I personally loath meta answers like "why are you doing X and asking Y" instead of wasting the equivalent typing of explaining why X and Y is a bad idea.

With that said, I usually find the most serious experts just quietly ignoring silly questions or trying to pry out the root of the problem through a constructive dialog. Why superior douchebags get satisfaction of showing of their superiority by bashing beginners has always been beyond me.

That said you really need a tough skin on IRC on some channels, and always take the topic to the letter. That usually indicates what type of people hang there and what type of messages are accepted.