Unless you already have a good rapport with the person, I wouldn't suggest intervening right away. You should get to know them a little more first.
Once you know them, as someone else in the thread suggested, be positive and offer to help. "I see you're doing X. There's a great blog post/paper/etc about that! I'll send it to you." If they come to you for advice, don't tell them what to do to solve the problem. Ask them questions that might lead them to finding the answer themselves. People feel better when they feel they were able to come to a solution, even if you guided them.
And if you're ever not sure, remember this: these people are your colleagues, not your friends. They're adults and they have to be responsible for themselves. Be friendly to them, but don't treat them the same as a friend. Friendship is more intimate and you aren't "forced" to be around your friends when the relationship isn't going well. You have to work with your colleagues everyday whether you like it or not.
That being said, it's been hit-or-miss with this approach for me at work. Sometimes you just have to tolerate a coworker's behavior even if you aren't happy with it.
Once you know them, as someone else in the thread suggested, be positive and offer to help. "I see you're doing X. There's a great blog post/paper/etc about that! I'll send it to you." If they come to you for advice, don't tell them what to do to solve the problem. Ask them questions that might lead them to finding the answer themselves. People feel better when they feel they were able to come to a solution, even if you guided them.
And if you're ever not sure, remember this: these people are your colleagues, not your friends. They're adults and they have to be responsible for themselves. Be friendly to them, but don't treat them the same as a friend. Friendship is more intimate and you aren't "forced" to be around your friends when the relationship isn't going well. You have to work with your colleagues everyday whether you like it or not.
That being said, it's been hit-or-miss with this approach for me at work. Sometimes you just have to tolerate a coworker's behavior even if you aren't happy with it.