Getting Started with Pinnacle Series – Guide
Registered in self-paced training but unsure where to start? You’ve come to the right place!
What is Pinnacle Series?
Pinnacle Series is an advanced online Learning Management System that focuses on comprehensive training, knowledge sharing, and boosting productivity. With Pinnacle Series, you’ll have access to a SOLIDWORKS library consisting of a vast collection of resources and learning material including SOLIDWORKS software training videos, skills assessments, learning paths, workflows, certification prep, and even live events – all available right at your fingertips! And, Pinnacle Series is browser-based, so aside from your SOLIDWORKS software to click along if you choose to, all you need is an Internet connection!
Activating your Account (What to Expect)
Once your account is available, you will receive an email with instructions on how to access the Pinnacle Series platform. This will include a URL to create your password, as well as a verification code that you will need upon accessing the password creation link. From here, simply create your password to activate your account!
Adding New Users
To add new users to your Pinnacle Series platform, access the Administration Portal from the Gear icon available in the Toolbar at the top-right corner of your screen:
From here, you will see a green button with an icon of a user silhouette and a plus sign available in the top-right corner of the page. To add users, click this button and select the option ‘Add User Manually’.
Note: Only Administrators will be able to access the Administration Portal.
Accessing the Portal + SOLIDWORKS Content
To access the Pinnacle Series portal and the SOLIDWORKS Content, start here: https://portal.pinnacleseries.com/
Once you are signed in, you will land on the Home page. The pane on the leftmost side of the page lists your available Asset Libraries, which is where you will go to access the SOLIDWORKS content. To access this content, select ‘SOLIDWORKS’ from the list.
This will take you to the SOLIDWORKS Assets:
Note that you can always access the Home page by utilizing the ‘Home’ icon available in the Toolbar at the top-right corner of your screen!
Navigating the Portal: SOLIDWORKS Content
First things first, notice at the top of the SOLIDWORKS Assets page the tabs for Simulation, Core, and Certification Prep:
The Simulation tab provides access to the available assets on the topic of simulation specifically, while the Core tab allows you to access the assets on SOLIDWORKS essential skills through advanced topics including sketching, part & assembly modeling, drawings, and more. And of course, the Certification Prep tab provides access to the resources available to prepare you in becoming SOLIDWORKS certified!
Now, note that there are four (4) different types of assets: Learning Paths, Workflows, Documents, and Videos. The assets that you will utilize primarily are the Learning Paths, Workflows, and Videos, so we won’t worry about the Documents too much. Let’s break down the three (3) main assets:
Learning Paths
Pinnacle Series Learning Paths present structured courses that guide you through a self-paced training curriculum. Each course can be taken individually or in sequence as presented. These Learning Paths detail SOLIDWORKS essential skills and advanced topics including sketching, part & assembly modeling, drawings, simulation, and more!
For example, the Certification Prep tab contains Learning Paths pertaining to SOLIDWORKS Certifications. These SOLIDWORKS Certification Prep Learning Paths guide you through a self-paced curriculum designed to prepare you for SOLIDWORKS certification exams in order to become SOLIDWORKS certified. The goal of these learning paths is to teach you the necessary skills and prepare you for topics you may be tested on during the exams.
As another example, the Learning Path titled ‘Part Modeling Essentials’ in the Core tab consists of eight (8) courses listed in appropriate order where the subsequent course builds upon the last, all coming together to meet the objective of the overall topic at hand (which in this case, is part modeling essentials). As aforementioned, these courses can be taken in sequence as presented in the preconfigured Learning Path, or they can be taken one-by-one in any order.
When a Learning Path is selected, you will be taken to its respective page that lists the overall learning objectives of that path as well as the courses that the path consists of. Here, you have the option to either enroll in the overall learning path by selecting the ‘Enroll in All’ button in the top-right corner, or you can enroll in any specific course(s) listed by selecting the ‘Enroll’ button associated with that course.
Once enrolled, a ‘Go to Course’ button will become available. Selecting this button will take you to your course!
To return to your Learning Path/Course after exiting out of it, navigate to the Home page; here, you will see the courses you are enrolled in under the ‘MY COURSES’ section. Simply select the course to pick up where you left off!
Note: If you would like to drop out of a Learning Path or a Course, you can do so by simply selecting the hamburger menu icon associated with item and selecting ‘Drop all Courses in Learning Path’ or ‘Drop Course’, respectively.
Workflows
The collection of SOLIDWORKS Workflows includes step-by-step instructions on general part & assembly design, general drawing, general sketching, and more. In other words, the Workflows provide a convenient step-by-step learning method, making them great go-to resources as they serve as how-to guides and pre-written notes that can be easily referenced and navigated.
When a Workflow is selected from the SOLIDWORKS Assets page, you will be taken straight to that workflow. As an example, we’ll jump into the ‘General Part Design’ workflow.
On the left side of the page, you will find the Table of Contents where the lessons included in the workflow are listed. You will not be able to begin until a lesson is selected here, so we would recommend starting by selecting Lesson 1.0 at the top of the structure tree (Please note that this will be the case for all Workflows). Once selected, the Workflow map with interactive steps will be revealed. You can use both the Workflow steps and the Table of Contents to navigate between lessons.
Once a lesson is selected, the lesson material consisting of step-by-step instructions and tips will appear on the right side of the page:
Videos
Lastly, the SOLIDWORKS library includes short, on-demand Videos covering SOLIDWORKS essential basic skills through advanced topics including sketching, part & assembly modeling, drawings, simulation, and more. These videos are intended to be short but effective – they cover a lot of ground very quickly! The Videos section in the SOLIDWORKS Assets page allows you to easily access specific material of interest without having to click through a learning path or workflow to locate.
For your reference, these are actually the videos that the Learning Paths and Courses are comprised of, but here they are listed individually by topic title rather than grouped together for a specific big-picture objective. This allows you to seek out specific topics you’d like to cover, without having to follow a preconfigured learning path or workflow!
Conclusion
All in all, between the Learning Paths, the Workflows, and the collection of Videos, a wide range of valuable material that is easy to follow is available right at your fingertips! With Pinnacle Series, you have the opportunity to go through preconfigured learning paths, jump into particular workflows, or pick-and-choose what specific standalone topics you’d like to take a look at. You have a mix of videos to watch and follow along with, as well as written step-by-step breakdowns pertaining to specific tasks/topics. This provides you with many different tools and resources to aid in your success with the content, as well as several options on how you would like to consume the material based on what works best for you!
Learn on!
Not a Pinnacle Series user but interested in getting started? Contact us today!