Over at ZDNET.com, they have a new post reviewing the newly leaked 7057 build of Windows 7.  While not the official Release Candidate 1 (RC1) build, they [and other sites] claim the UI has been cleaned up quite a bit, new themes and avatars added, and other graphical polishings that would would lead one to think the Release Candidate is right around the corner.

Others have posted some new screenshots, updates and information on the new build as well, including Paul Thurrott’s Windows Supersite.  Paul’s website is a wealth of information on all things Microsoft and definitely worth checking out if you haven’t been there before.

What does this mean in the grand scheme of things?  Basically it means the Release Candidate (RC1) is getting closer (rumor has sometime in April) and each successive leaked release gives you a closer hint at how this new OS is going to perform.

As an IT professional, it’s always good to get a jump on what’s coming down the pike so you can test things like application, driver and component compatibility.  At this stage a beta doesn’t really help in those areas, but it does prepare you with regard to the overall look and feel, where things are located, nuances with the user interface, imaging requirements, tweaks, etc. 

I haven’t had time to really spend with the new build, but I wanted to let everyone now about it and also get some feedback.  If you’ve been using it (or any Windows 7 build) leave a comment and let everyone know your thoughts.

• Do you like Windows 7 compared to Vista or Windows XP?
• Are you planning on upgrading your personal computer, or if you’re an IT person – upgrading your company
• What enhancements would you like to see that aren’t there?

Aaron Wall, SEO superstar and owner of www.seobook.com has just released the panacea of SEO tools that adds a wealth of SEO information to your Firefox browser.

Combining the best of breed tools for research and discovery, this is one toolbar you’ll want to add to Firefox if you’re serious about SEO.  I replaced my Google toolbar with this one (the only thing I really used the Google toolbar for was to get a quick glance and a site’s PageRank) and a link to gmail.

The toolbar provides a very robust toolset, but also provides a built-in RSS reader already populated with many popular SEO RSS feeds.

To really get a feel for all this toolbar has to offer, check out Aaron’s site and description of the toolset.  I think you’ll find it a huge timesaver when researching and comparing one site to another, against competitors, etc.  I will post another review of the toolbar and how it’s helped us once I’ve had a week or two to use it and dig into the power it provides.  Thanks Aaron for another great contribution to the SEO community.