In this short paper, the authors are proposing and briefly describing an online system for the gradual surveying, recording, documenting and presenting of tangible cultural heritage in the UAE. On one hand, the immediate aim is to present these documented historical sites on-line for the current and the future generation of Emiraties. This would help in spreading the tangible cultural knowledge among college and school students thirsty for knowing their own heritage and would also help in promoting awareness among the general public. On the other hand, the long term aim is to carefully and accurately document the tangible cultural heritage of the UAE. This documentation can further be used by current and future generations in their effort to conserve their own history. This brief description of the online system will only focus on the tangible cultural heritage of Al-Ain city as a pilot model. This model can be expanded and applied in the future to cover more cities and sites in the UAE.
In this proposal and its pilot web-site, the authors adopted a simple WEB interface that works on standard PCs and utilizes standard virtual reality technology. Based on a study presented by Haval in 2001, this system would not compromise the strong need for gathering and linking heritage information, and yet, its' simplicity would save time and produces a user-friendly environment for the general public (Haval, 2001).
Key words: Tangible Cultural Heritage, Virtual Reality, Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates