Hey charlieharvey,
You can make money playing just 1 table by all means, but you will not be able to put in enough volume to make shed loads, unless you start playing in higher limit games.
Alot of players find Multi-tabling difficult to begin with, just play one table until you feel comfortable you're playing well, then load up another, practice with these 2 tables running and see how it goes! you can always close one if it gets a bit chaotic for you
Out of interest, how many tables did you attempt to play, 2? 4? 6?

24?
As for Tracking Software, they are not essential, but they are of great use to any player. They will help improve your game dramatically, allowing you to review your sessions and find out where you're going wrong. Your hands are also saved in the Software you can also upload alot of hands to our Hand Evaluation forum to help you improve even more. Thats just some of the Reviewing side of Tracking software, this is so much more! You also get a HUD(Heads up display) that will help you make some decision against specific players, such as how often they Limp, 3Bet, CBet, Fold to CBet, the list goes on!
I love Tracking software, it has helped me improve my game soooo much, I highly recommend you test one out
You can download our very own Elephant software for free here;
http://www.pokerstrategy.com/software/9/
Enjoy!