The Euesperides project: design and evaluation of a hypermedia program for an archaeological exhibition

Maria Economou

«Archeologia e Calcolatori» 1996, 7, 1105-1115

Abstract

This paper focuses on the Euesperides program, a hypermedia application for the public presentation and interpretation of archaeology and the main issues related to its design and evaluation. The project was set up in Oxford in order to explore some of the questions concerning the effectiveness of multimedia for exhibition interpretation. The computer program presents the history and archaeology of the classical Greek colony Euesperides in North Libya. The application was designed for a temporary exhibition organized by the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford in autumn 1995. It aimed to offer contextual and interpretive information about the objects on display, and also to demonstrate aspects of archaeological theory and practice. The paper discusses the structure of the program and the ways user input affected design choices. At several stages through the design process, formative evaluation was carried out with different groups of the targeted audience (schoolchildren, adults, students). This offered valuable feedback about the content, language, screen design, navigation, and user interface of the program. Summative evaluation was also conducted to explore the use of the hypermedia program by the visitors in the gallery. The paper refers to the methodology used, outlines the questions that the survey addressed, and presents the first results.

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