The internet was certainly not mainstream at the time of that interview. Maybe somewhere along the early adopter curve, if anything. Bill Gates became famous

The internet was certainly not mainstream at the time of that interview. Maybe somewhere along the early adopter curve, if anything. Bill Gates became famous for founding Microsoft, which listed for an IPO in 1986, way before the internet really took off. Somewhere in the Microsoft Windows 95/98 era is generally the first experience most Americans had with the internet.