I have been researching this to death and cannot figure out how this works. Please help!
If I were to store/backup bitcoins, can I store the same bitcoin in multiple places? My understanding is that a bitcoin is nothing more than letters and numbers. So I should be able to backup that bit coin in multiple places, including just writing down the public address and security key onto a piece of paper.
I keep researching the different ways and there always seems to be a horrible con.
Paper: Use the bit coin and any "change" is stored in a completely different place, not back to your paper wallet. Then you lose the "change" forever, because it is a new number, therefore you need a new paperwallet.
PC: Can get hacked, or your computer crashes and you lose it. You can back it up on a USB, but what then? Did you not just backup that one bitcoin into multiple places?
Online: Company goes bankrupt, you lose your coins. Company gets hacked, you lose your coins. Coinbase for example says they can keep it if they feel the need to do so. Now they offer a super secure vault that supposedly you control, they dont. Even if they go under, you keep your bitcoins. How in the hell is that possible? They store it on their servers. If their servers are gone, how is it that you "keep" your bitcoins when you no longer have access to their servers?
None of this makes sense.
I wish there was a video that showed a mockup of every aspect of bit coin process. From purchasing the bitcoin, what the bitcoin looks like, actually storing that bitcoin, selling that bitcoin, how to receive change after selling, etc.. Just the whole process from start to finish. Rather than someone saying, "here is what you can and should do." I want to see it in action.
Well i think you are not aware of bitcoin process and its advantages.i recommend you to go through the links which are given in above comments, those will make clear understanding of bitcoins.Even i will try to make some points clear.
Bitcoins are Digital money and, every day thousand of merchant starts using them as payment. We all know how they are generated and how its works, let us see how are they stored and where they are stored? Well, Basically only store the secure digital keys which are used to access your public bitcoin addresses and to sign those all transactions . This data is stored in a bitcoin wallet which comes in a variety of forms. There are five main types of wallet Desktop or Laptop, Mobile,Web, Paper and Hardware.
Of course, it is very important to safeguard and back up your bitcoin wallet.If you suppose to keep your private keys stored in any wallet, and if they are lost or whether it gets crashed or corrupted, then you will lose your keys ( information). Backing will automatically makes a copy of your private keys, but you need to back up your whole wallet and not only the private keys. Back up the whole wallet in several different places, and keep them safe from been stolen and Hack.