And another one from my era: Glory Road by Robert A. Heinlein, written in 1963: (sorry for the long quote, but the element of foresight struck me)

"Star ... got out a sketch block.... This block appeared to be a big cube of Plexiglas; it looked like it, felt like it, and took thumb prints like it. With [a long pointer] she could sketch in three dimensions; ... a 3-dimensional blackboard.

"This wasn't magic; it was advanced technology--and it will beat the hell out of our methods of engineering drawing when we learn how, especially for complex assemblies such as aviation engines and UHF circuitry--.... The block was about thirty inches on a side and the sketch inside could be looked at from any angle--even turned over and studied from underneath."

Anyone used CAD lately?

Lin