Topic: Multibit 101 (Read 613 times)

Awesome.  Got it.  Thank you again DannyHamilton.

Correct.


Correct.


Two examples where importing can be useful:

You can store the private keys somewhere offline, and if blockchain.info should disappear or be otherwise unavailable, you could import them into MultiBit to still be able to access your bitcoins even though blockchain.info is not accessible.

If you previously used blockchain.info, and have given receiving addresses out to people/businesses so that they can send you bitcoins, but then you change your mind and decide to start using MultiBit instead, then you can import the private keys into MultiBit so that you don't have to try to remember every person that you ever gave the addresses to and update them with the new MultiBit addresses.


Correct.


The act of exporting private keys amounts to a type of backup.  The act of importing those exported keys amounts to making use of that backup.


It is generally advised to stop using the old wallet (or at least to remove the addresses from the old wallet) when importing private keys into a new wallet.  There aren't very many good reasons to maintain the same bitcoin address in two wallets, and yet for some reason some people seem to want to anyhow.


Yes.

This is most helpful.  Thank you for taking the time to respond in detail.

So if I understand correctly, importing private keys is actually not comparable to conducting a transaction (sending or receiving BTC).  Since the act of importing private keys itself does not change the blockchain.info wallet balance...then what is the point of importing private keys, why not just send the actual balance to Multibit as you suggested?  It sounds like importing is more of a "copy" than "move" function...does the act of importing private keys amount to another type of backup?  Why would one want to maintain the same bitcoin addresses in two wallets if this is problematic?  And to follow up on that, if there is a reason to import (and I'm sure there is, since it's a major feature), then would the more advisable thing to do be to delete the imported addresses from blockchain (that now exist in Multibit) and just create new addresses for use in the cloud? 

It depends on the file you are importing, but generally, yes.


It takes some effort, but yes I think you can export individual private keys from blockchain.info if you want to for some reason.


No.  Importing keys does not change the balance in other wallets where those keys also exist.  The balance in your blockchain.info wallet would remain unchanged until you started sending bitcoins from (or receiving bitcoins to) MultiBit.  Depending on exactly which addresses you are using in MultiBit you may (or may not) see the balance in blockchain.info remain in sync with the balance in MultiBit, but eventually you would almost certainly start to see differences.  It is a bad idea to try and use an address in two different wallets at the same time.  Once you import a private key to a new wallet, you really should stop using the old wallet, otherwise the inability of the two wallets to keep synchronized will at best cause confusion and at worst lead to lost bitcoins.


Importing private keys does not create any transactions.  If you don't need to maintain the same bitcoin addresses in the MultiBit wallet as you had in the blockchain.info wallet, then you would be much better off just creating a transaction in blockchain.info and sending your entire balance to your MultiBit address.


Which idea?


Importing the private keys means importing the addresses since the private keys are used to create the addresses.  As I've already said, it is a bad idea to continue to use the existing blockchain.info address after you've imported it (with it's private key) into MultiBit.


There are some technical differences in how change is handled.  Also blockchain.info will allow you to attach a message to your transactions that they store seperately in their own database.  MultiBit has no such functionality.  MultiBit is known to occasionally get out of sync with the blockchain and needs to be reset to see your actual balance. Blockchain.info will mail you a copy of your wallet occasionally, with MultiBit you are responsible for creating your own backups.

First off--this forum is a treasure-trove of knowledge...thank you to the pioneers for building this community and compiling this mountain of information.  I'm guessing every question that could be asked, has been asked over the years.  If the answers to my questions exist in threads I've missed (and I’m guessing they do), please forgive my discretion and I'll be happy to be led in the right direction.

Up to this point, I've basically been trying to learn as much as possible and teaching myself whatever I couldn't find documented along the way.  The experience has been a bit like landing in China armed with nothing more than an intro to Chinese pocket translator.  Bitcointalk is now my Rosetta Stone!  Still don't know much, but feel like I'm learning from the best.

To my questions: I'm trying to fully understand the logistics and implications of importing private keys from blockchain.info to Multibit via emailed backup file.  When importing, all private keys are transferred onto your computer from blockchain's cloud correct (can only a part of the wallet be transferred?)?  So the new balance in your blockchain account would be zero.  Hence this transaction amounts to simply sending money to a wallet address from my blockchain.info wallet correct?  Could be anyone, just so happens that in this case it’s my MultiBit wallet--but the idea is the same?  The blockchain wallet public address remains the same, only private keys transfer to Multibit and I can continue to deposit and/or receive BTC at existing blockchain address?  Besides being what I call "warm storage" (on the computer, rather than in the cloud or cold storage), are there any other major (or minor) differences between online wallets and Multibit?  Can I use Multibit in much the same way I use blockchain.info, or are there significant operating differences? I see the send/request tabs in Multibit for example—do these work just like any cloud wallet?

Please forgive the plethora of inquiry…but I’m guessing my questions have just begun