There are multiple audiences for museum collections in the flesh, and multiple audiences for online collections, too. It's not and never has been "real" Vs "virtual". Well, to be fair this was a concern in the very early days when museums thought a virtual visit would jeopardise a real one - but not for years now...
So yes, nothing makes up for the visceral experience of seeing real art and heritage face to face but if you can't get there or are a researcher or school teacher or artist looking at historical techniques or...[insert many other use cases here], online collections play a hugely valuable role.
Plus of course, art like this is often paid for by the state and so the public "owns" it and should get the widest possible access to it.
So yes, nothing makes up for the visceral experience of seeing real art and heritage face to face but if you can't get there or are a researcher or school teacher or artist looking at historical techniques or...[insert many other use cases here], online collections play a hugely valuable role.
Plus of course, art like this is often paid for by the state and so the public "owns" it and should get the widest possible access to it.