A lot of computerized activity is a complete waste. For example, almost everyone I know has abandoned computer address books and returned to Rolodexes or just, well, address books. The same for these appointment gizmos that leap out of your screen to remind you that you're due for a haircut. In the case of electronic investing, the computer-based, online aspect is crucial. But surely a few shares would have been better than no shares, which is what I got.
Online investment is cheap because the computer has eliminated the human being at the other end.
It makes stock buying affordable. The absence of a human being also means nobody to sneer at you. In candor, it wasn't a promising beginning. Luckily, the something was Lucent Technologies Inc. My thinking was that while I might not get rich, with companies like these, I wouldn't go bust.