Bitcoin is a closed asset ledger and payment network, supporting Bitcoin.

Ripple is an open asset ledger, payment network, distributed exchange, and liability accounting system---that supports XRP as well as any other currency issued on the network. It is designed to support transactions that cross between currencies. Ripple also prominently supports Bitcoin.

XRP, like Bitcoins, have no counterparty risk. They can be used in absence of trust relationship. IOU, meanwhile, may be issued by anyone and are are worth their exchange value. IOU are secured by trust relationships. Security boundaries form an IOU trust network. They are user-controlled and known as 'trust lines'.

External currencies are the focus of Ripple, in the form of IOU. Above and beyond being an asset ledger, it is a cross currency payment and exchange protocol and network. Using the built-in exchanges and trust pathways, Ripple is able to support near real-time cross currency payments. Users have no need to directly trust each other, in most common use cases. Everything occurs at the best available exchange rate. XRP exists ubiquitously, in part, to simplify pathfinding between currencies for conversion.

Ripple is also designed for external usage. Via the Federation Protocol transactions can silently pass through Ripple---as part of a background payment process. A simple use case would be setting up a payment service that accepts DOGE from the DOGE network and then pays with Bitcoin at any Bitcoin address. Ripple can send Bitcoin out from its own network via the Bitcoin Bridge. Neither buyer nor seller need to concern themselves with the inner workings of Ripple. Ripple is designed so that users can stick with the currencies they are comfortable with, from within those networks---with Ripple merely acting as a bridge between them. No absolute need for end-users to hold IOUs exists. No need for end-users to even hold a Ripple wallet exists.

Use your favorite alt at Overstock.com? Ripple enables exactly those types of cross-currency transactions.

Ripple, as it grows, has potential to become a viable means for Bitcoin to be used to make purchases from any merchant---whether they accept USD, EUR, CNY, JPY, or any other currency.

An attack campaign has given the community an inaccurate and distorted view of Ripple. A shift in perception is beginning, as new users become attracted to cryptocurrencies, and veterans wake up to having been hoodwinked by the likes of Tradefortress and crew.

Ripple for Bitcoiners