what is serialization?

This from msdn: The System.Runtime.Serialization namespace containsclasses that can be used for serializing and deserializing objects.Serialization is the process of converting an object or a graph ofobjects into a linear sequence of bytes for either storage ortransmission to another location. Deserialization is the process oftaking in stored information and recreating objects from it.
would anyone be so kind as to translate this for me and give an exampleof why one might have an interest in this functionality? Please Idon't mind, talk to me as you might a 3rd grader, at this pointknowledge is more important than my pride - I just need the cookies alittle bit lower on the shelf in order to get hold of them.

In simple terms, it allows you to take the state of an object and persist it to disk or send it to another application which can re-construct it. A bit like a dehydrated meal, you add water at the other end and you have the meal back again..

Web Services serialise objects in order to pass them around.

check out this link

http://www.csharpfriends.com/Articles/getArticle.aspx?articleID=94

Serialization is the process of converting an object into a stream of bytes. Deserialization is the opposite process of creating an object from a stream of bytes. Serialization/Deserialization is mostly used to transport objects (e.g. during remoting), or to persist objects (e.g. to a file or database). Serialization can be defined as the process of storing the state of an object to a storage medium. During this process, the public and private fields of the object and the name of the class, including the assembly containing the class, are converted to a stream of bytes, which is then written to a data stream. When the object is subsequently deserialized, an exact clone of the original object is created.