Hi guys,
I just wanted to share what I learned about actually using Ripple's built-in distributed order book to trade BTCs, XRPs, etc.
Steps to sell XRPs today for Bitstamp BTC IOUs 1. Log into your
https://ripple.com/ account and click on "Contacts" on the left panel. Click + to add "Bitstamp.net" and their ripple address is rvYAfWj5gh67oV6fW32ZzP3Aw4Eubs59B
2. In ripple UI, Click on Advanced -> Trade -> change issuer (blue link next to BTC/XRP currency pair)
3. Start typing in "Bitstamp..." in the "issuer" field or rvYAfWj5gh67oV6fW32ZzP3Aw4Eubs59B directly. You have now entered
the only viable BTC/XRP market in the ripple universe.
4. Click around to see the order book, eventually put up your bid by clicking on
buy BTC and specify desired price
per BTC in XRPs. Click "Place Order"
5. Once your order clears (could take a while unless you match best counter-offer manually) you will NOT be notified, instead you will notice your ripple account balance has changed and now you have some BTCs there as well as remaining XRPs
6. You now have
bitstamp issued BTC flavored IOUs in your ripple account. You can then use these to buy back XRPs when their prices fall as billions more are released.
7. These bitstamp-flavored BTC IOUs can be send around to other ripplers.
Steps to redeem those bitstamp.net BTC IOUs back into the comfy cozy comfort of your offline brain wallet:
1. Log into bitstamp and hit deposit -> ripple -> send using ripple web client
2. Enter amount of BTC IOUs to move into bitstamp.net account from your ripple account (they are still IOUs at this point !)
3. Transfer from bitstamp.net's account back into the comfy cozy safety of your offline brain wallet.
Whole thing takes seconds (except for the confirmation when transferring BTCs out of Bitstamp's account)
Having completed the steps above, you will do some practical hands-on training in how to use Ripple's built-in distributed multi-asset order book trading.
Enjoy.