hasn't this been the case since day one though? (to one extent or another)

I remember often times when booking in advance I could never get a window seat in row 3... but if I were to book a week before it was almost always open.


So I typically booked a window seat in row 5 and switched to 3 either when checking in a night before or at the check-in desk... usually the customer service rep was more than happy to put me in 3A, 3F or 3D...

--Russ