NewbieRunner

Why don't you participate in both and decide for yourself? I did for a while and now hardly ever look at MilePoint.

The strength of FlyerTalk is the wealth of information. The strength of MilePoint is that it's a friendly place. Milepoint is more US-centred, FlyerTalk is (slightly ) more international.

Both were started by Randy Petersen: FlyerTalk in 1998 and MilePoint in 2011.

Here are some FT threads you may like to check.
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/commu...milepoint.html
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/exter...milepoint.html

moretimeoffguy

Thanks NewbieRunner.

moretimeoffguy

Saw this pre-existing thread for anyone interested:

Does anyone here also post on Milepoint?
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/exter...milepoint.html

jackal

I'll go ahead and move this to the EM&PR forum and request the mods of that forum to merge with that thread.

jackal
Moderator, Information Desk

kokonutz

Bear in mind that many bloggers have a business relationship with the management of mile point ranging from co-owner to ad revenue-sharing partner.

Similarly, some blogs are affiliated with flyer talk.

So, as ever, caveat emptor.

moretimeoffguy

Thanks kokonutz. Are the various Mile and Point conferences similarly aligned / affiliated with / organized by either FT or MP? Are there are Mile and Point conferences *not* affiliated with one or the other?

Trying to determine which Mile and Point conference might be right for me--I've never attended one.

I have a thread asking about the unique strengths of each Mile and Point conference. Don't even know if there are two, three, or more such animals. Haven't gotten any specific replies addressing my specific questions:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/infor...-best-why.html

If anyone knows of a good post, or better, a focused article, comparing and contrasting the various Mile and Point conferences, that would be helpful. Not sure I want to dive into too much minutiae; trying to get a general sense of which would be better for me at this time.

kokonutz

Yes, the FTUs including the upcoming one in Seattle are run by the FtEF. You can read the thread about that organization in this forum, but generally speaking it is put on and run by the same guys who co-own milepoint, except they run it through a non-profit organization. Gary Leff, author or the blog view from the wing and co-owner of milepoint is organizing the Seattle event and you can look at the thread in this forum about that specific event for more details.

The Chicago Seminars are put on by a group of volunteers from flyer talk and as such operate on a less formal (but still highly organized) basis. Since they are a Ft community barn-raising affair the threads about them reside in the community forum.

I have not attended either because from looking at the offerings they seem rather remedial for anyone who has spent a few days reading flyer talk. They also appear to be quite similar in terms of speakers, programs, etc.

My personal advice is, before shelling out a hundy or whatever, swing by the ft community forum and check out a local ft happy hour or dinner. You'll find not just a ton of info at these informal gatherings but you get a chance to network with points and miles geeks. I even met my wife at a ft gathering!

A great way for even introverts to get a feel for the people behind the handles and soak up some points and miles nerd knowledge.

freeloader

I believe it was determined last year that the thread for this years Chicago Seminars will reside in this forum, since it's a pay-to-play event

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/20607021-post200.html

Regardless, personally the stuff they talk about at these seminars is usually pretty high level and not terribly helpful. Did a couple FTUs and the scene got tiring after the second - big name bloggers walking around acting like rock stars, presenters leaning on inside jokes, cliques. Some people were really cool though - Seth and the guy from Rapid Travel chi in particular

I think both are pretty similar... It will be the same cast of presenters doing the same presentations and same credit card shills. Keep your expectations in check (you won't here many big secrets that aren't already on FT) and you'll enjoy it. If you wanted to do one, I'd recommend the one closest (and cheapest) to you.

On an aside, I've instead had a much better time (and learned much MUCH more) and the Do's posted on the community buzz page. And all of them are free. YMMV

84fiero

I've only attended one, the Chicago Seminars in 2011. I had fun, learned a few things and enjoyed talking to folks. Some of it was a bit high level for me at the time, and definitely would be by now. I wouldn't rule out doing one again if it's convenient and inexpensive (Chicago is easy to access for me, for example) and depending heavily upon who is presenting. But I'd like to make it to one of the informal DOs one of these days as it sounds more my style.

yerffej201

i tried milepoint, but there's just not enough people and the threads i like to frequent here are just not present in mp.

satman40

I go to the seminars, and will be in Seattle, been doing the miles game since 85, and always pick up a few tricks each time.

Nice to get away, and it pays if you make it pay.

Like reading the bible, you find something new each time you look at it.

Miles point us a little slower, but hey nothing wrong with a slow walk, and FT, some of it is a real waste, and some if it is cool.

Got time do them both,

Double your pleasure, double you fun

kokonutz

Well here is a random metric courtesy of Randy Petersen and Delta airlines.

Randy posted identical threads in his MP Delta forum and the FT Delta forum at the same time (approximately midnight this morning) about the massive change to Delta's FF plan.

Approximately 9 hours later:

Milepoint thread: Replies:91 Views:968

FlyerTalk thread: Replies: 619 Views: 48,302

I haven't read through the threads thoroughly to determine whether the MP posts were 'nicer' or 'more welcoming' (mostly because the wiki in the FT thread tell me everything I need to know anyway ^) but the numbers do tell a pretty clear story.

tcook052

Yes, that FT is several times the size of MP. Wasn't that clear before this DL dynamite?

Kagehitokiri

MP post counts excl lounges >
57,769 UA
35,437 AA
16,105 DL
15,737 AC

oliver2002

Stats for January:

View Screen Capture