No, we have not added native support for Toad to run on a platform other than Windows. No, I can’t tell you when that will happen. In the meantime, I thought you might enjoy a story about someone who has successfully setup his iPad to run Toad. @BigJim is a friend of mine on Twitter and he reached out to me to let me know he had been able to set this up. I thought more than a few people would enjoy learning more about this, so the following is Jim’s story in his own words, with a few screenshots of the setup.

This is not an endorsement by Quest Software, or myself, of LogMeIn.

So you were in Starbucks and needed to run a query?
I was in Starbucks making some notes on a web application I’m working on and needed some reference table data. I use the Schema Browser a lot to look at data or take a quick look at a package to see what might be causing an error. Definitely not something you could use all the time, but in a pinch you can do anything you could do with your computer while sitting in front of it.

Toad for Oracle on iPad

So what’s your setup look like exactly?
I used LogMeIn to connect to my Windows 7 laptop back at my house / office. I actually started up a Linux VM and started up the database, then ran Toad all from LogMeIn.

Since LogMeIn is basically just streaming an image of your desktop there’s no performance hit. I couldn’t write lots code from my iPad but simple SQL isn’t an issue. I also use an external Bluetooth keyboard, so I get the full screen use on the iPad since the on screen keyboard isn’t needed.

How much does it cost?
LogMeIn is an app anyone can get from the Apple App Store. I think I paid $29.99 for the it, most I’ve ever paid for an app. It’s a universal app so it runs on iPhone or Ipad, but obviously a bit limited on the small iPhone screen. You create a free account at LogMeIn and install a client on your computers. I have a client running on my PC and Mac laptop so I can reach either while I’m out of the office. Once you pay for the app the service is free. There is an upgrade fee for more services while you’re connected (sound, file sharing, etc), but since I only use it from my iPad makes no sense for me to pay for the upgrade. What I get for the one time app purchase fee is fine with me.

Accessing a Linux + Oracle VM to start the DB so Toad can conect

Did you notice any performance or visual rendering issues in Toad?
Since LogMeIn is basically just streaming an image of your desktop there’s no performance hit. I couldn’t write lots code from my iPad but simple SQL isn’t an issue. One caveat, I have a 3G iPad but haven’t used LogMeIn a lot over 3G. Most of the time I’ve used it has been in places where WiFi is available. I don’t think it would be a problem over 3G, just not much experience there yet.

LogMeIn settings for the connection

Jumping Through Hoops
I talk to many customers, like Jim, who go out of their way to be able to use Toad outside of the Windows environment. Whether they use Citrix, GotoMyPC, Parallels, or some other technology, I am often told they set up their Windows environment JUST for Toad. This is a huge testament to Toad’s ability to affect your productivity. I hope that some day we will have the ability to run Toad native on the most popular platforms out there. Just don’t get me started on Java!