The difference I’ve noticed is that average people memorize how to accomplish their tasks with software and savvy people look for something that will accomplish their task.

1. People install communication apps because someone they want to communicate asks/tells them to. I don’t want to use Slack, but people who pay my bills use Slack, so I use Slack. I use Matrix too because I believe in it philosophically, but the UX is a little rough and very few conversations I want to have are actually taking place there.
2. I don’t really understand this one. Adblockers are relatively easy to install and the modern web sucks without them.
3. I haven’t encountered much of this in a long time, but familiar feels safe to people. Something they haven’t heard of might feel sketchy.
4. This sounds like someone trying to persuade you to install an app because you using it would be convenient for them.

It’s not unique to Xitter. Facebook has been deprioritizing posts with links in them for a while.