Is there any way to know what kind of stuff I will get out of ore?

I want to maximize my time underground, and I can only carry a certain amount of stuff at a time.

Is there any way to know before I dig how valuable the stuff in a particular bit of ore will be? Or do I just need to dig and find out?

Solution 1:

Early in the game, ores tend to be hard to differentiate from each other. The most common ore you'll find will be Trashium, Copperium, and Ironium. (Side note: to the Left of the grey box below is a bag. If you do happen to die, all of your ores will be stored in that bag, so don't worry about losing ores. )An example of Early game below:

Mid game will start to bring a lot more variety of ores, but the blocks that hold 'em will be hard to distinguish from other ores. Ores found here can include Gold, Beryllium, Galena, Chocolotite. An example of Mid Game below:

Towards end-game you will find that ores will have distinct colors. Diamond is the "biggest" ore and sells for $500. An example from the End Game below:

Solution 2:

Unfortunately, you'll need to dig it out and find out. Good news, though! The less valuable ores will take less "space" in your backpack, allowing you to carry several of the same item before the slot is full.

Also, don't worry about leaving ore lying around; it will still be there when you get back. It doesn't disappear at any point (except for maybe saving and reloading; I haven't tested that).