Can somebody who knows Ripple explain how this actually works? Links to thread discussions and whitepaper would be nice too.
Whitepaper:
https://interledger.org/interledger.pdfDiscussion:
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1202163.0Basically the idea is to make payment networks interoperable. If it gets adopted it would considerably flatten the world of payments. Think of VISA's slogan "Everywhere you want to be". Their whole sales pitch (or rather the reason you're stuck with them) is that they have the biggest reach. By connecting networks together we even the playing field. It wouldn't matter if you're using PayPal, Bitcoin or FedoraCoin - they are all accepted everywhere.
If that all sounds too good to be true, consider that I'm writing this on my Webpass connection - an internet provider that I absolutely love. Yet Bitcointalk is hosted with a totally different Internet provider. Why doesn't it work like that for payments?