> C++16 beta compilers can compile the very first C program just fine.
nitpick: a c++ compiler can compile C only if it knows that it's a C source. Not every valid C source is a valid C++ source:
char *foo = malloc(42);
C++ is 33 years old. Still impressive backward compatibility track.
I guess that backward compat is a good reason for why C/C++ is still widely adopted.
IIRC there are some minor things that have been removed from the standard, e.g. the export keyword, but apparently it wasn't widely adopted if at all.
> ... This is why "gofix" exists I was under the impression that this was a thing before Go 1.0.
C++16 beta compilers can compile the very first C program just fine. How's that for backwards compatibility ? 44 years. In fact, this is exactly what's frequently blamed for C++'s complexity. Support lots of weird edge cases because "at some point it worked". Over 44 years (wtf C is old now).
Java - same. ML - same. C++ - same.
> I believe this promise of stability paved the way for much of Go's success, despite many shortcomings
Actually for most of it's 7 year life the exact opposite is true. Go regularly broke it's weird cases (I would say because getting a compiler without a sound type system working well is a road that is littered with mines). This is why "gofix" exists ( https://blog.golang.org/introducing-gofix ). Go's authors are crediting this with Go's "simpleness".