this post was submitted on 23 Oct 2024
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I don't mean BETTER. That's a different conversation. I mean cooler.

An old CRT display was literally a small scale particle accelerator, firing angry electron beams at light speed towards the viewers, bent by an electromagnet that alternates at an ultra high frequency, stopped by a rounded rectangle of glowing phosphors.

If a CRT goes bad it can actually make people sick.

That's just. Conceptually a lot COOLER than a modern LED panel, which really is just a bajillion very tiny lightbulbs.

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[–] magnetosphere@fedia.io 131 points 17 hours ago (4 children)

Pneumatic tubes were way, way cooler than email.

Of course, you could only use them to send a message to someone in the same office building, so the comparison isn’t perfect… but you know what I mean.

[–] tnarg42@lemmy.world 10 points 9 hours ago (1 children)

Big hospitals still have them to send medications and random lightweight stuff around the complex. My wife has worked in two large hospitals that had pretty extensive tube systems, used especially with pharmacy.

[–] aimizo@lemmy.world 1 points 3 hours ago

My Walmart has them for a pharmacy drive thru.

[–] SGforce@lemmy.ca 26 points 15 hours ago (2 children)

Some downtown big cities had the buildings interconnected.

[–] thehatfox@lemmy.world 22 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

Prague had a large pneumatic post system which operated for 100+ years.

Prague pneumatic post.

[–] magnetosphere@fedia.io 3 points 5 hours ago

I had no idea there were systems that spanned entire cities! Thanks for the link!

[–] Omega_Jimes@lemmy.ca 39 points 16 hours ago (2 children)

I'm not crazy old, but I'm old enough that the supermarket I went to as a kid had these at all the checkout aisles and the cashiers would use them to send cheques/reciepts/ whatever.

It was awesome to see.

[–] ghashul@feddit.dk 16 points 16 hours ago (1 children)

They still use them today in some supermarkets, now they use them to send packets of cigarettes through the store.

[–] Omega_Jimes@lemmy.ca 6 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

That's actually a pretty good use. In my local market they send the person to a separate counter.

[–] 5wim@slrpnk.net 11 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

Very cool, I've never seen the ones that can send a person. Can they breathe in transit?

[–] Cenzorrll@lemmy.world 3 points 4 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago) (1 children)

It's pneumatic, not vacuum. Geez.

[–] 5wim@slrpnk.net 2 points 27 minutes ago

Making it dangerous to smoke while in transit. I see why the people ones didn't catch on in the 50s.

[–] dharmacurious@slrpnk.net 7 points 14 hours ago (1 children)

Okay, maybe my town is just not up to date, but these are still in use at all the banks and pharmacies where I live. Are they phased elsewhere?

[–] Omega_Jimes@lemmy.ca 6 points 13 hours ago

I haven't seen one in years, but the fact that they're all used is awesome.

[–] GenosseFlosse@feddit.org 3 points 14 hours ago

Hate someone in the office? Pour hot coffee into the container and send it to your victim.