Internet laser links

  Introduction
  System components
  Inside the laser projector
     • Laser projector photo
  Making 3D, floating images
  How to take good laser photos
  Resources:
       Laser companies
       Projector equipment companies
       Light show parts
       Laser trade associations
       Handbook and magazines
       Laser safety
          • Article on Audience Scanning
          • Thesis on Risk Assessment
          • Lasers and aviation safety
          • Laser shows and aviation safety
       Frames and shows
       Internet laser links
 

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  Lasershow Designer 2000

The other Laser Show Resource Guide pages (see list at left) contain links to the various manufacturers, associations, magazines, etc. listed in the pages. Websites for laser show companies, theme park users and planetariums can be found at the Pangolin clients page.
     In addition, the following general-purpose links may be useful. If you have any additions, changes or updates, please Contact Pangolin.
 

The International Laser Display Association. They have a website that is occasionally updated, plus a sophisticated and informative online magazine, The Laserist featuring many resources.

Laser F/X, a comprehensive collection of laser light show information. Much of the information is "backstage", so be sure to click on the Backstage link as well.

Laserfreak.net, one of the first, and still one of the most comprehensive forums for laser shows and holograpy. This forum mostly caters German hobbyists called "Laser Freaks", but there are English, French and Dutch forum topics as well.

Photon Lexicon, a forum with discussion groups that cover a wide variety of laser display topics. This forum is mostly dedicated to laser show hobbyists, but laser professionals do frequent this site.

Laserists.com, a forum with the stated goal of appealing to the pro/semi-pro display industry. Note that there are some topics on the site related to laser marking and cutting.

Thames Valley University in UK puts on a course titled Lasers in Entertainment for those with a keen interest in gaining a professional grounding in the creative use and safe control of laser light for show presentations. You can download a flier that describes their program for Academic Year 2005-2006, Semester 2. Note that although the flier only discusses this semester, this program is has been ongoing for some time, and will continue for the foreseeable future..

Sam's Laser: A Practical Guide to Lasers for Experimenters and Hobbyists. Covers safety, info, links, parts, types, drive, construction. From Samuel M. Goldwasser.
        "Sam's Laser FAQ was developed to provide a unique resource for experimenters and hobbyists - as well as just plain old basement tinkerers. To the best of my knowledge, nothing as comprehensive has ever been available anywhere else in the explored universe (and almost certainly beyond) either on-line or in print." Click below for:
        Table of contents page
        More direct link to page which includes laser show information

Rockwell Laser Industries has a wide variety of information on lasers and laser safety.

An article in the November 2004 issue of Laser Focus World Magazine, featuring several quotes from Pangolin President William Benner: Laser light shows take on new dimensions

A superb laser history site with photos and accounts of scanner technology and early laser shows. Includes photos of the first laser show (though there's undoubtedly some dispute over exactly who was first and what constitutes a laser show...) and a pioneering show, "Lovelight" which featured not only abstract imagery, but also representational graphics as well.

Another superb laser history site by Lowell Cross -- Inventor of the modern laser light show (Lowell's participation was also described in the Laser History link above). On this site, Lowell has a detailed history starting in 1961, which takes you through a history that starts with sound, goes to abstract figures on television sets, and then finally to abstract figures produced by multi-head, multi-colored lasers. Although never really attaining graphics capabilities shown in the "Lovelight" link above, this site shows the inner workings of how early laser shows were done, and the thought processes behind them.

     
Related non-laser-show links

Holography-related links are at the information-packed site of Holoworld.

Theatrical and other lighting-related links, from a stage lighting company

History of the laser, as told by Bell Labs (Lucent Technologies) who employed Charles Townes and Arthur Schawlow. At this site is a photo of the Townes/Schawlow laser patent.
        Of course, Gordon Gould may disagree with the Bell Labs history. He litigated against Bell Labs and others, and after decades of lawsuits he won recognition for his patents.

For some fun: Another interesting site covering, among other topics, edge-emitting lasers and vertical cavity surface-emitting lasers: