<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><sec id="j_jdis-2017-0014_s_007_w2aab3b8c34b1b7b1aab1c15b1Aa"><h3>Purpose</h3><p>This study is a user evaluation on the usability of the Mogao Cave Panorama Digital Library (DL), aiming to measure its effectiveness from the users’ perspective and to propose suggestions for improvement.</p></sec><sec id="j_jdis-2017-0014_s_008_w2aab3b8c34b1b7b1aab1c15b2Aa"><h3>Design/methodology/approach</h3><p>Usability tests were conducted based on a framework of evaluation criteria and a set of information seeking tasks designed for the Dunhuang cultural heritage, and interviews were conducted for soliciting in-depth opinions from participants.</p></sec><sec id="j_jdis-2017-0014_s_009_w2aab3b8c34b1b7b1aab1c15b3Aa"><h3>Findings</h3><p>The results of the usability tests indicate that the DL was more efficient in supporting simple information seeking tasks than those of higher-complexity levels. Statistical tests reveal that there were correlations among dimensions of usability criteria and user effectiveness measures. Moreover, interview discourses exposed specific usability issues of the DL.</p></sec><sec id="j_jdis-2017-0014_s_010_w2aab3b8c34b1b7b1aab1c15b4Aa"><h3>Research limitations</h3><p>This research is based on a relatively small sample size, resulting in a limited representativeness of user diversity. A larger sample size is needed for a systematic cross group comparison.</p></sec><sec id="j_jdis-2017-0014_s_011_w2aab3b8c34b1b7b1aab1c15b5Aa"><h3>Practical implications</h3><p>This study evaluated the usability of the Mogao Cave Panorama DL and proposed suggestions for its improvement for better experience. The results also provide a reference to other cultural heritage DLs with panorama functions.</p></sec><sec id="j_jdis-2017-0014_s_012_w2aab3b8c34b1b7b1aab1c15b6Aa"><h3>Originality/value</h3><p>This study is one of the first evaluating cultural heritage DLs from the perspective of user experience. It provides methodological references for relevant studies: the evaluation framework, the designed information seeking tasks, and the interview questions can be adopted or adapted in evaluating other visually centric DLs of cultural heritage.</p></sec></abstract>

PurposeThis study is a user evaluation on the usability of the Mogao Cave Panorama Digital Library (DL), aiming to measure its effectiveness from the users’ perspective and to propose suggestions for improvement.Design/methodology/approachUsability tests were conducted based on a framework of evaluation criteria and a set of information seeking tasks designed for the Dunhuang cultural heritage, and interviews were conducted for soliciting in-depth opinions from participants.FindingsThe results of the usability tests indicate that the DL was more efficient in supporting simple information seeking tasks than those of higher-complexity levels. Statistical tests reveal that there were correlations among dimensions of usability criteria and user effectiveness measures. Moreover, interview discourses exposed specific usability issues of the DL.Research limitationsThis research is based on a relatively small sample size, resulting in a limited representativeness of user diversity. A larger sample size is needed for a systematic cross group comparison.Practical implicationsThis study evaluated the usability of the Mogao Cave Panorama DL and proposed suggestions for its improvement for better experience. The results also provide a reference to other cultural heritage DLs with panorama functions.Originality/valueThis study is one of the first evaluating cultural heritage DLs from the perspective of user experience. It provides methodological references for relevant studies: the evaluation framework, the designed information seeking tasks, and the interview questions can be adopted or adapted in evaluating other visually centric DLs of cultural heritage.

Digitizing Dunhuang Cultural Heritage: A User Evaluation of Mogao Cave Panorama Digital Library

Journal of Data and Information Science

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

PurposeThis study is a user evaluation on the usability of the Mogao Cave Panorama Digital Library (DL), aiming to measure its effectiveness from the users’...

	Task 1	Task 2	Task 3	Task 4	Task 5	Task 6	Task 7	Task 8	Task 9	Avg.
Avg. time (seconds)	157.2	21.6	99.6	28.2	118.6	108.5	80.2	86.3	110.9	90.0
#. Failures	1	0	4	0	4	2	4	7	0	2.44

Dimension	Rating (five-point Likert scale)

	Median	Mean
Ease of use	3	3.2
Organization of information	3	3.4
Labeling	3	3.4
Visual appearance	4	3.6
Content	3	3.4
Error correction	4	3.9
Active control	4	3.8
Two-way communication	2	1.9
Synchronicity	4	4.0

Criterion	Question
Ease of use	Was the DL easy to use? Why or why not?
Organization of information	How do you think about the organization of information on the DL? Why?
Labeling	Do you think the categories of the DL are clearly labeled? Why or why not?
Visual appearance	Do you think the DL is visually attractive? Why or why not?
Content	What do you think about the accuracy of the information on the DL? Why?
Error correction	Can you recover from mistakes easily? Please give an example.
Active control	When exploring the site, do you have a lot of control over what you can do?
Two-way communication	Do you think the DL allows two-way communication between you and the DL?
Synchronicity	Do you think the DL is fast in responding to your requests? Please give an example.

Dimension	Groups	Success rate
Occupation	Admin clerks	75.03%
	College students	83.35%
	Multimedia professionals	94.45%
	Secondary school teachers	83.35%
Gender	Female	77.80%
	Male	88.90%
Age	18–20	83.35%
	25–30	81.96%
Experience with the Internet	10 years	84.14%
	6–10 years	80.97%
Interests in cultural heritage	Somewhat uninterested	81.50%
	Neural and somewhat interested	83.35%

Digitizing Dunhuang Cultural Heritage: A User Evaluation of Mogao Cave Panorama Digital Library

Article Category: Research Paper

Publicado en línea: 22 ago 2017

Páginas: 49 - 67

Recibido: 10 may 2017

Aceptado: 25 jun 2017

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/jdis-2017-0014

Palabras clave
Mogao Caves, Cultural heritage, Usability, Dunhuang, Panorama digital library

© 2017 Xiao Hu, Eric M. Y. Ho & Chen Qiao

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Task completion statistics.

Participant ratings on perceived satisfaction and interactivity.

Interview questions on evaluation criteria.

Comparison of task success rate among participants.

Digitizing Dunhuang Cultural Heritage: A User Evaluation of Mogao Cave Panorama Digital Library

Article Category: Research Paper

Publicado en línea: 22 ago 2017

Páginas: 49 - 67

Recibido: 10 may 2017

Aceptado: 25 jun 2017

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/jdis-2017-0014

Palabras claveMogao Caves, Cultural heritage, Usability, Dunhuang, Panorama digital library

© 2017 Xiao Hu, Eric M. Y. Ho & Chen Qiao

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Task completion statistics.

Participant ratings on perceived satisfaction and interactivity.

Interview questions on evaluation criteria.

Comparison of task success rate among participants.

Palabras clave
Mogao Caves, Cultural heritage, Usability, Dunhuang, Panorama digital library