Quest Software has introduced a new version of Toad for Data Analysts, a multi-platform tool designed for IT and business professionals who need to quickly access, understand and report on data.
Toad for Data Analysts 2.5 offers new features aimed at helping users keep up with the demand for data, complementing data warehouse and BI solutions by providing direct access to raw data from almost any data source.
Key new features include an enhanced query builder with pivots and charts now built directly into the query builder, enabling users to change queries on the fly without switching screens. In this release, the query builder also provides more support for reverse engineering "which has turned out to be a very important feature for a lot of our users," Daniel Norwood, product manager at Quest Software, tells 5 Minute Briefing. "As scripts go along in time they get bigger and bigger and they can become hard to read and understand. Having the ability to put that into the query builder and reverse engineer that to a visual model where all you have to do is point and click and drag and drop, is very valuable to people and a good time saver, so we have put more effort into making that robust."
Providing new compare and sync functionality, ODBC support has been added, allowing users to compare and synchronize data between an even greater range of sources.
Additionally, the automation feature now supports loops and variables, giving users the ability to be more flexible and create more powerful scripts. "Now instead of simply having a linear approach to an automation script, they can have one that branches and diverges depending upon the needs of the user or depending upon the results of certain parts of their automation script," explains Norwood. Building dynamic automation scripts is important in this particular economy where people are often doing more than what they are accustomed to, and wearing multiple hats, observes Norwood. "We really wanted to focus on automation and make sure that people were able to be as productive as possible." With this release, users can also now upload and publish work to an FTP server, giving them even more options for report distribution.
"This is not just for developers," emphasizes Amanda Blackburn, product marketing manager for Quest Software. "It has a lot of functionality that fits the needs of a wide range of users from a single tool."
Supported databases include Oracle 9i, 10g, and 11g; various versions of Microsoft SQL Server, Sybase ASE, MySQL Network and MySQL Community, IBM DB2 z/OS and DB2 LUW, Microsoft Access and Excel, as well as any database with a ODBC v. 3.0 (or later) driver.
For more information, go here.