Abstract

Virtual reality attributes to software system characteristics such as intuitiveness, easiness of use, interactivity, and immediacy. Implementing a virtual environment is a complex process prone to usability issues. This article presents a model for usability evaluation of virtual environments deploying FSAW, a fuzzy multi-criteria decision making approach. FSAW has been used for evaluating the usability of 29 museums’ websites offering virtual tours using 360-degree panoramic images. The proposed model ranked the virtual tours visited, focusing on the usability problems detected. The implementation issues identified had mainly to do with the naturalness of interaction and the consistency of departure. Another important problem identified was that in many cases the educational role of the museum had been overlooked. Users’ interaction was deemed as very good and user-friendly, and the experts deducted a positive general overall impression.