An idea struck Rachel once again. She quickly rushed to collect the materials while it was still fresh in her mind. She went to the closet and selected an old handbag, black and very plain looking. Buried in the corner she spotted a relic from the early '90s. "This old fibre optic lamp will work nicely," she thought.

Down to the laboratory she fled, picking up a needle and thread
Laboriously she sped, one stitch at a time
Weaving fibre line, until her fingers nearly bled
Soon it was done, and it certainly was sublime

Having finished the mechanics, Rachel walked to her computer and began coding. Java wasn't her favourite language, but the graphic utilities were quick and easy, and native support was a big plus. Compiling and executing, a series of random colourful shapes and patterns shifted around on the screen. "Perfect!" she thought, as she uploaded the program onto her cell phone.

She started the program, and slipped the phone into a little pocket in the purse. The ends of the meticulously lain fibres were bundled together and positioned directly in front of the phone's LCD. Immediately, the side of the purse began to twinkle and flash, the fibres channelling light from the phone to the surface of the fabric.

"Awesome!" she exclaimed, and decided to take it clubbing. On the way, she pondered various improvements, like a visual ring indicator for the phone. Or maybe a voice analyzer to make the lights respond to her tone. Flashing lights make everything better.
-- Aq_Bi, May 17 2007

Aww, no fair, I expected tentacles.

It's a nice idea though (not as good as a handbag that grabs at items of interest, but still nice) but I think that the phone's LCD will not be bright enough to convey much light to the outside of the bag. You could just make the bag out of the new flexi LCD stuff.
-- marklar, May 17 2007


A purse with tentacles would be a clutch.
-- elhigh, May 23 2007


You could easily hook a little LED board to the fiber ends and drive it with a PIC.

Maybe you have a button on it to flash it at potential mates, just like a real cuttlefish...
-- acsnoozer, May 24 2007


I think LCDs will be plenty bright, especially in dim lighting. Displays are getting more efficient all the time, allowing for extra illumination for the same battery consumption.

LEDs are a bit cumbersome to use. They're nice and bright, but it's far more difficult to build and control a large array than it is to drop a cell phone in place. There's also the extra expense. Why pay for more electronics when you already carry a phone?
-- Aq_Bi, May 25 2007



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