I thought I'd share a post by fellow Jadukan, Brock Marion...

After many internal discussions,

We expect the transition to occur around mid-June 2008 at which time the calling functionality of the current Earthcaller site will be turned down. We are working hard to make this transition as frictionless as possible and will provide an easy path for users to create their own Jaduka Labs accounts to use the new version. We will start encouraging current users to register early for a Jaduka Labs account to avoid the rush that will occur when the cutover takes place by updating our ad unit and messaging on Earthcaller within the next week.

Current Earthcalller users will need to create new Jaduka Labs user accounts to access and use the new version, but in doing so they will gain access to a much better free PC-to-phone application in almost every way. By registering, users will also have access to other Jaduka Labs apps, such as: dukaDIAL, dukaBAR, dukaLINK, and dukaBUZZ -- all great phone widgets in their own right. In short, Earthcaller users are not only getting a better PC-to-phone calling application, they are gaining single login access to other free and useful telephony apps and widgets!

OK, back to Earthcaller 2.0 -- this build has a new interface design that we really think users are going to like. Designwise, it is a play on the globe device we used in the Earthcaller logo and has a very organic, soft shape. I'd go so far as to say it looks very environmentally friendly, but I don't see us getting a LEED certification for Earthcaller anytime soon.

Regarding user experience and usability, Earthcaller 2.0 is a much more robust and useful application with some powerful new features. The new version leverages the saved contacts functionality of Jaduka Labs accounts, adding it to the Earthcaller 2.0 bag of tricks and builds upon it by adding one click speed dial buttons on the application interface. We even made it possible to assign graphic icons to your contacts for easier access.

By adding the ability for users to save their contacts for future reference as well as implementing speed dialing, we have really made this application much more useful for power users. I have a feeling these two features alone will create a huge new crowd of Earthcaller faithful. You would think these new additions would enable Earthcaller 2.0 to far surpass its sibling and it will, but we didn't stop there.

Also new to Earthcaller 2.0 are some testing tools. Why testing tools? Well, when you are talking about a VoIP application and PC-to-phone calls in general, connection speed, headsets, mics and speakers are part of the recipe to make these types of calls successfully.

To address these needs, we have created an integrated network speed test tool that users can access without ever leaving the application to confirm that they have a good connection to the Internet -- connection speed being the single most important element to confirm that a PC-to-phone call will be of high quality.

In addition, we are creating a simple integrated micraphone and speaker testing tool, allowing users to set their mic and headset volume levels prior to making calls. Both of these tools will live under the Earthcaller 2.0 application interface in convenient slide out panels, accessible with a click of the mouse, without ever leaving the application page. Pretty nifty!

And if you thought that was it for Earthcaller 2.0 new features, we also creating a floating call frame for connected calls that floats on your desktop. This allows users to navigate away from the application page without disconnecting their current call. This call frame will feature current call status, including the current number dialed and the ability to redial or add the last number dialed to the users contacts list with a click of the mouse.

Whew! As you can see, we have been busy over here at Jaduka Labs! Thanks for reading and if you don't already have a Jaduka Labs account, go get one right now at http://labs.jaduka.com/signup!