The entire point of a character line length limit is so that a diff doesn't have wrapping lines on a terminal. And so that most changes become line insertions or deletions rather than modifications of lines.
smidgeon 17 hours ago[1 more]
It probably all started with typewriters (and teleprinters).
Nope, it started with books where 500 years of typographic practice has taught us that anything above 80 characters a line quickly becomes unreadable.
