It's like Legos if every lego was $200 and doing it wrong means you've poured a small fortune into a goofy looking paper weight.
That said, computer components are modular and assembly is easy enough that a 12-year-old could figure it out twenty years ago. If you have the time and the interest, it's a great way to build something better than you could find at Best Buy for half the cost. But if you're just looking to web surf, just buy a refurbished Dell laptop. They work fine, they'll run you a few hundred bucks, and they'll last you five years easy.
It's like Legos if every lego was $200 and doing it wrong means you've poured a small fortune into a goofy looking paper weight.
That said, computer components are modular and assembly is easy enough that a 12-year-old could figure it out twenty years ago. If you have the time and the interest, it's a great way to build something better than you could find at Best Buy for half the cost. But if you're just looking to web surf, just buy a refurbished Dell laptop. They work fine, they'll run you a few hundred bucks, and they'll last you five years easy.