i also noticed the new matches and picked up a box.i cut the striker strip off and that and as many matches as will fit go into a small plastic bottle in the bottom of my pack never to be used unless all else fails..the all else being a lighter.
Excellent. My original idea in my initial post was to highlight the fact that these newer SA matches light very well indeed on rough paper, no striker strip needed at all. I just tried a regular business card and the match burst into flame perfectly, first time. In fact, I just tried the Diamond Strike Anywhere matchbox itself, and the match lites perfectly being struck just on the end of the cardboard inner box that slides out, and on the inside of the outer box. The match wouldn't strike on the colored outside of the box. So really, no actual striking strip on the box is absolutely necessary.
I do, however, remember one occasion long ago when I had one of those old-fashioned chrome-plated brass Marble "match-safes" with the roughened outside surface for striking. They were austensibly "water-proof" (not really), but the idea was to open the match-safe, take out a match, close the match-safe, and strike the match on the outside of the safe. It worked great with the "old-fashioned" strike-anywhere matches, not so good with the later ones. Anyway, one time I didn't close the case all the way and struck a match on the outside. A little teeny flaming piece of phosphor found its way back inside the match-safe which still had about 20 matches inside. WHOOOOOSSSSHHHHHH!! Instant rocket in my hand.