting a bunch of "finished goods" containers.

The idea is to mark stuff that's ready for export, so it can already be transported to the depot, instead of 1) reselecting everything every time a caravan arrives, and 2) to avoid making everybody hurry to get 500 stone trinkets to the depot, because they were already finished six months ago anyway.

So because the stuff is already in the depot, you can start to trade right away. The mark also is persistent, so you only need to mark each good once, instead of again and again when a new caravan visits. Going through my inventory every time is what I'm trying to avoid.

[Dame de la Licorne]

The thing is, generally you know if the stuff you're making is for trade or something else, and since you (or the dwarfs) know when a caravan is coming, they would start prepping early and move things to the depot as they finish.  So if there could be some way of indicating that through a [T]rade marking (like the [M]elt and [D]ump) it would be easier.
Or we could just have the option to "move goods to the depot" when there aren't merchants around.  That would still be better than the current system.

[penguinofhonor]

Or we could just have the option to "move goods to the depot" when there aren't merchants around.  That would still be better than the current system.

That's to stop people from exploiting it as infinite storage.

I would be fine if items marked for [T]rade were brought to the Depot as soon as the caravan appeared on the map. I don't really care whether or not they are there beforehand, unless all my dwarves are asleep, which isn't a problem in the new version.

[Dame de la Licorne]

Or we could just have the option to "move goods to the depot" when there aren't merchants around.  That would still be better than the current system.

That's to stop people from exploiting it as infinite storage.

I see.

I would be fine if items marked for [T]rade were brought to the Depot as soon as the caravan appeared on the map. I don't really care whether or not they are there beforehand, unless all my dwarves are asleep, which isn't a problem in the new version.

Then this would be a step in the right direction.

[Impaler[WrG]]

Thredromancy:  I have an excellent idea that builds off of the [T] designation, All workshops orders should have a T option which will cause the item to be given this Trade tag when created.  In essence it indicates that objects are being made as trade goods and thus the player won't need to hunt them down at a later date to apply the T flag manually.

To overcome the possible shortcomings of using Trade Depots as infinite storage perhaps the solution is just to eliminate storage of things in the Depot altogether.  When the Wagon shows up your Liaison goes to the Depot and you get a Trade screen in which all your [T] Designated items are listed and you trade as normal.  Only once the deal is struck are the Hauling tasks generated, as each item is brought to the Depot the Caravan hands over a value proportional but random selection of items from its side of the deal for you too take away.  (For example if you traded 1500 worth of items for 1000 worth of items, and you bring an object valued at 30 points they hand over an item or group of items worth ~20).  If time runs out and the Caravan must leave then all the remaining Hauling and trading is canceled but proportionality has been maintained at all times so no one is cheated.  At any time you can cancel the current exchange (though it angers the merchant) and re-negotiate then restart the exchange.

[Aquillion]

The trade depot shouldn't be able to preserve perishables (as it is now, I think) to avoid it being used as quantum storage.

Trust me, this is a bad idea.  The trade depot's preservation abilities absolutely should not be changed, not until some other option to accomplish the same thing is added (making it like a 'room-defined workshop' that includes food stockpiles, say.)

I remember the old versions with stuff rotting in the depot.  It was essentially impossible to trade food or to trade for food.  It was absolutely no fun.

[Leafsnail]

The trade depot shouldn't be able to preserve perishables (as it is now, I think) to avoid it being used as quantum storage.

Trust me, this is a bad idea.  The trade depot's preservation abilities absolutely should not be changed, not until some other option to accomplish the same thing is added (making it like a 'room-defined workshop' that includes food stockpiles, say.)

I remember the old versions with stuff rotting in the depot.  It was essentially impossible to trade food or to trade for food.  It was absolutely no fun.

Maybe you could store it without rotting in the depot as long as there are merchants trading.  Otherwise, you could just use it as a substitute for stockpiles, and that's supposed to be part of the game.

[Silverionmox]

The trade depot shouldn't be able to preserve perishables (as it is now, I think) to avoid it being used as quantum storage.

Trust me, this is a bad idea.  The trade depot's preservation abilities absolutely should not be changed, not until some other option to accomplish the same thing is added (making it like a 'room-defined workshop' that includes food stockpiles, say.)

I remember the old versions with stuff rotting in the depot.  It was essentially impossible to trade food or to trade for food.  It was absolutely no fun.

When food preservation is put in that should become a moot point, since you would then trade dried plump helmet slices for barrels of pickled herring or somesuch, instead of fresh meals. But you're right, it doesn't even solve the infinite storage exploit for non-perishables. It's would make more sense to have the trader and the broker meet in his office, where they discuss the inventory lists and tour the stockpiles afterwards for inspection.

[Vattic]

I tend to put custom stockpiles near my trade depot anyway but being able to d - b - t and mass select the contents of the stockpiles for trade would be nice.

[Aquillion]

The trade depot shouldn't be able to preserve perishables (as it is now, I think) to avoid it being used as quantum storage.

Trust me, this is a bad idea.  The trade depot's preservation abilities absolutely should not be changed, not until some other option to accomplish the same thing is added (making it like a 'room-defined workshop' that includes food stockpiles, say.)

I remember the old versions with stuff rotting in the depot.  It was essentially impossible to trade food or to trade for food.  It was absolutely no fun.

Maybe you could store it without rotting in the depot as long as there are merchants trading.  Otherwise, you could just use it as a substitute for stockpiles, and that's supposed to be part of the game.

The problem is that it can take a huge amount of time to get dwarves to move all the stuff from the depot, when you trade for a lot.  Hauling is still incomplete; there's no way to efficiently enough move a large amount of purchased food into storage.

And this avoids the main issue -- the depot still has unlimited storage space your suggestion, it's just limited to non-perishables.  Even if you made the depot allow food to rot, people could just deconstruct it and designate stockpile under it, then build a new depot nearby.  The problem is not food; the problem is that the depot can hold an unlimited amount of anything without requiring space.

The current situation is ultimately a stopgap measure.  Eventually, hopefully, the depot will be "composed" of stockpiles, so things will be placed there directly.