Topic: Newbee Questions -- Help Please (Read 203 times)

I won't answer the questions directly but this should help you understand "Bitcoin" and hopefully answer those questions yourself.

• Bitcoins aren't stored in the wallets, it's stored in the full nodes bundled as "blocks".
• The only way to spend it is to have the proper private key for the addresses.
• Set of private keys can be derived from the SEED (or other forms) for HD (Hierarchical Deterministic) wallets, but some wallets just use random private keys.
• The Wallets (hardware or not) either contains the SEED or just random private keys. With that, it can communicate to the network to check if the private key's paired address have UTXO (unspent outputs) that can be totaled as balance.

You've lots of hardware wallet-related questions, I guess you're concerned about its security?
∙ Basically, if your Hardware Wallet have a strong Passphrase and a PIN, it's unhackable even if they got your wallet physically.
∙ The only thing that a hacker/thief needs to steal your Bitcoins are your SEED (whole wallet) or your private keys (per address).

No. Miner can add any public address he wants. It may be a hot or cold wallet, doesn't make any difference.


The private key allows you to spend the bitcoin on an specific address. You can use all bitcoin at once or not.

It's easy to check the balance of any address or wallet. Just go to any blockexplorer such as blockchain.com or blockcypher and paste your public address there.

If you have the Seed code you have the wallet itself. It is the same thing.
What you are calling "wallet" is just an software that is an interface to the blockchain. You can change that interface and it won't make any difference. Wallet is your seed.

Yeah... probably. Someone may have already stolen your private key and is just waiting for you to add more funds there...

If you have the private key you don't need any passcode or whatever. Just use it in any wallet software and you will be able to transfer the bitcoin to any address you want, even to an exchange.

There is no side chain. There is only one bitcoin blockchain

No. Passcode is useless. If you have the privatekey, the bitcoin is yours. Whoever owns the privatekey own the bitcoin.

No, there is no side chain. What do you mean by side chain?

Questions as follows:
1. I assume when a bitcoin is first "created" via a miner successfully solving the algorithm; it is sent by the system to a miners public key in a "hot" wallet? Miner can then move it to a cold wallet if he wants to? True?
2. A hardware wallet creates a private key for that wallet and whatever amount of bitcoin is in that wallet is controlled by the private key and the private key can be used over and over until all the bitcoin is gone from that wallet? True?
3.  With the hardware wallet in hand (and the passcode for the wallet) can I always see what amount of bitcoin is left in the wallet?  How, punch a button or it automatically appears on the screen of the wallet?
4.  If someone else had the private key and seed code for the original wallet (but was not in possession of the wallet itself) and they bought a new wallet and "reset" the original wallet, I guess this would transfer the bitcoin to the new wallet?? I assume when one looked at what was in the old wallet, the old wallet would show zero bitcoin in it?  True?
5. Thus, if you look at your wallet and it shows an amount of bitcoin; that means that it is transferable currently and no one has "invaded" your bitcoin and transferred it or sold it?  True?
6.  Assuming one has the physical wallet, the private key and the wallet passcode and the wallet shows it has bitcoin in it; it should validate through the blockchain  if you attempt to transfer to an exchange and sell it? (for example by sweeping some to Electrum, transferring to an exchange and selling it)  True?
7.  If the bitcoin was moved to a side chain of the blockchain would it still validate when you attempt to sell it?
8.  Is it possible for someone to write an encryption code "on top of the wallet passcode" and prevent access to the bitcoin in that wallet even if you have the wallet passcode?
9.  Is it possible for a person to write an encryption code applicable to the side chain and block any movement off or onto the side chain?
I hope the above is all understandable -- I am definitely "out of my element"
Thanks in advance for your help.