This AMA (Ask Me Anything) features Intercoder from Crossmark - a new browser extension wallet built on the XRP Ledger.
Check out the full recap below, and head to xrpldevs.org to join the community and tune in for the next AMA!
Hazard Cookie: Everyone please join me in welcoming Intercoder to our AMA this month! Intercoder is the founder and developer behind the new browser extension wallet “Crossmark.” Super excited to have him here today, please feel free to send your questions as usual to #ama-questions 😄
Intercoder, could you start with an intro? Who are you and what is your background before Crossmark?
Intercoder: Good morning HazardCookie! So my story is a bit different compared to other developers building on the XRP Ledger.
I have a masters degree in Structural Engineering and went to school mainly to study how buildings are designed and constructed. However, over the past few years, I opened my mind to other technologies and opportunities. This led me down a path to learn to code and I have been building my skills as a developer day by day.
Like many others, I was drawn to the XRP Ledger for its speed and efficiency. I have been experimenting with the XRP Ledger for some time now. I presented at both Apex Conferences in 2021 and 2022.
Hazard Cookie: That's amazing! I love hearing stories like that 🙌
It would be helpful to quickly describe what Crossmark is and what motivated you to build it.
Intercoder: Crossmark is a browser-first digital wallet built on top of the XRP Ledger, supporting most of the native features and transaction types on the Ledger. You will be able to install the wallet in your browser (Chrome, Opera, Firefox). It will very much look and feel like a combination of XUMM and Metamask.
I was motivated to build Crossmark because as I was developing on the XRP Ledger, I was looking for something to make it easier to sign transactions and switch between networks. For the longest time, funding test wallets on the parallel networks was not easy using a XUMM wallet. Crossmark will make this easier and hopefully serve as a good resource for new developers like myself building on the XRP Ledger.
You can read more about our motivations and mission here. https://www.crossmark.io/blog/our_mission
Hazard Cookie: I know many developers who are excited about this type of functionality! Speaking of developers, I see we already have a good question from the community:
How do you feel about having a unified API/wallet connect implementation across all current XRPL wallets (Crossmark, XUMM, Gem Wallet, Ledger) so that implementing wallet features within dApps brings consolidated compatibility across all wallets? If so, how do you envision something like this working?
Intercoder: I do feel strongly that a tool which strengthens the interoperability between different wallets would be amazing. Such tools have not been developed yet for XRPL, because frankly, not a lot of wallets have been built up to this point. Yes, we do have XRPL-centric wallet providers such as GateHub and XUMM but we need more of them to justify a standardized API tool like WalletConnect.
Very good question! Keep them coming!
Hazard Cookie: Speaking of XUMM wallet, can you speak a bit on how wallet setup works within Crossmark? Is XUMM compatible with Crossmark? I believe you have a few different ways to get started, is that correct?
Intercoder: Yes, Crossmark gives users many ways to onboard:
- Generate a new wallet (mnemonic (12 or 24 word), family seed, secret numbers, etc)
- Import an existing wallet (private key, mnemonic 12 or 24 words, family seed, secret numbers, etc)
- Import a wallet using XUMM
So yes, XUMM will be fully supported. Users will be able to import their XUMM wallets into Crossmark, allowing them to monitor their wallet balance and sign transactions using XUMM through Crossmark. Crossmark will act as an “extension” for XUMM and will make it easier for developers to serve payloads to their users.
Hazard Cookie: I love the support for extending XUMM functionality in the browser while also offering a new way to generate wallets if users so desire 😄
On the topic of users: what is the launch plan for Crossmark? When can everyone get their hands on the wallet and try it out?
Intercoder: Crossmark will be launched publicly in the coming months. I don't want to put a definitive launch date out there, because things can change. We will only release the wallet after proper testing and once we are confident that the wallet is safe and secure for our users.
An early version of the wallet has already been released to a select number of developers in the space. We are still in, what I would call, the early stages, but many of the features are built out and ready.
Hazard Cookie: I'm looking forward to getting to play with it myself, I'm sure many others are as well! Any features in particular you are excited about? Do you have any support for upcoming sidechains planned?
Intercoder: Yes! I have been brushing up on the XLS- 38d sidechain amendment and XLS-30d native AMM amendment. These are very well thought-out features and I am looking forward to the liquidity they will bring to the XRP Ledger.
Both XLS30d and XLS38d will be supported. The developer networks are already in the wallet. Users will be able to play around with them, even before they are adopted on the mainnet.
Hazard Cookie: Can you tell us a bit more about how you started programming? Additionally maybe you can tell us a bit more about how secret keys are stored with Crossmark?
Intercoder: Yeah I really attribute my progress in coding back to my passion around the XRP Ledger. If you are passionate and have a vision for what you would like to build, you can learn anything.
I started through online tutorials on YouTube. My first project was inspired by a Wietse twitter post.. If you can imagine that.
Secret keys are encrypted and stored locally on your computer. The keys will never leave the wallet and will never be exposed to third-party developers or dApps. We use the same encryption mechanism used in XUMM, CBC 256 + AES. Secret keys are encrypted using a combination of a 6-digit passcode (provided by the user) and a randomly generated UUID.
Hazard Cookie: Thanks for that! I know we are a bit over time but I really appreciate your time today! Any further resources or comments to close us out today?
Intercoder: Sure, if you want to learn more about the project, or are looking to join the team, go to https://www.crossmark.io/. Thank you for hosting me today!
Hazard Cookie: Thanks again for your time today! If anyone has further questions or wants to stay up to date, you can also find Intercoder on twitter at:
Looking forward to trying out Crossmark and to follow your developer journey!
To catch upcoming AMAs, join the XRP Ledger developers discord.
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