Lindy is pretty much just natural selection for ideas, right? It doesn't prove they are optimal.

It does seem to suggest that frequently switching protocols all the time like we switch web frameworks would be awful though. The benefits of having any universal standard at all can outweigh the flaws in just about anything, even Ipv4 or in some cases even analog stuff.

Exactly. It's like the laryngeal nerve of the giraffe. It did the job for millions of years but there is no good reason other than history for why it still needs to loop around the heart.

https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/student-contributors-did-y...

> Lindy is pretty much just natural selection for ideas, right? It doesn't prove they are optimal.

You missed the point. Lindy law proves that being optimal is not necessary for an idea to be successful. Your association with natural selection is valid from this point of view, too.