Thanks and I think you are right... Continental has such a strong partner network and upgrading strategy, that it makes sense for a second airline. I think I will go with the Status match(Platinum for 1K) and see what happens...
I do agree that United is probably one of the highest airlines.. and if you want to buyit offline, you are in trouble. On Orbitz, United is seldom in the first few columns (the lower prices)....