> incorrectly written program

In principle programs shouldn't stop working just because they are old.

Yes, no language completely realize this. But there's a world of difference between C's "it was written only 40 years ago, why did compilers break it?" to Python's "yes, you are expected to review your code every 3 or 4 years", and there is another world of difference to the faster Javascript frameworks that practice "your code is 6 weeks too old, your looser!"

No JS framework does that because they version things. Run the same versions and it works.

If you’re not pinning versions correctly that’s hardly JS’s fault.

This is a cultural thing, where developers will decide when to invest in developing their library against the old version and when for the new version. For stable languages like C, or distro supported packages it’s years - just check out Debian or Red Hat for an ecosystem that values stability.

Sure, and at the scale & purpose of Debian or Red Hat that’s extremely important.

But that’s nothing to do with bad versioning practices and everything to do with product priorities.

Also C versions are have the same issue. Try to build a C11 project with a C89 compiler. Hell I’ve had C89 code not work in clang...

Versions affect everything.