TrueCrypt can use a variety of algorithms for its encryption, including AES, TwoFish, Serpent, and combinations of these. The developers have been good about dropping support for algorithms that have been significantly weakened over the software's lifetime.
There are two significant upgrades in version 6.0. First, TrueCrypt now performs parallel encryption and decryption operations on multi-core systems, giving you a phenomenal speedup if you have more than one processor available. Second, it now has the ability to hide an entire operating system, so even if you're forced to reveal your pre-boot password to an adversary, you can give them one that boots into a plausible decoy operating system, with your hidden operating system remaining completely undetectable.
TrueCrypt isn't necessarily for people who have illegal secrets to hide. If you travel with your laptop, and it contains any sensitive information - from your address book to company records - serious encryption is your best protection in case of theft. Remembering a few passwords, and installing a well-tested open source package that uses them, is a small price to pay for peace of mind.
This is a tool with which everyone who uses any mobile storage device, including laptops, should become familiar. Given that so many laptops are lost each year it is incumbent upon IT departments to look closely at tools like this.
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