On Fri, 1 Apr 2016, Paul Koning wrote:
http://www.bytecellar.com/2008/02/13/the_sgi_1600sw/
It looked like that one, but I'm 98% sure it was plasma, not LCD as that
one says it is.
They had a couple of models, I've only ever seen the LCD one, but there
was another model (if you look close, one has a bit of an amber cast to
it). That could have been a plasma model. I think it was the one meant to
work with overhead projectors, but I'm not sure.
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.
The ones I vaguely remember were on very early ruggedized laptops (those
big brick / nearly-luggable laptops in the style of the Mac Portable).
Someone at a swap-meet called them "Daylight screens". I think they used
those a bit in cop-cars for VMDs, too.
And yes, that technology was later applied to military displays
(including in 1k x 1k version, 16 inches high/wide) and early "luggable"
PCs.
I had one of those old Compaq Portable III machines for a while. It was
what I used to drag to conventions in the mid 90's. I didn't have the cash
for a "real" laptop. I think it has a gas-plasma display on it. It was
amber, I remember that, at least.
-Swift
