I’m not sure who this was produced for or where this played, but it’s an incredible look forward from the viewpoint of 1987. CompuServe, the online internet provider and one of the earliest in the game, features this look at a world where the availability of information matches society’s hunger for it.
The video runs through people living their lives and the search terms or informational updates relevant to whatever situation they’re in appear at the bottom of the screen.
Some of them are a bit laughable but most of them are dead on. Sometimes, unfortunately dead on. (sidebar: never Google your symptoms!)
And really, that’s the promise, right? A future where information is just…there, unobtrusive, ready to make things better if needed. The future from 1987. Which ended up being, like 1992 through 1997.
Stitch those moments together with some very crisp (for 1987) graphics, a pleasant synth line, a gentle-but-pointless narration and some shots of the ’80s being the ’80s and you’ve got a really nice vibe.
Enjoy.