I am a Northwest Silver Elite however I've been doing the bulk of my flying on Continental and can't seem to get a straight answer from anyone at either airline about the reciprocal benefits I'm entitled to on Continental as I can standby for an upgrade (but never get it) but can't reserve an exit row seat until the moment that I can actually check-in for the flight 24 hours before

I have a chance to reach Gold and wonder whether I would be better served going to Continental rather than Northwest since from what I can tell the One Pass Silver Elites have less problems on NW than the other way around.

It would be a huge help to know what the reciprocal benefits are both ways