First steps in Web3: What is a digital wallet and how to create a MetaMask account

In my shop, you can buy photography and digital art also using your credit card or via Paypal. You will get the artwork piece sent by mail as a jpeg file - but the NFT, the unique digital asset, remains in my wallet, as long as you do not provide an Ethereum wallet address, where I can send the NFT to. Don't panic: If you are providing a wallet address later on, I will transfer the NFT for free to your digital wallet - making you the sole owner of the purchased artwork.

What exactly is a digital wallet? It is like a virtual pocket where you can keep your digital money (cryptocurrencey) and other digital assets (like NFTs). It's an add-on to your browser that has a special address, like a banking account number. People can send you digital money or NFTs to that address - and you can use your wallet to send digital money or NFTs to others or to connect to every website in the Web3 space, for example when you buy art from secondary markets or from a site, where a new project is minting (which means: being created on the blockchain).

But how can you create a new wallet? There are several wallet providers out there. But the most used one is MetaMask. Please don't google it, as there are several scam sites out there. Use this link to get to the right website, where you can download the MetaMask application for your browser: https://metamask.io/

On that page MetaMask is providing a simple YouTube video, which shows you how to create your own digital wallet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVgfHZMFFFQ

Two very important things:

1) Please don't use a digital wallet on your smartphone. Use it on your web browser on your computer, many browsers are supported. You should not play around with money on your phone while sitting in the subway. Just don't do it. Be concentrated and always stay safe.

2) Note down your seedphrase (which is the only recovery method for your wallet) on a paper, using a pencil. Put that paper in your safe or in another safe space. Never take a photo with your phone, never save a picture or a note on your computer. It is essential to keep your NFTs and crypto investments safe.

Please read also my post about security in web3 to learn more about this important topic. In the next blogpost I will show you the most important marketplaces for NFTs.