Wow!

I think I now have all the advice I'l ever need! Thank you all. The key seems to be to learn in context, get to know the rules but don't expect to be able to apply them yet, and ignore the silly names! That's a very clear path now, which is what I was looking for. I don't feel unsure about where to commit my attention to any more.

The root of this is because English doesn't really use cases, I think. I'll try to bear in mind what each case is used for in Russian, but I'll try not to be too exasperated when I find exceptions, which I gather there are a lot of...

Thanks again all of you, I feel thoroughly prepared now!

Rich B