No, it does not. The length of the pattern isn't important anymore, only whether it overlaps with other patterns.

That would be a breaking API change in my opinion. I bet you the length criterion will still apply for path patterns that don't include placeholders, even if not specifically mentioned in the proposal.

[edit] Heh, I guess you'd know better. :D The comparison between the hn username and github username resolved favourably in the end. :P