wiki to rescueSylvander wrote: What is a "source" [I've seen "source code" mentioned in my travels]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Source_code
In computer science, source code is text written in a computer programming language. Such a language is specially designed to facilitate the work of computer programmers, who specify the actions to be performed by a computer mostly by writing source code, which can then be automatically translated to binary machine code that the computer can directly read and execute.
An interpreter translates to machine code and executes it on the fly, while a compiler only translates to machine code that it stores as executable files; these can then be executed as a separate step.
Most computer applications are distributed in a form that includes executable files, but not their source code, which is only useful to a computer programmer who wishes to understand or modify the program.
The source code which constitutes a program is usually held in one or more text files stored on a computer's hard disk; usually these files are carefully arranged into a directory tree, known as a source tree.
Source code can also be stored in a database (as is common for stored procedures) or elsewhere.
The most important thing about source code is that it allows others to understand how the program is set up to achieve it's goals and if the documentation the human comments that is for us to read and the computer to ignore is that one can modify it so it suites our need. That is why we have "Free Open Source Software" FOSS so we don't have to pay incredible high sum to use that code?
QNX OS that is used now in latest RIM BlackBerry Playbook most likely is proprietary source code that you need a license to use.
Some 25 years ago I trusted the then "dogma that everybody can learn anything if one set ones mind to it and that talent was another word for hard work" so I tried to learn Assembler and C++ and all the other computer languages. It was not true. Not everybody can be a programmer.