How do I score the best seat?
Tips from Matt Daimler, founder of SeatGuru.com, which tracks seats on some 275 planes

1. HAVE A PLAN.
"Stick to the traditional strategy of picking exit rows," says Daimler. If you can't score the exit, stay away from engines (noise) and sit near the front, preferably in the bulkhead (the seats behind cabin separators, which generally offer NBA-friendly legroom). If you're first off, you're the first to arrive at customs, baggage claim, or the taxi line.

2. CHECK IN ONLINE.
"Most exit rows and bulkheads are held back until the day of the flight," says Daimler. "If you check in online as early as the airline allows, they treat it like you're standing at the counter, and you have access to the best seats hours before the lines form."

3. DON'T BE FOOLED.
Beware exit-row seats that don't recline. Typically, these are the seats with their backs to the exit row. If there are two exit rows available back to back, book the rear one. Chances are, you'll end up with a fully reclining exit-row seat with lots of legroom—like, for instance, seats 16A through 16F on all United 757 jets. You also want to avoid the windowless "window" seats, which are usually found just in front of the wing. Before you book your seat, vet it with SeatGuru.com; the site will probably tell you what you're plopping yourself into.

How can I beat the frequent-flier Nazis?
Sound advice from Randy Petersen, founder of the frequent-flier magazine InsideFlyer (insideflyer.com) and proud owner of 12 million miles

1. NEVER USE MILES for any ticket you can buy for less than $200.

2. EARN WITHOUT FLYING. Sixty percent of all miles are not earned by flying. For example, American's AAdvantage program will let you earn points by eating at thousands of restaurants (up to five miles per dollar), joining Netflix (1,500-mile bonus), or giving to the National Parks Foundation (ten miles per dollar for donations exceeding $100).

3. DON'T WASTE POINTS on a domestic first-class upgrade.

4. DON'T LET YOUR MILES DIE. In some programs, dormant accounts will wipe out miles. Fortunately, a little shopping with a retail partner like Home Depot will usually keep the account active.

What happened to the air-taxi revolution?
It's still five years away, at best. The notion of hopping into your personal flying SUV for a weekend trip got a lot of buzz starting in 2005, when NASA sponsored a personal-aircraft-design competition. But the prices of such planes remain prohibitively high, and with the economy slowing down, demand for these "very light jets" has flagged. New Mexico–based Eclipse Aviation, which began delivering six-passenger jets last year for $1.6 million a pop, has struggled to stay afloat. But on-demand air travel is taking wings elsewhere. In the past year, several regional carriers, like DayJet and BlueSky Taxi, have begun offering personalized service for short-haul trips like Tampa to Boca and Chicago to St. Louis. You name the time and book a seat on a private flight, paying by either the hour (about $500) or the mile (about $3). For more information, visit atxa.com.