Core decks vs extensive reading

As gaiaslastlaugh-san says, massive input won't be all that massive at first simply because without basic core vocabulary reading is a very slow process.

The problem with core decks is that they don't give you the vocabulary you need for what you are reading at the time, so I think it is better to acquire vocabulary as you go. The truly "core" words you will learn whatever you do.

In an article on how to build a core vocabulary organically, I wrote: "But the truth I believe is that there is no such thing as a core 10,000. The language’s true core isn’t that big, but its peripheral-core or penumbra-core is much bigger, and is dependent on exactly what area you are in."

I think this is true to a lesser (but still considerable) extent even with the smaller "cores", certainly if your aim is to read right away the best thing is to concentrate on the words you need right now, and let your core grow that way.

Unless you have an exceptionally good word-memory, SRS is probably vital to help you over the early stage of acquiring enough vocabulary to read beyond a snail's pace. Whether you drop it after that depends on your own learning style.

Rikaisama's real-time import function really helps anki-card making to be little more trouble than just looking up the words. It is a one-keypress affair once you have it set up.