Hydrogen bonds and binding energy question

[ReidMerrill]

I'm doing a computational lab about binding energy and comparing different methods of solvation. What does positive and negative binding energy signify? Half of the places I look say the more positive the binding energy the stronger the interaction between the molecules. Other places say the more negative the binding energy the stronger the interaction. Which is correct?
We're evaluation acetic acid and water hydrogen bonding. To get the binding energy were taking the energy of acetic acid + energy of water - energy of acetic acid and hydrogen bonded water

 

[mfb]

Are you sure the sources use the same definition of binding energy?

The more energy you need to break or change a bond the stronger it is.