Ethereum Dapps Worth Looking Into: MetaMask

MetaMask

The Ethereum Blockchain hosts all kinds of fascinating Dapps, with more appearing every day. Unlike the traditional internet, the decentralized internet which exists on the Ethereum blockchain operates entirely on a peer-to-peer exchange of value for applications and content. The traditional internet – as we are all painfully aware of – is filled with advertisements and strangers who collect our data, in exchange for “free” applications. Although the applications on the decentralized internet can all be accessed individually, this process can become incredibly cumbersome. In this article we will be discussing MetaMask: The solution to seamlessly browsing the decentralized internet.

Created in 2016, by blockchain software company ConsenSys; MetaMask is primarily an internet browser extension which allows users to connect to the web of Dapps on the Ethereum blockchain. MetaMask also serves as a wallet, for storing Ether and other ERC-20 tokens. MetaMask is one of the most popular Dapps created, with over three million monthly active users worldwide.

MetaMask Setup

To set up a MetaMask wallet, you will need either the Chrome, Firefox or Brave browser installed on your computer. Next, you will need to install the MetaMask software itself. It’s important to install the MetaMask software directly from the MetaMask website, as fraudulent knockoffs of MetaMask have been known to occasionally appear on the Google Play store. If you would like to visit the official MetaMask website, you can find it by following this link: https://metamask.io/

Once you have the Correct version of MetaMask integrated into your browser, you will need to set up a new wallet and secret recovery phrase. A recovery phrase is a list of 12 words and acts as a master key to your MetaMask wallet. On traditional websites your accounts are controlled and recovered by a central database of each user’s information. This information is susceptible to theft by hackers. In the decentralized internet, the security of each user is trusted to the user themselves. No records of your information exist.

You will want to write your recovery, or seed phrase on a piece of paper and hide it somewhere safe. It is best if you are the only one who knows where your seed phrase is hidden, as anyone who has access to it has full access to your MetaMask wallet. Contrariwise, your seed phrase is the only way you will be able to access your MetaMask wallet if anything were to happen to your device. Your seed phrase is also the only way to access your MetaMask wallet on a different device. If you lose access to your MetaMask wallet and lose your seed phrase, the crypto in your wallet will be lost forever. MetaMask will not be able to recover it for you. Financial freedom requires personal responsibility.

Interacting With Dapps

Now that you have set up your wallet, you will need to add funds. You can send ETH or any other ERC-20 token to your MetaMask wallet from another wallet, or you can add funds to your MetaMask wallet with a debit card via Wyre. Wyre will accept your fiat payment for the purchase of ETH and automatically send your ETH to your MetaMask wallet. Now that you have funds in your MetaMask wallet, you are ready to interact with any Dapp built on the Ethereum blockchain!

To interact with a Dapp, simply visit the website or launch the application of the Dapp you would like to interact with. Once you have done this, you will see an option somewhere on the Dapp which allows you to connect it to a wallet. Just click MetaMask on the dropdown list, then open the MetaMask wallet and confirm the pairing. Once this is done, you will see a green indicator in the corner of your MetaMask wallet. This confirms that the pairing was successful.

MetaMask offers a token swap feature that allows users to exchange their Ethereum token for any other ERC-token on the Ethereum blockchain. Although this feature is convenient, the fees associated with swapping your ERC-20 tokens on MetaMask are often somewhat higher than the fees you will encounter on other Decentralized Exchanges on the Ethereum blockchain. Even though this is not always the case, it is a good idea to compare the prices of an ERC-20 swap, with those of a different DEX, such as Uniswap, or Pancake.

In Conclusion

The Decentralized internet is a fascinating place, with tons of interesting applications. With the MetaMask wallet you can safely and confidently use your crypto to spend, earn and create with a multitude of Dapps! There are new Dapps being created all the time. You can rest assured that we here at Killer Whale will keep you up to date on the most useful and exciting Dapps on the Ethereum blockchain!

If you liked this article, check out our review of Uniswap in our article series of Ethereum Dapps worth looking into!

Ethereum Dapps Worth Looking Into: Uniswap

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