lighting gone wrong,

[bernardgreen]

A cabinet maker told me about a specially commissioned desk he had built for a customer. The design was inspired by a desk the customer had seen in a TV program and had a toughened glass top with, you guessed it, lighting under the surface. Expensive lighting to get a smooth even illumination across the whole surface.

Looks good but apparently is not used as was intended in the office but had to be relegated to the games room. It is not possible to read documents on the desk when the desk is lit up and the optical mouse was completely confused.

Later the customer discovered the illuminated desks in many science fiction programs are the easiest way the film makers can illuminate the actors faces and are totally useless as a desk. The actor's script ( which they have learnt ) tells them what they are ""reading"" .

 

[securespark]

a desk the customer had seen in a TV program

The Apprentice?

 

[bernardgreen]

I don't know which program.

but let hope he never has a custom designer crash helmet with internal facial lighting

 

[electronicsuk]

Looks good but apparently is not used as was intended in the office but had to be relegated to the games room. It is not possible to read documents on the desk when the desk is lit up and the optical mouse was completely confused.

Do optical mice work on any glass desk? Besides, what's wrong with using a mouse mat?

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Expensive lighting to get a smooth even illumination across the whole surface.

Funny how light boxes manage with cheap-as-chips fluorescent tubes and a diffuser.

I think if I were building such a desk I'd put a sheet of acrylic under the glass, edge lit with cold cathode tubes.

I also think it's a shame they stopped making Swink sinks - they looked cool.