[nereye]

This would likely have been the Mintronics POV kit (MAKE had a whole series of kits that shipped in an Altoids/mints tin, e.g. the Mintronics survival pack [1], which had a mini breadboard and 60+ components), here is a picture:

https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/make-mintronics-blink...

It seems to be based on the Blinky POV:

https://www.wayneandlayne.com/projects/blinky/

A similar idea (transferring data via computer screen) goes back to 1994's Timex Datalink:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timex_Datalink

1 https://makezine.com/article/technology/in-the-maker-shed-mi...