MicroLaw-protecting hardware against competition by copyrighting it as a compilation of data

The author explains what copyright protection does not cover, stressing its limited applicability. He then discusses typefaces, which are not covered, and compilations (defined as an original selection or arrangement of preexisting materials or data), which are covered. He speculates on how the law on compilations could, in the context of reverse engineering, be used to confer copyright protection on hardware, which otherwise is not covered.<>