Attention Toad for Oracle Base Users – Should You Be Using Toad Data Point Instead?

Toad for Oracle has a huge and diverse user base. It started as a solution for developers building Oracle applications and added more DBA features over time. For a long time, Toad for Oracle has been focused on developers and DBAs needs.

However, there's a large segment of Toad for Oracle users who aren't developers who write applications and they aren't DBAs who maintain databases. They use Toad for Oracle to connect to an Oracle database, run some queries, browse some data, and maybe save that data to an Excel file. That's about the extent of it. They also need to do these same tasks on other data platforms as well. They end up using separate tools for separate systems.

I would consider these folks more of an analyst. That might be a data analyst, business analyst, technical analyst, or a report developer. They don't use the more powerful features like SQL Optimizer or DB Health Check, but they need an editor, a browser, importing/exporting tools and they need them on multiple platforms, not just Oracle.

They also need a simple and easy way to manipulate, transform, and cleanse the data. Analysts may also move and combine data between different data platforms. Some analysts are members of business departments and not the IT department. They may want a more business friendly approach to querying, like using drag and drop, filters, and other visual aids.

If you're one of these analysts and you're using Toad for Oracle, you should really take a look at Toad Data Point. For roughly the same cost, you can have a tool that was designed for your needs and not the needs of a developer or DBA. With Toad Data Point you’ll be empowered to

• Connect to multiple platforms from one tool, not just to Oracle:
  • Relational databases like SQL Server, MySQL, PostgreSQL
  • Non-relational databases like MongoDB and Cassandra
  • Business intelligence tools like Oracle BI Enterprise
• Merge data from different data sources together using a single query
   
• Use the familiar Toad Editor window and Schema Browser (called Object Explorer in Toad Data Point)
• Use a drag-and-drop, visual method of creating and running queries designed for less technical folks
• Perform transformation and cleansing of the data using a UI
• Automate workflows and reports to happen on a schedule
• Profile data, run analytics, and create charts, graphs, and pivots from the same tool
• Share and collaborate with coworkers easily

Toad Data Point was designed with the data analyst in mind. It's a modern tool that works across many data platforms. It doesn't go into as much depth in Oracle as Toad for Oracle does, but the needs of an analyst are different.

You can learn more about Toad Data Point by watching this short video:

https://blog.toadworld.com/toad-data-point-uses-and-benefits 

Download a free 30 trial of Toad Data Point:

https://www.quest.com/register/54955