extracts have come along way since i started in the late 80's, don't underestimate the quality you can get while learning from the bottom up. but if you feel you can jump right into all grain...go for it. Also speaking from a late 80's standpoint, George Papazians book was a great learning book. Join AHA, get their zymurgy magazine, it always has great articles, resources etc....bottom line, have fun doing it, it is a great hobby
again, to my earlier point, that kit on amazon is $125 bucks, you can get fermenting buckets at any grocery store that makes their own donuts for free, you can get carboys off craigslist or thrift stores for next to nothing, then you just need to find a hydrometer, air locks and the other little things, dropping your initial investment to easily under $50...but again i am cheap(and broke)