| we used quite a few "dumb" terminals - DEC VTs to be precise - and apart from the proprietary DECnet cabling - quite useful (no matter what anyone else thinks) in areas where a PC is just plain overkill - also in some hazardous materials areas (like the lab for instance) few parts to potentially get contaminated. anyhow - there was a VT in the Intensive Care Unit - one morning I was having my first Mtn Dew of the day when a call came in from the unit - the VT was "smoking and smelled bad" - someone else had the call but was repeating it aloud to me - i said "unplug it *now* - I'm on my way" I didn't hear the rest of the conversation. Got up there - the unit clerk showed me the monitor (no smoke - good) I looked at it and saw something on the top which looked like it *might* have been melted plastic - cautiously (and perhaps stupidly) i touched it - i was pretty close - had been smelling the monitor and had detected a very very faint ozone-like smell. anyhow - i touched it and it turned out to be water - i looked a bit more carefully - and noted that right above the VT monitor was a plant on top of the counter (the VT was sort of below it on the desk-top portion of the counter) i saw more water running down the edge of the counter towards the VT - picked up the plant and discovered a pool of water. The unit clerk swore about the idiots on the previous shift - they had thoughtfully watered the plant - and of course *not* paid attention and over-watered it - the water ran into the VT - hence the smell - also affected was a vital fax machine located less than a foot from the VT.
i took the VT to another part of the nurse station and set it aside - found an unused VT monitor and put that in (after drying up the water) and everything was fine. I left the other VT out overnight (unhooked with a 'Do Not Use' note attached to it) came back the next day - hooked it up and it ran fine. After having dried out.
then there was the time someone left a wool sweater on top of a powered-on VT monitor - the monitor - needless to say - was toast - it was pretty bad - I wasn't there for that one tho. | 
