I remember the letter in the magazine that Al Davis is talking about. I also read it several times and couldn't figure out exactly what he meant. I'd love to see an extended explanation with some pictures.
I've used barbless hooks which help some. Some fish will get away, but it's much easier to unhook the ones you catch and less stressful for the fish.
In my tacklebox I keep the plastic housing from a ball point pen with all of the insides removed, leaving just a long hollow plastic cylinder that's open on both ends. When I gut hook a fish I run this down the line, over the stem of the hook, and use it to push down and hopefully disengage the hook. Using the right combination of pushing down on the hook with the pen and pulling up on the line I can often get the hook out pretty easily, especially if it's barbless.
