I got interested in bitcoin as a way to earn a little disposable income on the side and because I think it's a great and exciting idea that deserves more love. But after reading through the wiki and few posts on this site I feel like I've arrived too late and that I'm already out of the game. I've heard about the pools but even then the estimated profit of a few bucks per month probably translates into a loss if you substract the electricity costs.

So is it actually possible to get anything out of bitcoin if you're stuck with relatively low end hardware?

On an unrelated note, wouldn't it be possible for a corporation with enough computing power to completely take over the market and get all the blocks all the time?

Thanks for your help