didn't check out the link yet, but before I forget:
I just talked to someone who said they did this with live bait, and he called it "threading" the minnow. he takes some kind of big needle with a little hook at one end and sticks it down the length somehow. then he pulls his steel leader through and attaches the hook. he too says the bait stays lively.
probably a terrible description, but that was the basic idea.