snip
>> I used a row of 74HC164 shift registers, all connected in series so
>> that whatever you clock in at the first one, would eventually get to the
>> last one.  Then every shift register was buffered by a ULN2803
>> driver.   If your display is 96 leds wide, then you will need 12 x
>> 74HC164's and 12 x ULN2803's.   There will also be 96 resistors to
>> limit the current to the LED's.
>
>Note that Allegro (formerly Sprague) and other vendors of analog driver chips
>such as the ULN2803 also make driver chips with integral shift registers.  I
>don't have any part numbers handy, but I've used them in the past.  They
>reduce package count, but I'm not sure whether or how much they reduce the
>parts cost.
snip

Eric: I currently use a Texas Instruments TPIC5B595 which is an 8 bit SR
with output latch driving 8 150 mA mosfet open drain drivers.  In hundreds,
they cost about $1.10 Canadian (maybe $0.80 US).  They have all the
advantages of 74hc595 but with much higher current (sinking only, tho).
Most of my projects use 4 or 6 of them chained in series (mixing in hc595 is
ok).

Dwayne