Freeze/Source Code Question?

[David Lees]

I am taking an initial look at Python (total novice) and am puzzled
about the existence of Freeze.  If you do not wish to show your source
code to the world, I gather the byte code in the form of *.pyc files can
be executed.  If the Freeze stuff, just embeds the byte code into a C
program (interpreter?) what is the difference from the viewpoint of
hiding the code?  I assume the C might be easier to run, because
everything is in one executable, but is the byte code still not easily
viewed with an octal or hex dump, just as in the .pyc files?

Are there really good decompilers that translate byte code into source
for Python, so that nothing is really hidden?  If so, is it really much
different that Java or Visual Basic, where presumably the same thing can
be done?

David Lees