Am I the only person who finds Google's constant need to play down PageRank a bit suspicious? One thing I know is the algorithm is easier to game than Google would like. And, frankly, I think Google's persistent protests against over-reliance on PR are nothing short of an attempt to use social engineering to accomplish what the algorithm cannot: policing spammy content. Simply put, I think Google's constant need to say, "Ignore the man behind the curtain" tells you where the weight of the algorithm still lies. I mean 200 whole signals! Jeepers! There are a lot of ingredients in soda pop, too. So, just ignore the amount of sugar in soda pop. It's not that important. That's what Google is telling you. Never mind that a lot of those 200 signals in the algorithm comprise PageRank. Age of the domain? That's a PR factor. TrustRank of the inbound links? That's a PR factor. If you peeled away the entire algorithm and got down to it, when comparing two equally SEOed websites, the one with the higher PR wins the SERP. That's why PageRank matters. Of course Google wants you to focus on SEO and content creation. And you should. Just remember that a good link campaign that elevates your PR matters.
Oh I really dont care about page rankings anymore. But Im glad that certain "when will PR update?" shall stop now. But Im afraid that that it will be replaced by "My page rank is updated" threads.
Thanks for sharing this! Now, I'll continue to build the links for my blog. I hope to get more plus ranks in next update