For years all I had were discards and computers I found in the alley, so while I had to figure out what was wrong with them or why they were discarded, I also had little to lose by switching out parts and components and playing around with them until I could get some use from one.
DOS drove me nuts and I never understood it but after days or weeks of looking at a garage sale DOS book and playing with a junked computer I could sometimes temporarily grasp DOS enough to fix something.
One thing I accomplished was not being afraid to open up a computer, which is a great start for everyone.
:-)