Status match thread is utterly useless
 

There are a ton of questions on this website around status matches and unfortunately, they all get funneled into the one thread. The problem with this is that people commonly only think of status matches once or twice in their flying careers. They are not going to weed through one thread or even open the thread to see what questions might interest them. Users look at an entire thread such as the Travel thread and post on a handful of items that interest them.

The end result is that nobody who has done successful status matches looks in the thread as it is just a mess of random questions and there might be something in there they might be interested in, but they're not going to hunt for it. Picture how much the travel tech forum would suck if it was just one thread.

Status matching info is a huge benefit of FT. Really, status matching, how to use elite status and mileage runs are the nuts and bolts of FT. Sadly, we keep one of those nut and bolt combos locked away in the closet...

I assume that you raised your concern directly with the Miles Buzz moderators before posting here? What did they say?

he probably didnt' but does have a point.

I was about to ask the same question. :) I also agree with the above poster.

thegeneral did touch on some issues I ran into while browsing that thread. For me personally, I haven't got to the point to do a status match yet. I was only trying to learn the "inside scoops" and "enrich" my FT knowledge. I wanted to be prepared when the time comes. It turned out to be a frustrating experience so I gave up, thinking I would return and visit the thread WHEN I am really doing status match. I felt the info was too overwhelming and hard to weed through for a relatively status-free newbie like me. :o

As the originator of that thread I can tell you that it was originally meant to bring together much of the status match information from across Flyertalk, since the question of "can I get matched?" and "who do I contact?" comes up so frequently.

That was 4 1/2 years ago. And the thread was wildly successful, in a way I never expected. And so many posts do become a bit unwieldly (though you can always search within the thread).

I'd be happy to chat off-line (PM) with anyone who'd like to build a better alternative. Or someone can just build a better mousetrap and the market of Flyertalkers will decide to use it instead. ;)

While that thread as grown over the years, I found it helpful 2 years ago getting a match with CO. It did take some effort, but that was part of the fun. ;) The rewards are still paying dividends.

Gary, maybe you can start the 2008 edition?

I'm happy to defer to someone else.

Work/travel pretty heavy for the next couple of months. So it'll probably take me until May to think about it (sorry). Happy to be of assistance to someone else if useful, just not something I"m likely to drive on right away.