Yeah, but I'm guessing he's after anecdote or advice from people who might have tried to copyright or patent something.
FWIW, copyright varies in various jurisdictions. While you need to formally assert copyright in some jurisdictions, in others it's present by default. Another good reason to consult an attorney (and to be cheeky enough to request a free initial appointment to discuss!)
"... They ne'er cared for us
yet: suffer us to famish, and their store-houses
crammed with grain; make edicts for usury, to
support usurers; repeal daily any wholesome act
established against the rich, and provide more
piercing statutes daily, to chain up and restrain
the poor. If the wars eat us not up, they will; and
there's all the love they bear us."
-- Shakespeare: Coriolanus, Act 1, scene 1
