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Introduction to Nova at IxDF
This is a draft of a new Lesson Item for IxDF Handbook course
What Is Nova?
Nova is our admin panel — the internal tool where we manage all the data on our platform: members, courses, masterclasses, payments, teams, and much more. You access it at /admin/nova.
At IxDF, Nova manages over 160 different types of data (called Resources) across the entire platform. Almost every team interacts with Nova daily.
Page Types
When you work in Nova, you'll navigate between four page types:
| Page | What It Does |
|---|---|
| Index | Lists all records of a Resource |
| Detail | Read-only view of a single record |
| Edit | Form to modify an existing record |
| Create | Form to create a new record |
Not every piece of information appears on every page. For example, some data might be visible in the list but hidden on forms, or shown only on the Detail page. This keeps each page focused and uncluttered.
Core Terms
Resource
A Resource is the central concept in Nova. It represents a type of data you can view and manage — Members, Courses, Masterclasses, Announcements, Orders, Teams, etc.
Each Resource has its own Index page (the list), Detail page (a single record), and optionally Edit and Create pages.
Field
A Field is a single piece of information on a Resource. Think of Fields as columns in a spreadsheet — "Title", "Email", "Status", "Published date", etc.
Fields can display data in different ways: plain text, checkboxes, images, dropdowns, links to related Resources, and more.
Help Text and Help Cards
Many Fields have a short explanation that appears below them — this is help text. It tells you what the Field means, what format to use, or what effect a change will have.
We also have Help Cards — larger documentation panels that appear at the top of pages. There are two kinds:
- Index Help Card — appears on the Index (list) page. Explains the Resource list, available Filters, and common workflows.
- Detail Help Card — appears on the Detail (single record) page. Explains Fields, available Actions, and how to edit the Resource. Often contains links to external documentation, e.g., on Dropbox.
If you see something unclear or incorrect in a Help Card, let the dev team know — these are easy to update.
Both Help Text and Help Cards are editable on GitHub — you can (and should!) edit them to improve clarity of Nova pages.
Action
An Action is an operation you can run on one or more Resources. Actions are the primary way to make changes through Nova — enrolling a member in a course, publishing a course, duplicating an announcement, marking a transaction as refunded, impersonating a member, etc.
Some Actions ask you to fill in a short form before running (e.g., "enter the member email to enroll"). They can also show confirmation dialogs and return success or error messages.
You'll find Actions in a dropdown menu on the Detail page or as a bulk option on the Index page after selecting records. Some Actions are available for a single Resource, while others only make sense when multiple Resources are selected (e.g., export Teams as a list).
Filter
A Filter narrows down the list of Resources on an Index page. Filters appear as controls above the resource table.
Examples:
- filter Courses by published status
- filter Transactions by payment gateway
- filter Members by country
Lens
A Lens is an alternative view of a Resource that shows the data from a different angle. While Filters narrow down the standard list, a Lens can completely reshape what you see — adding calculated columns, showing aggregated statistics, or combining data that normally lives in separate places.
Example: the Course Statistics Lens shows enrollment counts, completion counts, and completion rates with mini trend charts — information you wouldn't see on the regular Course Index page.
You can find available Lenses in a dropdown on the Resource Index page. Note: only a few Resources have Lenses (including Course and Team).
Metric
A Metric is a data visualization that appears as a card on a page. There are several types:
- Value — a single number with trend (e.g., total revenue this month)
- Trend — a line chart over time (e.g., enrollments per week)
- Partition — a pie/donut chart (e.g., payment method distribution)
- Table — a custom table (e.g., course validation checklist)
Metrics give you quick insights without leaving the page you're on.
Card
A Card is a content block displayed on a page, usually above the resource table. Metrics are one type of Card. Help Cards (described above) are another. Cards provide context and guidance right where you need it.
What You Can Ask Devs to Change
Nova is highly customizable. If something feels off — a missing column, an unhelpful search, a workflow that could be smoother — there's a good chance it can be adjusted. Here's what's easy to change:
- Columns on the Index page — add, remove, or reorder the columns you see in the list
- Fields on Detail/Edit pages — show additional information, hide irrelevant Fields, or change their order
- Search — make specific Fields searchable (e.g., search Members by phone number, search Orders by transaction ID)
- Sorting — make a column sortable so you can click its header to sort the list
- Filters — add new Filters or adjust existing ones to help you narrow down data faster
- Validation rules — change what's required or optional when creating/editing a Resource, adjust format rules
- Actions — add new Actions for operations you do repeatedly, or improve existing ones
- Metrics and Cards — add charts, counters, or tables to give you at-a-glance insights
- Help Text and Help Cards — clarify what a Field means or document a workflow (you can even edit these yourself on GitHub!)
When requesting a change, mention:
- Which Resource you're working with (e.g., "on the Member page...")
- What you'd like to change (e.g., "...I'd like to search by phone number")
- Why it would help your workflow (e.g., "...because support tickets often only include a phone number")
Most of these changes are small and quick for the dev team.
How to Talk About Nova
When communicating about Nova (in Slack, tickets, docs), use Nova terms instead of describing icons or buttons. The UI may change over time, but the terms stay stable:
| Say this | Not this |
|---|---|
| Open the Member Detail page | Click the eye icon |
| Open the Edit Course page | Click the pencil icon |
| Run the "Publish" Action | Click the 3 dots and select Publish |
| Apply the "Published" Filter | Use the dropdown to select published |
| Search Member by email | Enter email in the search field and press Enter |
| Delete the Resource | Use the trash can icon on the right-hand side |
Summary
| Term | One-line definition |
|---|---|
| Resource | A type of data you manage (Member, Course, Invoice, Video, etc.) |
| Field | A single piece of information on a Resource (title, email) |
| Action | An operation you run on a Resource (publish, enroll, duplicate) |
| Filter | Criteria to narrow down the Resource list |
| Lens | An alternative view with reshaped or calculated data |
| Metric | A data visualization card (number, chart, table) |
| Card | A content block on a page (Metrics and Help Cards) |
| Help Text | Short explanation below a Field on Edit page |