unavaca writes: "If you don't mind hanging out in airports, I'd suggest that you show up early. For all you know, a bunch of people on the earlier flights will be...standby via other routings."
Here's another trick that's gone with the bygone days. I used to go standby on flights to co-terminals, for example ORD to SFO (or OAK or SJC). Now, these standby lists have made it trickier by listing you for standby on a very specific flight. I'm not sure if it's possible to get listed for standby on multiple flights, especially with the advance check-in. I used to just actively meander gate to gate to check on availability (especially when multiple flights are delayed and/or cancelled). It wasn't a matter of hanging out in airports but going gate to gate very quickly as boarding sequences went. At a place like ORD, it could mean quite a bit of walking, and a fairly decent workout. But now these lists are electronically updated. I have not noticed if status helps much. I no longer have UA status, but even being plutonium elite in *A or CO doesn't help too much with UA standby. On CO, I routinely go standby and get upgrades automatically, not so on UA.