If I go, what is a good time to be there... last time I went there, I had to be in line before 1-2 am to be in or I was SOL.
No need to worry about this anymore. The ticketing process has completely changed and there are no more Order of Arrival passes.
You walk onto the lot at about 8:30 AM in the order you arrived in line. At that time in September, there were only about 280 people there so nobody got shut out as you describe. As a matter of fact, the
first person in line arrived at 12 AM.
The seating has also changed since On Camera Audiences took over. They basically put you wherever they want, and if you are in a large group with matching shirts or "pretty", you are more likely to be chosen to be put in the front.
Also, I heard that once you had a number, you can not go to breakfast outside of the studios and/or take a shower or sleep until the reporting time. True?
Like I explained above, this is true. You need to be in line so that you can walk right in.
As to whether or not you should go, it's like others have said. If you go expecting to be chosen, you won't be chosen. And if that's your sole reason for heading there, might as well spend it enjoying something else since only 9 people get selected per show.
*Note that the information above was from a taping report, not necessarily my personal experience*
