[The Yugoslavian]

Ugh.

This is sorta funny b/c I don't actually want to fight with you despite what this may look like, [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img].

Internet chess is not that great. Almost everyone gets sucked into relatively fast games (anything under G/60 will not increase chess skill nearly as much as a longer game). If you have the discipline to play long games on the internet (which I admit I do not) then it would be a *great* tool. As it is tons of blitz is just going to teach bad chess, period. It will allow familiarity with the openings (to a degree) but will have an adverse effect on your overall skill process.

Tactics are good. I think they're overrated but then again they're not my strong suit. Most of a chess game is about building up subtle advantages until your position allows for tactical maneuvers that allow a decisive advantage (generally material).

Popinjay: ideally you can find a teacher (at least 1800 rating) who can explain principles above your head in a helpful and enlightening way. This person can also almost surely find players around your strength (ideally slightly better but not way better) for you to play. This coupled with a good tactic book and a solid middlegame book will really lay an amazing groundwork.

You can start with tactics, but frankly, I think basic tactics just come with staring at in game chess positions a lot and thinking through move trees (and much more motivation to concentrate on combinations when ur ass is on the line). I'd devote my study time to strategy if I were you and just make sure you aren't lazy while playing games -- make sure you continually push your tactical foresight to its limit.

Bugstud (as an aside): Kudos to you for self-teaching and starting with MCO as a guide -- quite ambitious. However, I really don't think that makes it good advice.