Ethereum Basics
If you understand what Ethereum is and how the technology affects our day-to-day life then it is time you take a step further to understanding how to use a wallet and create a transaction.
The term wallet refers to an application that helps you control your Ethereum account. It is your key to the Ethereum ecosystem to control all your transactions and activities. Your wallet allows you to sign in to applications, read your balance, send transactions, and verify your identity.
An Ethereum account is a pair of keys. One key is used to create the address you can share freely, and the other key you need to keep secret because it’s used to sign things. Together, these keys let you hold assets and make transactions.
The Ethereum account has an address that can be used to locate the account the same way your home has an address that you give to your friends and loved ones when they need to visit you.
Most wallet products will let you generate an Ethereum account. So you don’t need one before you download a wallet. There are different types of wallets but for simplicity’s sake we would be classifying them into two.
- Hot Wallets: These are connected to the internet and are accessible for transactions at any time. They’re convenient for frequent trading or transactions but can be more susceptible to hacking or unauthorized access compared to cold wallets. Examples include Software wallets (mobile, desktop, and some web wallets) are often hot wallets because they are connected to the internet for easier and quicker access to funds.
- Cold Wallets: These wallets store cryptocurrency offline, adding an extra layer of security by keeping the private keys away from potential online threats. They are not connected to the internet unless needed for a transaction, reducing the risk of hacking. Examples include Hardware wallets (like Ledger Nano S, Ledger Nano X, and Trezor), and paper wallets are commonly considered cold storage solutions.
It is important to know that in an open blockchain like Ethereum, each user is responsible for control of their private keys. What this means is that once your private key is compromised, you and you alone is responsible for the outcome, and losing your private key means you lose access to your account and no one can help you recover it.
Creating a meta mask wallet
- Open the Chrome browser and navigate to https://chromewebstore.google.com/category/extensions, on this web page, you can search for metamask.
- Once Metamask is installed you should see a new icon in your browser toolbar a fox head, click on it to get started.
- Follow through with subsequent instructions and write out your 12-word phrase, these can be used in any compatible wallet to recover access to your account if something happens to Metamask or your computer. It is important to know that anyone with access to this word can gain access to your account and steal your money.
Once you have confirmed that you have stored the mnemonic securely, you will be able to see details of your Ethereum account.
Testing your wallet
Before sending real ETH to your wallet it is advised that you test it with some Test network ETH. Test networks, often referred to as testnets, are separate Ethereum networks designed specifically for testing purposes. They mimic the functionalities of the mainnet but use test Ether, which has no real-world value. These tenets allow developers to experiment without spending real ETH and also to simulate various network conditions without affecting the live network.
First, let’s switch from the main Ethernet network to a testnet, the testnet we would be using is the sepolia test network which is recommended for developing dapps and testing smart contracts.
- Open your metamask wallet, and click the left top corner. A pop-up will appear when you click the button add network. Scroll down and click Add Network manually.
2. Fill in the information below in the respective column
Network name : Sepolia
New RPC URL:https://rpc.sepolia.org
Chain ID: 11155111
Currency symbol: ETH
Block explorer URL (Optional) :https://sepolia.etherscan.io
Now you can get Sepolia testnet ETH through the following faucet by using your wallet address: https://www.infura.io/faucet/sepolia or https://sepoliafaucet.com/ .
- You can now experiment by sending Sepolia testnet eth to an Ethereum address like this for example 0x6B994EB1CaF9581289943703f49D2791ed4fE200
- After sending some Sepolia testnet eth to this address, you can explore your address by navigating to https://sepolia.etherscan.io and inputting your wallet address. Here you can explore all your transaction history and anyone with your wallet address can.
