The latest move by advertisers to overcome the evil, vile, soul-shattering device that is the DVR is the creation of "mini-commercials." Let me try to explain it like this: You know when you're fast-forwarding through the commercials and you hit "Play" when you see the show comes back? The DVR is smart in that it backs up a few seconds, figuring your reflexes aren't spot-on (you're probably drunk), so that you don't miss any of the show. That sometimes means you catch the last few seconds of the commercial break. These five-second ads are meant to show you a full (if extremely short) spot instead of just the last five seconds of a 30-second commercial. This tactic is being heralded, of course, as "TiVo-proof," a claim that is growing more and more funny every time someone uses it.
