Hold on to your hats! The ride's about to start, and its going to be scary! That's right, Google Caffeine is being rolled out as we speak. On the Caffeine test site there is now a message saying:

Thank you!

We appreciate all the feedback from people who searched on our Caffeine sandbox.

Based on the success we've seen, we believe Caffeine is ready for a larger audience. Soon we will activate Caffeine more widely, beginning with one data center. This sandbox is no longer necessary and has been retired, but we appreciate the testing and positive input that webmasters and publishers have given.

Now what this means if that if you have not already checked your site's rankings in the google index, you may be taken by surprise when they change radically. From the testing and analysis that I have performed, there is going to be a big difference in the rankings of a lot of websites. The emphasis on certain elements of the ranking algorithm has changed quite a bit, and there is now going to be a jostling for positions within the SERPs to get to page one. It's not as easy to get up there with Caffeine, and the quick and easy site fixes that once helped your positions greatly seems to have less impact than the laborious trust building tasks that is the bread and butter of SEO.

Be prepared for some choppy waters ahead.