I think it's a mix. First, learning is hard. Even if it's worth the time, it's still hard. Easier to be lazy and not learn anything, even if you know better. S

I think it's a mix. First, learning is hard. Even if it's worth the time, it's still hard. Easier to be lazy and not learn anything, even if you know better. Second, most new tools are not worth learning. More importantly, learning all the tools that make you better is definitely a wrong move. So people are naturally reluctant: they figure if it's really important, they'll learn it eventually when they run into it again (like the proverbial sysadmin who doesn't do anything unless he's asked to do it 4 times).