diff --git a/control-util.lua b/control-util.lua
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..968b924
--- /dev/null
+++ b/control-util.lua
@@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
+local me = require("me")
+
+local util = {}
+util.me = me
+
+function decode(data)
+    if type(data) == "string" then return data end
+    local str = {}
+    for i = 2, #data do
+        str[i-1] = decode(data[i])
+    end
+    return table.concat(str, "")
+end
+
+function util.get_list()
+    local p = game.item_prototypes[me.name.."-list"]
+    if p then
+      data = p.localised_description
+      return decode(data)
+    end
+end
+
+return util