Quote from: mmeijeri on December 24, 2013, 09:44:55 AM

Quote from: k99 on December 23, 2013, 11:30:38 PM

I agree that that lack is a big problem. But I dont see that Ripple is the solution as it needs gateways which are companies (exchanges, banks,...) which can be shut down.

It's still a major improvement. And consider Hawala, because Ripple is in part a digital verison of Hawala. Despite their best efforts governments around the world haven't been able to suppress it. And even if just one jurisdiction allows Ripple, everybody with an internet connection can use it. Bitcoin enthusiasts in China can trade in Bitstamp IOUs, even though it might be difficult to exchange them for yuan. As long as they're legal somewhere, they'll keep their value.

The Hawala system is at least in Germany stricly controlled/forbidden:
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawala

Quote from: mmeijeri on December 24, 2013, 09:44:55 AM

The distinction between gateways and individuals issuing IOUs is blurry. Anyone can issue IOUs.

Can you layout a simple step by step scenario with 2 users (if users are issuers not gateways) who are trading BTC/USD in Ripple?
Just a scenario if I want to sell 1 BTC for 1000 USD and then a few days later sell those 1000 USD to x BTC. I dont understand how that could work without gateways (at the end I want real BTC and real USD not IUOs - if a gateway is needed then lets add it to the scenario with all trust implications). Also I would like to see in every step the trust limits (possible loss).
I tried to find on the wiki page a detailed example, but they are too hi-level and not covering all my questions.

Here is an article about Ripple which meets my opinion very close: http://bitcoinmagazine.com/7275/ripple-is-officially-open-source/

But thanks for the discussion and I would be pleased if you could give me more detailed information about how it really works (above scenario).