Can't withdraw from paper wallets w/o MtGox??

velcrovan

newbie

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Merit: 0

Quote from: stevegee58 on February 16, 2012, 12:26:54 PM

The paper wallet is just a paper backup of your wallet.dat file.

If you have a HD crash and lose your bitcoin client install you can just re-install bitcoin and import the data from the backup.

They say the paper wallet is the safest but I guess it's just preference. I store multiple encrypted copies of the wallet.dat file around the internet and on a USB drive.

I think I'm looking at a paper wallet as a hedge against hacking just as much as protection from HD crashes. I.e., a separate savings wallet.

realnowhereman

hero member

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Blockchain.info/wallet has excellent import and export facilities.

stevegee58

legendary

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The paper wallet is just a paper backup of your wallet.dat file.

If you have a HD crash and lose your bitcoin client install you can just re-install bitcoin and import the data from the backup.

They say the paper wallet is the safest but I guess it's just preference. I store multiple encrypted copies of the wallet.dat file around the internet and on a USB drive.

Vandroiy

legendary

Activity: 1036

Merit: 1002

Worst case someone has to re-implement it. It's some series of SHA iterations, not really catastrophic to write. A few people probably already have scripts for it, Casascius might know something.

Edit: or what mcorlett said. Don't know whether this supports the mini-key format though.

mcorlett

donator

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There is an "importprivkey" command included in the official Bitcoin client if you pass it over JSON-RPC.

velcrovan

newbie

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Merit: 0

Was looking into creating a paper wallet, but when I read this on the wiki it concerned me:

Quote

The Bitcoin software does not yet have a built-in way to load private keys, but you can use the "Add Funds" - "Private key" screen at MtGox to recover digital coins from a private key. (source)

So, if I transfer bitcoins to a "paper wallet" (basically a bitcoin address which has no actual wallet.dat file and the private key exists only on paper, right?) then I need MtGox to get those coins back out again some day??

What if MtGox goes down?

Topic: Can't withdraw from paper wallets w/o MtGox?? (Read 1435 times)