Preface

Money has evolved over the years. In its early days, it was physical objects, eventually becoming gold. It later took the form of gold coins. Since these coins were expensive to mint, money later took the form of paper currency. The evolution of technology has given us digital currencies, though they still struggle to keep up with the pace of technology. This is because different banks have different systems that don't work effectively with each other. A lot of processes in these traditional systems are still manual. This has slowed down the movement of money between people and organizations. The security of these systems has also been proven weak on numerous occasions.

We need a system with strong interoperability and security features. In 2009, a decentralized currency called Bitcoin was invented with strong security, privacy, and autonomy features. It enables people to send money across borders without revealing their identity. The system is completely autonomous. It doesn't need any human supervision. Computers that run the Bitcoin program communicate with each other to enable global payments.

Later, Ethereum was invented. It is more than a payment network. It enables people to program money and build decentralized applications through smart contracts. Though Bitcoin and Ethereum are great innovations, they can only process a limited number of transactions per minute. The bigger problem being they don't support existing fiat currencies such as the US dollar or the euro.

Ripple provides a decentralized system that allows you to transfer anything of value. Though it issues its own currency, called XRP, it allows the transfer of fiat currencies and physical assets (as long as they can be represented digitally). It also provides a solution for banks that integrates with their traditional systems to make international transfers fast and cheap. Furthermore, it allows you to program the flow of money with its escrow, check, and payment channel features. Since it's an open system, it allows anyone anywhere in the world to build applications on top of it.

Who this book is for

This book is for beginners who want to understand and use Ripple's blockchain technology. If you are a trader who wants to work with XRP (Ripple's currency), this book will help you choose and set up a Ripple wallet and make money transfers. It will also help you to manage and protect your Ripple wallet. This book covers the basics of the blockchain, so no prior knowledge of blockchain is required. If you are an investor or a finance professional, you will gain an understanding of the applications of Ripple, which will help you gain insights into the future potential of this technology. This book also highlights common misconceptions about Ripple and its potential risks. If you are a developer, you will learn how to use the Ripple API to build applications on top of Ripple. Developers are assumed to have a basic background of JavaScript, HTML, and CSS.

What this book covers

Chapter 1, Getting Started with Ripple, In this chapter, we will start by learning the fundamentals of blockchain and cryptocurrencies. You will learn how and why blockchain was invented. We will discuss the challenges faced by early cryptocurrencies. Later, we will study how Ripple addresses those challenges. You will also learn how Ripple manages to make global payments fast and cheap, and we will look into the potential risks of Ripple.

Chapter 2, Working with the Ripple Currency XRP, In this chapter, we will take a hands-on approach to work with XRP. We will learn how to set up a Ripple wallet, and see how seamlessly you can transfer money to a friend abroad. We will discuss the different kind of wallets you can use to store XRP. We will also discuss the security precautions you need to take to keep your money safe.

Chapter 3, Applications of Ripple, In this chapter, we will understand the applications of Ripple. We will learn how Ripple's xCurrent software integrates with traditional systems to make cross-border transactions efficient. We will also learn how Ripple enables its users to make cross-currency payments. We will then study the check, escrow, and payment channel offerings of Ripple, and learn about its Initial Coin Offering and the fully functional decentralized exchange inside Ripple.

Chapter 4, Getting Started with the Ripple API, In this chapter, we will learn how to work with the Ripple API. We will set up the development environment and connect to the test network to send money from a Ripple account. We will also learn how to build web applications using the Ripple API. If you have never worked on a blockchain-based system, this chapter will give you a kickstart.

Chapter 5, Developing Applications Using the Ripple API, In this chapter, you will learn how to use advanced offerings of Ripple, such as checks and escrows. You will learn how to send checks, cash checks, and create and release escrows. We will also integrate the Ripple API to build web applications. These applications will allow non-developers to easily use the check and escrow features of Ripple.

To get the most out of this book

If you are a developer who wants to build applications on top of Ripple, you need to have basic knowledge of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.

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Conventions used

There are a number of text conventions used throughout this book.

CodeInText: Indicates code words in text, database table names, folder names, filenames, file extensions, pathnames, dummy URLs, user input, and Twitter handles. Here is an example: "Mount the downloaded WebStorm-10*.dmg disk image file as another disk in your system."

A block of code is set as follows:

{
    "Account": "rfkE1aSy9G8Upk4JssnwBxhEv5p4mn2KTy",
    "TransactionType": "CheckCash",
    "Amount": "50000000",
    "CheckID": "838766BA2B995C00744175F69A1B11E32C3DBC40E64801A4056FCBD657F57334",
    "Fee": "12"
}

Bold: Indicates a new term, an important word, or words that you see onscreen. For example, words in menus or dialog boxes appear in the text like this. Here is an example: "Select System info from the Administration panel."

Warnings or important notes appear like this.

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