Yesterday, webmasters from around the web reported a Google Toolbar PageRank update. The last reported update was back in late February.

PageRank is a score between 0 and 10 which is calculated by the number of inbound links to a page. With a little effort you can reach PR 3 or 4, but the jump from 4 to 5 and thereafter is much more difficult.

Inbound links greatly affect search engine rankings, but it is commonly said that Toolbar PageRank has no effect. Why? Because it is only updated periodically and it is not the same as the ‘current’ PageRank Google uses when calculating rankings.

Curious webmasters can check their PageRank using this PageRank Checker Tool or simply download and install the Google Toolbar.