I bought my first ADA coins today at an exchange. Not sure I want to leave them there.
I downloaded Daedalus software and synched it.
How is this piece of software… 100% safe or not. Do you think that the best move is to create my wallet and send all my ADAs over there or keep them at the exchange for the moment. I have listen to Charles recent report and it appears Dadedalus will undergo several changes in the next two versions. Adresses will have a new format. Will this conversion be totally automated or will we have some manual actions to take?
Advices welcome. Daedalus or centralized exchanges? What is your choice?
I wouldn’t hold anything at the exchanges as they are prone to attacks/hacks. If your computer is clean, I would
Go ahead and install Daedalus from the official source. Safer to go there from cardano’s main website.
Create a new wallet (triple check your secret words and save them in a safe place!)
Transfer a small amount of ADA to the new address to see if it works. Once you have the confirmation on your computer then transfer the rest.
If you don’t plan to use your ADA actively, I would suggest creating a paper wallet and storing your funds offline. This way they will be safer than storing them on your PC.
Don’t worry about Daedalus updates. Your funds/accounts won’t be affected by them and you should be able to update your app automatically.
I assume that a paper wallet in this case is very similar to other cold storage methods… you are storing the keys that will allow you at a future date to access your crypto info that will be available directly from Cardero blockchain. Right?
You will always be able to see/check your account directly on the blockchain itself whether it’s a hot wallet or a cold/paper wallet.
The paper wallet just has a longer number of security words and it’s private keys are not stored on your computer.
Daedalus allows you to restore your wallet from a paper wallet in which case it loses its cold storage capability. People restore their paper wallets if they decide to transfer funds from it.
Another point is that staking will have a qualifier regarding the amount of time the stake has been held. Your keys are not yours if they are on an exchange, which may hinder your ability to stake later on.
BTW, I created my first wallet but can’t find a utility to the password.The reason is that there is no “logoff” and furthermore, each time I quit Daedalus, and come back , it always opens without asking the password, even if I log from a new IP address.
I believe if you set up multiple wallets you can send funds to yourself. This might give you an opportunity to test the password. Otherwise you can send a few back to the exchange.
It’s always a good idea to have a spending password. It encrypts your private keys so if someone hacks your pc, they can’t “see” your private keys to be able to steal your funds, immediately.
I say immediately because if they copy your hard drive image they can eventually crack it.
I know this is a lot to take in, but here is how it all ties up logically:
Secret words are the most important factor. They are used by the wallet’s algorithm to create your private keys.
Private keys or secret words allow anyone access to your funds. Think of them as access codes.
The “hot” wallets store your private keys on your pc, which is why they are considered more prone to hacks.
To guard against unauthorized access you have a choice of setting a spending password, which obfuscates your private keys on your hot wallet through encryption. This buys you some time to move your funds if you machine is compromised.
You also use your spending password to move funds on your hot wallet.
You don’t have to worry about losing your password. As long as you have your security words, you can restore your wallet again and set a new password. This is why those security words are so important.
I don’t have yet a paper wallet… for now it is hot on my desktop…and have only 12 words. I willget a print waalet as soon as I completed my investment for this time. Thanks
BTW, been transferring from exchange to wallet… two transactions with one exchange took just a few minutes… with another exchange, I am already up to 4 hours.
Any idea what are the various factors that will affect transaction delays?
It might be something exchange related. Something trivial like overloaded transfer requests or lack of personnel to execute large transfers.
Some exchanges have a fail-safe custody rules whereby they only keep 10% of your wallet readily available for transfers. Transferring large amounts, therefore requires someone running into a cold storage, getting a special authorization to execute the transfer.
If you are using binance, you might be required to approve your transaction by email. But I guess you probably did that for the first transaction.
Do you see your transaction as pending on the exchange side?
Yep, my fast trans were with Binance. And indeed, I have the transaction pending at the exchange. TRansactions are always pending with this exchange, even when BTC is being transfered. So it is probably exchange related. Maybe they don’t have the ADAs on hand??
Of course nothing is official, but one of the presentations on staking alluded to one only being able to vote and stake if they owned the ADA for a specific length of time. The reasoning given was that it would keep people from outside the community from being able to attack with large amounts of ADA if they are not invested in the system, i.e day trading whales. It is an issue of decentralization. If I find it I will share the link.
