Maybe it's because, as consumers, we're fascinated by advertising. And, maybe, if we all clap our hands, Tinkerbell will live forever. If Fast Forward fails, there will be other advertising agents and filtering products that will succeed in its place. Filters will do exactly what they should do. They'll make advertisers think hard about how and where they want to blend their messages into Web sites, and they will make consumers think about what kind of ads they want to receive, and which ones they want to obliterate.
Filters make webvertising an even more integral part of the Web experience and Web business model.
Other forms will take wing and fly. And this columnist will write about them. Illustration by Dave Plunkert Join the HotWired Network, it's free . Members log in . Wired Digital Inc., a Lycos Network site.