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There are no stupid questions.
The term "default" refers to something that is used or assumed in the absence of any other directions. When you boot up your computer, it runs the installed operating system "by default," unless you have an external device or disk in giving it alternate instructions.
In game shorthand, a "default skin" (or outfit, or eye color, or whatever) is a piece of custom content which is installed to override original content. Say you don't think S3 is dark enough. You create a skin which you think is the correct value for S3. If you put it into the game normally, existing S3 skins will not change, the original S3 will still appear in CAS, and only sims you create in CAS (or, if you geneticized it, are born in the game of parents with a skintone range that permits it) will have that skintone.
If, however, you code the skin as a default, it will override the existing S3 and take its place where ever it appears. It will not have a custom star and will be treated by the game as if it were the original S3.
You should be able to take out a properly-made default at any time, without any special steps, and everything that was using it will revert to the original appearance of whatever you defaulted.
In future, if you feel like you have a question that "everybody else" already knows (I promise you, everybody else doesn't!), or that should have a straightforward answer not worth making a whole thread about, there is a "stupid/random questions" thread just for that. It's great because you don't have to make yourself conspicuous when you're feeling embarrassed about having to ask; also, if you start following it, you'll pick up a lot of information, find out that your questions aren't as dumb as you think, and will see that even people you think of as experienced and knowledgeable still have questions to post there.
Ugly is in the heart of the beholder.
(My simblr is
Sim Media Res .
Widespot,
Widespot RFD: The Subhood, and
Land Grant University are all available here. In case you care.)