diff --git a/scripts/NodeVersion.ps1 b/scripts/NodeVersion.ps1
index 819ac5e..0f76294 100644
--- a/scripts/NodeVersion.ps1
+++ b/scripts/NodeVersion.ps1
@@ -61,9 +61,22 @@ function Use-Node {
 
         $raw = Get-NodeVersionString
         if ($raw) {
-            # `latest` is whatever nvm decided, so there is nothing to compare a
-            # version string against — the caller checks the major instead.
-            if ($Version -eq 'latest' -or $raw.TrimStart('v') -eq $Version.TrimStart('v')) {
+            # An alias resolves to whatever nvm picked, so there is no version
+            # string to compare it against — the caller checks the major
+            # instead. What is checked here is nvm's own report, because it
+            # announces a switch it could not make while still exiting 0.
+            # Treating an alias as always-successful is what turned "the version
+            # nvm wanted is not installed" into a claim that the newest install
+            # was too old, which sent the reader to `nvm install` holding a list
+            # that already had newer versions on it.
+            $switched = if ($Version -in @('latest', 'lts', 'newest')) {
+                $output -notmatch 'activation error|not installed'
+            }
+            else {
+                $raw.TrimStart('v') -eq $Version.TrimStart('v')
+            }
+
+            if ($switched) {
                 if ($Note) { & $Note "node $raw" }
                 return $raw
             }
@@ -94,26 +107,41 @@ can write that link:
 "@
 }
 
+# The version every local run uses. Pinned rather than asked for by alias, so
+# two machines run the same Node instead of whatever each happens to have
+# installed. Bump it here and it moves for start-local.ps1 and run-tests.ps1
+# together; the floor check below is a backstop against pinning it too low, not
+# the specification.
+$script:NODE_VERSION = '26.7.0'
+
 <#
-    Switches to the newest installed version and insists it is new enough.
-    `nvm use latest` picks the highest version nvm has installed locally, which
-    can still be older than this project needs.
+    Switches to the pinned version and insists it clears the floor.
+
+    Asking nvm for an alias is what this used to do, and the two alias names are
+    worth recording because they are easy to swap by accident. `newest` means
+    the newest version installed on this machine. `latest` means the newest that
+    exists — nvm-windows resolves it against the remote release list — so on a
+    machine whose newest install is behind the current release, `nvm use latest`
+    reports "activation error: Version not installed" and leaves the old version
+    running. This asked for `latest` and reported the failure as "the newest
+    version nvm has installed is too old", which was false and sent the reader
+    to install something they already had. See #198.
+
+    A version that is not installed is Use-Node's error to report, and it now
+    reports nvm's own reason, so there is nothing to say about it here.
 #>
 function Use-NodeLatest {
     param([scriptblock]$Step, [scriptblock]$Note)
 
-    Use-Node -Version 'latest' -Why 'this project needs Node 20 or newer' -Step $Step -Note $Note | Out-Null
+    Use-Node -Version $script:NODE_VERSION -Why 'this project needs Node 20 or newer' -Step $Step -Note $Note | Out-Null
 
     $major = Get-NodeMajor
     if ($major -lt 20) {
         throw @"
-Node is still v$major after 'nvm use latest'. This project needs Node 20 or newer.
+Node is v$major after switching to $($script:NODE_VERSION), which is below the 20 this project needs.
 
-The newest version nvm has installed is too old. Install a newer one:
-
-    nvm install 24.13.1
-
-Installed versions: nvm list
+NODE_VERSION in scripts/NodeVersion.ps1 is pinned to a version that is too old.
+node-pg-migrate, ts-jest and Playwright all need 20 or newer.
 "@
     }
 }