1 Apr
2016
1 Apr
'16
12:34 p.m.
On Apr 1, 2016, at 1:19 PM, Swift Griggs
<swiftgriggs at gmail.com> wrote:
On Fri, 1 Apr 2016, Paul Koning wrote:
It looked like that one, but I'm 98% sure it was plasma, not LCD as that one says it
is.
I remember looking at an SGI PC years ago, with a
plasma panel display. That was when plasma displays cost thousands of dollars and LCD
displays hadn't quite arrived yet.
I wonder if it was one of these that you saw:
http://www.geocities.ws/hinv.geo/sgipics/flatpanel/indy_presenters.jpg
or perhaps this one:
http://www.bytecellar.com/2008/02/13/the_sgi_1600sw/ 
...
I can't figure out the mirror bit. Normal practice in the panels I remember was that
they had a polaroid filter in the front, partly to cut down on reflections and partly to
improve contrast with high ambient light. They were PLATO terminals. And yes, that
technology was later applied to military displays (including in 1k x 1k version, 16 inches
high/wide) and early "luggable" PCs.
paul
(I may be partial; I have fond memories, and an
actual working copy of, a 512 x 512 "orange and white" plasma display...)
I remember seeing those. I also remember a few laptops that had them. For certain
applications they were terrific. I know the military used them for displays in some of
their gear since they didn't easily wash out with sunlight. Some even thrived on
sunlight by backing the plasma display with what was basically a half-silvered mirror.