Interesting topic. The latest algo change has affected my sites going down 3-6 places. But the unusual thing is they increased in PR by 1 and 2. Anyone have experienced this?

The latest I've heard about Google is its partnership between a gas company. This is perhaps the most unusual step of big G today. For me, it's not a search engine anymore but a brand.

I agree with solidghost. Also, find dofollow social bookmarking sites and blogs - they work big time!