Many of these companies will show their wares at Comdex, the nation's largest computer trade show. For Mitsubishi Electronics America Inc., that's tiny. And while the price might be fat, the future for monitors is getting skinny. Along with products that are shipping, Mitsubishi's booth will feature the first glimpse of its version of a plasma monitor. Plasma monitors work by sandwiching gas inside glass.
Images appear on the screen when current is applied to the gas.
Plasma represents the future for skinny monitors because its smaller cousin, the liquid crystal display, is difficult to manufacture in large sizes, explained Tom Paterniti, senior manager of display-product marketing for Mitsubishi. LCD screens are hard to make large because any amount of dirt or dust can render them useless. Wonderware's products can do it. This year, Wonderware will use Comdex as a theater to show how far it has come in providing manufacturers with loads of information through their PCs. It will officially introduce its InTrack software, which not only provides an analysis of manufacturing operations but a graphical representation of activity on the factory floor.