Implementing a collaborative virtual environment — specification for a usability metamodel

Abstract

This research presents the results of the first phase of a macro-project for constructing a collaborative virtual environment. It was aimed at selecting a graphical interface from five proposed for such environment, considering each one’s level of usability. Seve- ral standards of usability and user-centered design patterns were studied for specifying interface measurment criteria for speci- fying a usability metamodel; this defined the variables and rules to be taken into accout when measuring graphic user interface (GUI) usability level for collaborative virtual environments. The use of metaphors when specifying graphic user interfaces is also briefly looked at as a source of new usability and satisfaction related to such interface use.

Keywords

• usability
• usability metamodel
• metaphor
• collaborative virtual environment