h a l f b a k e r yWhy did I think of that?
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Using a special polarized computer/laptop screen and sunglasses polarized in a particular way, block out all of the local field of view besides the computer screen.
I often work on my laptop at a coffee shop, which is very convenient and stimulating. However, there are times which I would like to
focus a little more on my laptop, say while working on a thesis.
Wearing a pair of (designer-quality, of course!) sunglasses, polarized in coordination with my laptop screen, I could block all of my surroundings besides the laptop screen and focus just a bit better.
Instrument Training Hood
http://www.ifrhood.com/
So you can't see out the windows. [baconbrain, Jan 08 2008]
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No, i don't think you could (block out surroundings completely). Polarization works by blocking out all but one orientation of wavelength - so that would still get through from your surroundings.
Think of it like this: To prevent seeing your surroundings, you need to block "all light". How will we make your laptop light different from "all light"?
Consider also:
The importance aspect (falling things, muggery, attractive mates)
or simply facing a wall or a corner. |
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note: You could make it so that everything around you was darker, not blacked out, but your laptop light was almost fully bright. Do this with normal polarized glasses and a laptop screen that is designed to output light to only orientation.
Note: this has been conceptualized for laptops for security purposes. excess light is pumped out of a "secure" screen that has light at all the wrong angle wavelengths for a pair of glasses. So the screen looks like garbage to anyone not wearing the glasses. |
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Think of it like this: No amount of creativity in a coffee shop, on a laptop, or without, will give us the next seven volumes of Harry Potter drivel. |
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The other day I heard a great saying: " To a worm in a horseradish, the world is horseradish." And now you want to limit you world? |
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This is one of those wishes that requires a halfway workable method to become an idea. Using a optical term isn't enough. |
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Lots of alternative ways to block out the world exist, from VR goggles to a pilot's instrument-training visor. Oh, and staying home. |
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OK, here's what you do. You need to
replace the backlight on your screen
with a high-brightness, high-frequency
strobe (for example, 200Hz with a 0.1%
duty cycle). The average light level
from the screen needs to be the same
as normal, but in the form of very short
pulses. |
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Then, you need a pair of high-
frequency LCD goggles, synched to the
strobe frequency (ie, open only for the
1/1000th of the time that the strobe
backlight is on). The result is that (a)
your screen will look perfectly normal to
anyone else (b) your screen will look
perfectly normal to you (c) the real
world will look 99.9% less bright than it
normally does, to you. |
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The problem will be in making LCD
goggles work at that frequency. You
might instead need goggles with high-
speed motorized disc-shutters. This
would be dangerous - an added bonus. |
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A second solution: an optical comb-
filter. You will need glasses with a
cunning set of filters, designed to pass
only three different colours, with very
narrow bandwidth. These colours need
to correspond exactly to the emission
wavelengths of the three pixel types on
your screen. The result is that your
screen will look normal to you (and to
everyone else), but the real world will
appear significantly dimmer than it
would otherwise do, to you. |
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A third solution. Go to Starbucks in
Milton Keynes. The result will be that
(a) your screen will look normal to you
(b) your screen will look normal to
everyone else and (c) everyone around
you will look 99% dimmer than they
would elsewhere. |
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Instead of polarised goggles, you wear goggles consisting of diffraction gratings. |
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Your screen emits two photons at a time, phased to interfere to produce part of the image. It does this quite quckly, so that persistence of vision produces an image on your retina. |
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Because of something (probably a bit sort of Quantum), the diffraction grating will scatter most of the random images around you, and as a bonus, if any sneaky spy person steals one of your photons, it's no good without the other one.......... |
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But otherwise, and ingenious Fourth Way. |
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Why don't you just have a pair of glasses that has a display built into them, displaying the information on your laptop screen at absolute focus. You could have a cable which plugs from the glasses to your laptop, or (if more ambitious) a wireless link. |
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I saw some show where a guy is selling a little tent that houses his laptop and blocks sunlight. That should work here. I looked for the link, but couldn't remember the snappy title, "laptent" or something. |
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Well, there's the Lapstix, the Viziflex, the Screen-Shade, and the CompUshade, but none of these names quite rise to the same degree of double entendre. |
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[UnaBubba] That's a good idea, but I think you would look very strange and it might attract attention from other coffee shop patrons who could distract you further from your work. |
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One way this might work is to find an opaque material to cover your sunglasses, but to cut a rectangular hole in each eyeglass of the same ratio of your laptop's screen. You would then arrange your head and laptop so that the laptop screen is all you can see. Holding your head immobile in a state of Zen-like meditation, you would attract quiet admiration from the public and few interruptions. |
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//opaque material to cover your sunglasses, but to cut a rectangular hole in each eyeglass// That's another version of the pilot's instrument-training "hood". |
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How do you see where your croissant and cup of coffee are, if you can only see the laptop screen ? |
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