I've seen the LCD panel upgrade available for the Macintosh SE/30, and got a crazy idea: put an LCD panel into an IBM 5155 and connect it to the internal composite output on the IBM CGA card. Or maybe the internal composite output on an ATI EGA card. Or, worst comes to worst, the VGA output on an ISA Super VGA card.
All three options require three things:
1. An adapter from the video output (composite/CGA/EGA/VGA) to the LCD panel.
2. An LCD panel that will fit the opening.
3. A 3D printable adapter to mount the LCD to the IBM 5155.
This is the point where I have to admit that I'm a software test engineer, not a hardware engineer or electrical engineer, so I could use some help with all three of these items.
Given that I have seen kits on eBay to retrofit an LCD panel into an SE/30, which has the same CRT mounting method as the IBM 5155, I would only hope that a bracket design already exists to mount an LCD panel into the opening. This should mean that LCD panels already exist that also fit the opening. Which means the trickiest part might be figuring out if there's a way to connect one of these LCDs to composite video, or if I will need to use VGA.
I'm inclined to use an XT-class motherboard for this project so that I can use the 5155 keyboard without having to modify it. In other words, haul what appears to be an original IBM PPC to a coffee shop, but get the benefits of a color LCD and some weight reduction.
All three options require three things:
1. An adapter from the video output (composite/CGA/EGA/VGA) to the LCD panel.
2. An LCD panel that will fit the opening.
3. A 3D printable adapter to mount the LCD to the IBM 5155.
This is the point where I have to admit that I'm a software test engineer, not a hardware engineer or electrical engineer, so I could use some help with all three of these items.
Given that I have seen kits on eBay to retrofit an LCD panel into an SE/30, which has the same CRT mounting method as the IBM 5155, I would only hope that a bracket design already exists to mount an LCD panel into the opening. This should mean that LCD panels already exist that also fit the opening. Which means the trickiest part might be figuring out if there's a way to connect one of these LCDs to composite video, or if I will need to use VGA.
I'm inclined to use an XT-class motherboard for this project so that I can use the 5155 keyboard without having to modify it. In other words, haul what appears to be an original IBM PPC to a coffee shop, but get the benefits of a color LCD and some weight reduction.