What a difference 25 years makes
Every now and then I come across a video online that makes me chuckle. On very rare occasions they also make me think, like this Microsoft advert from 1988.
Quite frankly the acting and plot are so bad that they’re almost good, but it does raise an interesting point. Windows 386 (otherwise known as Windows 2.1) came out around 24 years ago, but just look at the differences between modern life and the advert.
Back then, someone who knew how to copy data between applications and produce modest charts could demand pretty decent salaries as a typist. Obviously, there was no acting talent required for these roles, which makes me think they got an actual secretary to star in this “advert”.
My initiation into Windows computing took place not long after that video, although Windows 3.0 was the first OS that I had any proper experience with. Still, when you look at what was possible with that OS and then compare it with Windows 8 it’s almost impossible to make the connection between the two. These days we’ve got 100Mbps Internet connections, HD media, digital audio, cloud computing and Wikipedia. Back then you had subscriber based news services, an even that was pretty rubbish.
So, once you’re finished laughing (or crying) at the video, spare a thought for just how far technology has come in the last 25 years.