  Due to the space and time dependence of the wave function in the time
dependent Schroedinger equation, different boundary conditions are possible.
The equation is usually solved as an ``initial value problem'', by fixing the
value of the wave function in all space at a given instant. We compare this
standard approach to "source boundary conditions'' that fix the wave at all
times in a given region, in particular at a point in one dimension. In contrast
to the well-known physical interpretation of the initial-value-problem
approach, the interpretation of the source approach has remained unclear, since
it introduces negative energy components, even for ``free motion'', and a
time-dependent norm. This work provides physical meaning to the source method
by finding the link with equivalent initial value problems.
