Originally Posted by mnork
I've received an upgrade about 20% of the time. ORD-ANC and OAK-SNA. Even got my girlfriend upgraded on OAK-SNA. Anything into or out of Seattle I've never come close. As far as getting an exit row I've had excellent success. I'm actually in a Board Room right now and have found that if you're nice to the agents in the lounge they will put you in an exit row even for flights that aren't the day of.
If you're PE, sometimes GAs will upgrade you at the gate if you have your certificate with you--even if you're not in one of the qualifying fare classes. If you're on a short hop, you can get free drinks (wine/beer) if you fly their regional carrier Horizon. I think they might be the last carrier in the US to offer that service in Y.