As someone who routinely has 5 or 6 files open in various configurations of Emacs windows, 80 char max is a huge convenience. Out of interest, what's changed since it became a norm which would make it worth reexamining?
Well, no ones coding on a VT100 terminal anymore :) It started as a physical constraint. Most computers, even laptops, have wide enough screens that 80 characters looks kinda compressed.
Personally, I've started using 100 columns for personal projects. But I stick to 80 for anything someone else is going to have to look at. To some extent, its more important to have a standard, so you don't have to worry about weird line-wrapping placements when someone else looks at your code, than it is to have one that fits superwell on the average modern screen. So we're probably stuck with 80
I heard once that it was because punch cards were 80 columns. But my guess is screen resolution? We have much higher definition screens and can fit more on a line now? Should we have longer lines of code? Probably not. Could we? Heck yeah.
Yes. Punch cards were 80 columns. Later, Teletypes for the most part were also (I think some could do 132 columns). Then terminals like the VT100 carried this forward (again, some could do more, but 80 was still the default and they added the 24-line convention). The IBM PC kept to this standard also. And in 2017, the "default" terminal window is still 80x24.
Personally, I've started using 100 columns for personal projects. But I stick to 80 for anything someone else is going to have to look at. To some extent, its more important to have a standard, so you don't have to worry about weird line-wrapping placements when someone else looks at your code, than it is to have one that fits superwell on the average modern screen. So we're probably stuck with 80