MMO-Champion Forums
I find these forums to be very helpful - a lot of the information comes from the Elitist Jerks Forums but the people on MMO-Champ are usually willing to help you out on a case by case basis without being well.... elitist jerks. But don't worry, it's got its fair share of trolls too.
The MMO-Champion site itself is a good place to find a consolidation of the latest goings-on of the World of Warcraft. Patch notes, etc.
rawr is a good tool to optimize your gear. I haven't used it since Wrath though. Just google it.