Is it just me, or is this person on the crack?

[Alex]

Probably not on crack. Just confused and unable to articulate what s/he needs.

When I worked the swing shift in the university library I ended up helping a lot of people with computer problems. One night this older professor came up and asked a question and I told him how to find what he needed on the computer. He kept coming back because it wasn't working and several times I explained it in ever simpler terms and became increasingly frustrated (though I'd like to think I masked that). Finally I went with him back to the computer.

Turns out he was some visiting professor from some third world country and while he had used a computer he had never used a computer with a mouse. He wasn't stupid when he asked me for help, he just didn't have sufficient knowledge to explain what the problem. Odds are, that is the case here and you'll have to have a conversation to figure out what he is really trying to do and how you can help him.

When I did computer help desks my personal mantra to keep me from viewing the entire world as stupid was "the operation of a computer is inherently logical. Once you understand the logic it is all easy. The logic of computers, however, is not inherently obvious. Not knowing that which is not obvious is understandable."

Later the idea that people suck at asking for help was reinforced by reference interview training in library school. Don't just assume the person is stupid, most of the time it is just a disconnect in communication.