Binary compatibility matters less on Linux, true; what people are actually interested in on the desktop is usually UI compatibility, as in keeping the same look and feel and workflow. That's something Linux is a lot better at than either MacOS or MS Windows, both of which force you into new UIs with the shift of fashions and corporate buzzwords.

I've used Linux and explicitly chosen open source software since 2004. There's not a single program I'd like to run that does not work today. I've never been bitten by any such compatibility issue.

Binary compatibility is crap though. You are likely to have issues if you try to use a package you found outside of your distribution's repositories for the specific release you use. I guess AppImage and things like this will improve this sad state of affair.