Specifically on the topic of "avoid using long" I don't disagree; I was mostly replying to the general sentiment of "you should never assume 64 bit because this

Specifically on the topic of "avoid using long" I don't disagree; I was mostly replying to the general sentiment of "you should never assume 64 bit because this changed in the past and will change in the future". That said, if you're writing software specifically for Unix systems (as much software is) then it de-facto works, so it's fine. That's why people keep doing it: because it works in all cases where the software runs. Starting C in 2024 is like starting Game of Thrones in the middle of Season 5. Dubbed in Esperanto.