Okay, I've been thinking about this a lot recently but I think I may be more confused now than I was originally when I started. I can't find anything about Openflow that helps me understand what it is. None of the websites I have found have given a solid definition of what Openflow really is and what it does, at least if they do I can't comprehend it. Is there an easy way to explain this standard so my small brain can understand it?

I understand that Openflow is a way to abstract networking away from switches and can be managed from software, etc etc. I feel like it might be a little easier to grasp if I had exmaples of application. But so far searching has failed me. What is Openflow? How can it help me? What does it offer?