AcaNova-X: The Next-Gen Academic Homepage Template

Modern academic homepage template with a two-column landing page, JSON-driven content, selected publication cards, and an expanded publications page with optional demo preview support.

Introduction

AcaNova-X represents a fusion of Academic rigor and the brilliance of a Nova. The suffix -X symbolizes the unknown variables in research, the infinite possibilities, and the "X-factor" that makes each academic journey unique.

Born from the need for a balanced academic web presence, AcaNova-X aims to be neither too cluttered nor too plain. It keeps the original 1.0.0 spirit of a clean and easy-to-maintain academic homepage, while 1.1.0 extends that foundation with stronger publication showcase, richer previews, and more reusable template defaults.

Version Preview

Version 1.1.0

Show preview

Latest version preview with selected publications, expanded publication cards, and updated documentation. The GIF is intentionally shown in a smaller, collapsible format to keep the README easier to scan.

Version 1.0.0

Show preview

Original template preview retained for reference, so users can compare the earlier default presentation with the newer release.

Latest Version

Current release: version 1.1.0

Features

• Clean homepage layout with sticky profile card and modular sections
• news.json, honors.json, and publications.json as the main editable data sources
• Selected publications on the homepage controlled by showOnHomepage and featuredOrder
• All publications page with built-in filters for all, first-author, and accepted
• Default expanded publication cards with thumbnail preview
• Automatic demo.gif loading when it exists beside a paper thumbnail

What's New in 1.1.0

• Adds homepage selected publications controlled by showOnHomepage and featuredOrder
• Upgrades the publications page to default expanded cards instead of the previous compact layout
• Adds built-in publication filters for all papers, first-author papers, and accepted papers
• Adds automatic demo.gif preview loading with fallback to the static thumbnail
• Keeps PDF, Code, and Project Page buttons visible in the template, even when placeholder links are still "#"
• Adjusts the default publication thumbnail box to a flatter horizontal preview ratio
• Updates the README preview assets from the old single example.gif naming to versioned files

1.0.0 Baseline

The original 1.0.0 version still represents the base spirit of AcaNova-X:

• A clean and lightweight academic homepage template
• JSON-driven content editing for news, honors, and publications
• Easy deployment for personal academic websites
• A simpler publication presentation style for users who prefer a minimal starting point

Detailed Section Walkthrough

Part 1. Structured Profile and Research Vision

• Highlights a researcher profile, collaboration note, and research directions in a balanced landing page layout
• Guides visitors from a broad research vision to more concrete thrusts and interests
• Preserves one of the most useful ideas from the original template: a homepage that feels complete without becoming crowded

Part 2. Dynamic News with a Human Touch

• Keeps news content lightweight and editable through JSON
• Preserves the more personal, update-oriented visual tone introduced in the original template
• Works well for recent awards, paper acceptances, project launches, and lab updates

Part 3. Publication Showcase

Version 1.0.0

• 1.0.0 focuses on a simpler publication presentation with a cleaner starting point
• Suitable for users who want a lighter publication section and prefer to expand features gradually

Version 1.1.0

• 1.1.0 upgrades the publication section into a more presentation-oriented showcase
• Adds selected publications on the homepage, expanded cards, media preview support, and clearer action buttons
• Makes the difference from 1.0.0 explicit by turning publications into one of the main visual highlights of the template

Part 3 Comparison

• 1.0.0: simpler publication listing and lighter default presentation
• 1.1.0: featured homepage papers, expanded publication cards, filterable full list, and demo.gif preview fallback
• This is the most visible functional difference between the two versions

Part 4. Professional Structure for Academic Use

• Keeps honors, service, education, and contact information organized in a clean academic profile flow
• Works well as a practical template for personal websites, lab pages, and early-career academic portfolios
• Retains the original goal of being polished enough for public use while staying easy to customize

Version History

version 1.1.0

• Syncs the template with the latest website behavior and presentation style
• Introduces demo preview support for publication cards
• Introduces selected publications on the homepage
• Improves the all-publications page with filtering and expanded presentation
• Refines template defaults and documentation for easier reuse

version 1.0.0

• Original base template release
• Includes the initial homepage, data files, and documentation assets

Quick Start

1. Replace assets/profile.jpg with your own portrait.
2. Edit the placeholder text in index.html.
3. Update data/news.json, data/honors.json, and data/publications.json.
4. Put publication images under assets/publications/<paper-folder>/.
5. Open index.html locally or deploy the folder to GitHub Pages.

Publication Data

Each publication entry supports the following commonly used fields:

{
  "title": "Paper Title",
  "displayTitle": "Optional alternate title shown on the homepage",
  "authors": "<strong>Your Name</strong>, Coauthor A, Coauthor B",
  "type": "accepted",
  "isFirstAuthor": true,
  "showOnHomepage": true,
  "featuredOrder": 1,
  "venue": "CVPR 2025",
  "year": "2025",
  "highlight": "(Oral)",
  "thumbnail": "assets/publications/paper-name/paper-thumb.png",
  "tags": [
    { "text": "Paper", "link": "https://arxiv.org/abs/xxxx.xxxxx" },
    { "text": "Code", "link": "https://github.com/your-repo" }
  ]
}

Demo Preview

To enable animated preview for a paper card, place a demo.gif in the same folder as the thumbnail:

assets/publications/paper-name/
  demo.gif
  paper-thumb.png

The template tries to load demo.gif first and falls back to the static thumbnail automatically.

Pages

• index.html: homepage
• pages/all-publications.html: full publications list with filters
• pages/all-news.html: full news list
• pages/all-honors.html: full honors list

Notes

• The template uses Tailwind CDN plus a small custom stylesheet in styles.css.
• Relative asset paths in JSON are handled automatically for subpages under pages/.
• README previews now use docs/version_1.0.0.gif and docs/version_1.1.0.gif.
• The darker look in a GIF preview usually comes from the GIF export itself rather than GitHub Markdown rendering. The README now reduces the preview size to make the page easier to scan, but if needed, the source GIF can be re-exported later with a brighter palette.